Help - chicken lethargic, found a growth on her nose

lisabreanne

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Nov 2, 2018
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Hi there, I'm brand spanking new so...

I have a hen (her name is Nugget) who is at least 5-7 years old (someone gave her to me). My hubby found her two days ago lying on her side in the mud on a rainy day. He put her inside the coop in a laying box and though she wouldn't make it through the night.
Yesterday, my dad checked on her, she had gotten out of the box and was lying on the ground. He picked her up and placed her in the box again - at this point, I hadn't seen her.

Today I went into the coop to check on her. She was alert but still in the laying box and I moved her around a bit and noticed this growth on her nose!! How neither my dad or my hubby didn't notice it is beyond me! Is this an abscess? Could it be causing her the lethargy? Any thoughts? We have 20+ other chickens with no signs of either of these issues.
This is the only photo I have right now. I can take more this evening if needed.
Oh also, she hasn't laid in at least a month. I figure she's getting pretty old.
 

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I could be a blockage of the nostrils from feed and secretions mixed that can sometimes form a concrete-like consistancy. Or it could be nasal canker. I would try soaking the nostril, apply a small amount of peroxide with a QTip, letting it soften. Try then to scrape it off gently. You can sometimes use a feather quill or a toothpick to try opening the nostril. This may take several sessions over a couple of days to get off. Here is some reading about this:
http://www.browneggblueegg.com/Article/PluggedNare/PluggedNare.html
 
It was a blockage. Inside of the mouth is clear and smelled 'fine' - I loosened it with peroxide and it popped right out. Looked like a corn kernel.
My other issue, she's very weak still. She moves around, flaps her wings and moves her head but she cannot stand. If you hold her up, she kicks her legs, so she's not paralyzed, just too weak to stand. Thoughts?
 
It was a blockage. Inside of the mouth is clear and smelled 'fine' - I loosened it with peroxide and it popped right out. Looked like a corn kernel.
My other issue, she's very weak still. She moves around, flaps her wings and moves her head but she cannot stand. If you hold her up, she kicks her legs, so she's not paralyzed, just too weak to stand. Thoughts?
I'm not qualified to comment really but just to help a little I suspect you will be asked for more details such as: what do you feed her, have you monitored crop function , what are her droppings like, checked for lice/mites, has she been wormed /when, and photos of droppings . these details help a lot. Best wishes !
 
Have you added any new birds to the flock in the last weeks or months? To find her lying on her side, unable to get up a couple of times sounds a bit like Mareks disease. It usually shows up in the first 6-8 months of life, but can happen at any time when exposed to a carrier. Silkies tend to be more prone to Mareks. Hopefully, it isn’t Mareks. I would use some vitamins or B complex in her food daily to see if it helps. A chicken sling or chair might be helpful as long as she cannot walk, and you can place food and water right in front of her. She can be let out often to sleep or stretch and move around. They are easy to make at home. Here is a link with designs and a video of just one type:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/versions-of-chick-chairs-please.1166308/

 

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