Help! Lethargic and confused hen

[minaayindra]

I just went out to my run and found one of my hens just standing there, looking confused and staring off in the distance. I picked her up and put her outside, then she just stood in front of me and started falling asleep. She has not moved except to stand up with her eyelids closing. She has zero signs of injury- she has always been one of my most energetic and assertive hens so this is a dramatic change. Please help- I’m afraid she is dying!

 

[azygous]

She's sick. Let's try to figure out why. But you need to help us with information about your hen.

1.How old is she?
2. How long has she been laying? Or has she not started to lay yet?
3. When was the last time she laid an egg?
4.How is the shell quality? Thin shell? Shell-less?
4. What has she been eating? Free range? Table scraps? Have you checked the feed for mold?
5. Any machinery leaking fluids stored around the coop area?
6. Weather? Hot and wet?
7. Have any other chickens shown signs of being sick? Any that have died recently?

 

[minaayindra]

She is now eating bread soaked in water and drank a lot of regular water like she hadn’t had any. I checked the waterer and they were fine so I can’t figure it. I’ve moved her to a separate coop/run and she looks better, although she still closes her eyes at times like she’s going to go to sleep. I am blessed to have an emergency vet practice that treats chickens but I’m not sure if I should put her through the trauma of a long trip if it’s possible she can get better. Any thoughts would be VERY appreciated!

 

[minaayindra]

She's sick. Let's try to figure out why. But you need to help us with information about your hen.

1.How old is she?
2. How long has she been laying? Or has she not started to lay yet?
3. When was the last time she laid an egg?
4.How is the shell quality? Thin shell? Shell-less?
4. What has she been eating? Free range? Table scraps? Have you checked the feed for mold?
5. Any machinery leaking fluids stored around the coop area?
6. Weather? Hot and wet?
7. Have any other chickens shown signs of being sick? Any that have died recently?

She is 14 months old. She has been laying since early this spring. Her eggs are always hard and perfect. I believe she laid one today but they group their eggs so I can’t tell if it was last night.She only eats layer feed and healthy snacks I give them that are good for chickens. They all have about 1 hour they go out, as long as in with them, every day- too many predators constantly after them here. We store nothing around the coops or runs. We have JD very hot temps and the driest summer ever up here. All the other hens are perfectly healthy. Some are starting to molt but she hasn’t yet.

 

[minaayindra]

She is now eating some plain yogurt, ate a tomato half and is eating some grass. I have not noticed any sign of droppings so I don’t know if she is going or not.

 

[minaayindra]

Sorry to keep posting but I’m trying to catch everything as it comes along. She is still closing her eyes while standing and appears to be falling asleep. At least I know she has the food and water, past that I don’t know. :-(

 

[azygous]

Good information. We need information so we can discover clues.

How about her crop? Feel it. Hard? Full? Soft and squishy?

Look at her vent. Is it dripping fluids? Anything resembling egg yolk?

 

[minaayindra]

Her crop feels firm but not hard, like my others have. There is no drainage coming from the vent.

 

[azygous]

When you post a photo, select "full size image" over thumbnail size, the latter being virtually useless for displaying detail.

We seem to be narrowing it down to some possible reproductive issues that come on suddenly and have no outward symptoms other than the patient behaving lethargically. These usually have no hope for a cure.

Just this past month I had a one-year old hen die suddenly. I opened up her abdominal cavity after she died and found she was full of egg yolks. She had suddenly started to lay internally. There is no help for that unless you have lots of money and access to an avian vet who can install a hormone implant to stop ovulation.

This isn't to say that's what's going on with your hen, but it's a possibility.