HELP! HELP!! HE'S DYING IN MY HANDS!!

[dollie]

i have a question to ask new joined today for this reason.. in the past 6 months i have had a hen go down cant get up and eventually dies. we just checked one this morning to see if she was eggbound i followed ya'lls directions with the oil and all nothing. they can move their legs, head, eat poopong, but tailfeathers are dropped to the ground and cant stand up? i went ahead and put her down. no sniffles no blood eyes clear no sores feathers are nice and shiny no mites they r free range i lock them in the barn at nite and open it in the daytime. they have fresh water, eat scratch and anything else they can find on 3 acres.
please help....

 

[BluegrassSeramas]

Quote:
Will do.

He is already sold, so he is in the pen in the shed, not one of the tractors. No grit in there to scratch up.

That is why I supplement grit when I feed greens and grains..... I dont offer it all the time usually as they get Purina breeder crumbles.

I was out and the feedstore was closed so I used some of the fine parakeet grit (that is for the teeny serama chicks) and then I got the standard sized chick grit for the adults.
Do you think that maybe it was the super fine (sandy with bits) stuff??

Do they do that often? Eat up all the grit? There was quite a bit under the shavings, but I couldnt tell if it was that reg. chick grit in his crop or the grain. It did feel smaller, but there are small grains in the 5 grain scratch too. Could have been grit....Why do they do that?

 

[Chickenaddict]

I think they go nuts for anything you throw out for them and try to hurry up and eat as much as they can before the others come and devour it. a few of mine do the same thing, like they never get treats even tho we all know better. I can go to fill up their grit/oyster shell dish and come back with it and they think its lobster or something, as soon as i set it on the ground they all stick their beaks up at me and walk away or get in the dish and start rollin in it.

 

[SeramaLife]

Hope he is better

 

[threehorses]

I don't think there's anything wrong with grit - in fact it's necessary if you're giving grains. However, I do know from experience that given anything new, chickens are apt to just chunk it down their throats and pay the price later. When I'm starting birds on grit from a more controlled environment, i always offer a little at first - then more a day or so later, then more, etc. I'm actually doing this with our poults, goslings, and chicks now as they're transitioning to where they'll have access to grass. (Unfortunately the way things are here, we can't start them out that way...)

So when you do that, they can often get too much grit and get their crop backed up. (That's the smell you smelled - good instincts).

When this happens, their entire digestive tract slows as well. So you'll want to remove the grit and grains and only feed very easily dissolved foods for a few days while you get your flock back on track. Pellets, crumbles, some yogurt is nice to replace their now shocked gut bacteria, a little egg yolk, non-sweetened applesauce in moderation, a bit of *organic* apple cider vinegar in their water also helps the acidity of the crop and gut return to normal. (Backed up crops change pH because of the 'going bad' of the food that's not moving through the system.) I use 1 teaspoon per half gallon of water.

Then slowly introduce the grit and grains again. And tell that silly roo to not hog so much next time!

In the mean time, please let us all know if you need any more support and how your boy is doing. Thank you.

 

[Judy]

Quote:
You need to make your own new thread. Here is a guide to tell you what other information you need to include:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=3569

 

[BluegrassSeramas]

Thanks guys! He has perked up quite a bit, and his crop feels like there is less gritty stuff in there.. I think that it was the grain that he bolted, so we just gave him water and a pinch of grit in there.....and later another pinch of crumbles. He was lookin' pretty hungry and sad in there.

He is well on the way to recovery!! Im off now to get some extra yogurt for the little guy...


THANKS SOOO MUCH!

 

[threehorses]

That sounds like pretty good news!

I'm glad to hear it. Let us know if anything changes. Thanks!

 

[shay20]

Hey, how is he doing, hope he is better. dont feed him untill his is fully down.

 

[BluegrassSeramas]

Nothing felt in his crop this morning.

He looks fine today!
Going to give him a little yogurt with some crumble sprinkles while Im at school for 3 hrs, and check on him again.

THANKS ALL!