Help! Chicken sick and I don’t know what’s is wrong

[Chickencrazy22]

Not broody then. Are you sure her abdomen is not swollen? Cupping your hand between her legs and then comparing what you feel to a similar healthy hen is the best way to assess it. Since her comb is red, my concern would be that she in laying internally. Over time they build up a mass of egg yolks in their abdominal cavity, but it can take weeks or months to become obvious and the bird will usually act relatively normal during that time apart from not producing eggs.
If she is not eating much, that might indicate an infection.
What type of feed do you use for your flock? Do you give them many treats? Some feeds and treats can cause certain breeds to develop too much fat which is not overly obvious in a chicken with all those feathers. A disease known as Fatty Liver Haemorrhagic Syndrome can result where the liver becomes infiltrated with fat and weakens and starts to haemorrhage. Heavier breeds like Sussex and Orpingtons.... I'm guessing your girl is a Buff Orp from the photo or possibly a buff Cochin .... are more prone to it. The fat deposits can also constrict the gut and make passing full sized poops difficult. That might explain the fluid intake and small poops. Apart from a vitamin B supplement to support the liver and a diet, which is already being self imposed since she is not eating much, I'm not sure what else you can do. If this is the case and she is carrying plenty of flesh, then the heat pad may be counter productive. Does she have the option of using it or not in the cage.... ie plenty of space to avoid it? Also, exercise in that situation may be better than confined.....
It is so difficult trying to diagnose a bird through someone else's eyes and touch and perspective! When are they going to make computers that you can reach through the screen and feel for yourself!

Thank would definitely be much more helpful! I will be sure to check her stomach with my healthy buffington today! And yes she can get away from the heat pad if need be and I’ll be sure to get her some excerersize today! We feed the Dumor poultry 16% layers feed and she normally gets no treats but sometimes some apples or something although that is only once or twice a year. Thank you so much for your help! Also I have some clearer pictures her and have noticed as of yesterday her poop has started sticking to her if that could lead to anything?

 

[andreanar]

You've been given good advice. The one thing I will chime in with: Giving some NutriDrench directly into my sick hens beak seemed to give her some energy to begin eating. I seen more energy, less lethargy within 5 minutes of giving it to her. Good luck!

 

[Chickencrazy22]

You've been given good advice. The one thing I will chime in with: Giving some NutriDrench directly into my sick hens beak seemed to give her some energy to begin eating. I seen more energy, less lethargy within 5 minutes of giving it to her. Good luck!

Thank you I will definitely try that!

 

[rebrascora]

The poop stuck to her back end is probably just because she is roosting on the ground in the cage rather than on a roost bar. Hunkered down to sleep on the ground like she would on a roost pole, poop will build up under her vent during the night and more likely to stick to her feathers.
She doesn't look unhappy or obviously sick.

I'm not familiar with that Dumor feed (I'm in the UK and we don't have it) Is it a pellet or crumble or more like a grain mix? It is good that she doesn't get many treats. It can be so tempting to over do them and once you start, they come to expect them and the next thing you know they have you trained to give treats on command....
The Nutri Drench is a good idea.

 

[Chickencrazy22]

The poop stuck to her back end is probably just because she is roosting on the ground in the cage rather than on a roost bar. Hunkered down to sleep on the ground like she would on a roost pole, poop will build up under her vent during the night and more likely to stick to her feathers.
She doesn't look unhappy or obviously sick.

I'm not familiar with that Dumor feed (I'm in the UK and we don't have it) Is it a pellet or crumble or more like a grain mix? It is good that she doesn't get many treats. It can be so tempting to over do them and once you start, they come to expect them and the next thing you know they have you trained to give treats on command....
The Nutri Drench is a good idea.

Yes she is walking around and generally being curious the only difference is no eating. The dumor is a crumble feed. Do you think I should continue to keep her separated or would it be best to put her back out with the hens?

Update: as of a few minutes ago this is what her poop looks like ( first photo) IT is pretty much just liquid. I don’t know if this is because she has been drinking water but not eating or if this could be because of what’s wrong with her?

Update again. Now her poop is looking like this.( second photo) These were only taken about 3 minutes apart.

 

[rebrascora]

That is pretty serious diarrhoea!
I had a Marans cockerel that was like that for almost a year. He eventually took to sitting around most of the day and I decided to euthanize him. I did a post mortem exam on him and whilst I found that the pericardium (heart sac) was unusually loose and floppy and his liver was not quite the right colour, I never came to an absolute diagnosis for him. He only sired one chick and she too was sickly and despite my best efforts (she was an absolute sweetheart and I loved here dearly and I really tried hard to save her) she died before she was a year old.

None of this really helps you though.... Since it seems to be an intestinal issue, I would be inclined to give her a probiotic and see if that helps.... I would probably give her a formulated one rather than trying natural yoghurt or fermented feed in this case, just so you know she is getting the correct bacteria. Did you say she will eat eggs or she won't? If she will, perhaps cut out everything else from her diet and just feed her eggs and probiotics and a vitamin supplement for a week and see how that goes.

The second poop looks like a cecal poop, which is why it is a different colour. If you can find a vet that will examine a faecal sample, even if they don't see chickens, that would be helpful to check for an infection, coccidiosis and worms. Poop is poop regardless of which animal it comes from, so there is no reason why they can't do it.

Good luck with her and keep us posted.

 

[Chickencrazy22]

That is pretty serious diarrhoea!
I had a Marans cockerel that was like that for almost a year. He eventually took to sitting around most of the day and I decided to euthanize him. I did a post mortem exam on him and whilst I found that the pericardium (heart sac) was unusually loose and floppy and his liver was not quite the right colour, I never came to an absolute diagnosis for him. He only sired one chick and she too was sickly and despite my best efforts (she was an absolute sweetheart and I loved here dearly and I really tried hard to save her) she died before she was a year old.

None of this really helps you though.... Since it seems to be an intestinal issue, I would be inclined to give her a probiotic and see if that helps.... I would probably give her a formulated one rather than trying natural yoghurt or fermented feed in this case, just so you know she is getting the correct bacteria. Did you say she will eat eggs or she won't? If she will, perhaps cut out everything else from her diet and just feed her eggs and probiotics and a vitamin supplement for a week and see how that goes.

The second poop looks like a cecal poop, which is why it is a different colour. If you can find a vet that will examine a faecal sample, even if they don't see chickens, that would be helpful to check for an infection, coccidiosis and worms. Poop is poop regardless of which animal it comes from, so there is no reason why they can't do it.

Good luck with her and keep us posted.

Thank you for all your help! Last night she started eating stray food crumbs and she ate a slice of bread. It was raining last night and while she was running around the garage she saw a small puddle and drank out of that. But when we tried to put a pile of food crumbs in from of her she turned her head and went to find stray ones. She has started scratching for food and has been acting a lot more active than even she was. In her cage instead of sitting there like normal she has begun pacing and digging up her beddinf until we let her out. I’ll be sure to keep an eye on her but she does seem to be acting more active and have a bigger appetite

 

[Chickencrazy22]

I thought i would update everyone and for future people who look at this the hen , Hope, is doing much better. She has started eating normally and her poop is no longer runny but how it should be! Now just have to get her back with the hens. Any advice on that would be very helpful!