Help!!! Lethargic hen

[azygous]

Yes, ask your vet for an antibiotic. They usually keep some on hand. If they can give you a week's doses, you can get her started right away. Then order the amoxicillin tonight, and when it comes, you can switch her over to that, unless the vet can give you the full round of treatment.

Get the fish mox ordered and on the way. It's not expensive. It will keep for years, and you'll have it on hand when another chicken needs it. I keep an assortment of antibiotics on hand.

If you have friends or relatives you could ask to go look in their bathrooms for any leftover prescription antibiotics, you can use those on chickens. I have several of those that people have given me for my chickens.

 

[chickentenderbunny]

I’m back at Walmart. Is there nothing I can get as a substitute for her?

EDIT: ok my local fb group informed me that my chicken might have botulism?? Activated charcoal slurry, sulfa meds, electrolytes and antiparasitics??

 

[chickentenderbunny]

I believe she just passed away. She suddenly let out a ton of poop and then couldn’t hold her head up anymore/went limp and closed her eye. She’s not moving and her body is going stiff.

I just want to say thank you to everyone for trying to help me. I’m so disappointed in myself that I didn’t have the proper things she needed most.

 

[Cupcake1243]

I believe she just passed away. She suddenly let out a ton of poop and then couldn’t hold her head up anymore/went limp and closed her eye. She’s not moving and her body is going stiff.

I just want to say thank you to everyone for trying to help me. I’m so disappointed in myself that I didn’t have the proper things she needed most.

I am so sorry for your loss

 

[dawg53]

I believe she just passed away. She suddenly let out a ton of poop and then couldn’t hold her head up anymore/went limp and closed her eye. She’s not moving and her body is going stiff.

I just want to say thank you to everyone for trying to help me. I’m so disappointed in myself that I didn’t have the proper things she needed most.

I'm sorry for your loss.

 

[azygous]

I'm sorry it ended before we could get her the help she needed. This hurts. A lot. It will hurt for a while. Then it will get better.

Try to focus on all this hen taught you with her ordeal. Things you didn't know before. And you're part of this community of folks that love chickens as much as you do. You will always have that.

 

[LulaBell]

Yes, ask your vet for an antibiotic. They usually keep some on hand. If they can give you a week's doses, you can get her started right away. Then order the amoxicillin tonight, and when it comes, you can switch her over to that, unless the vet can give you the full round of treatment.

Get the fish mox ordered and on the way. It's not expensive. It will keep for years, and you'll have it on hand when another chicken needs it. I keep an assortment of antibiotics on hand.

If you have friends or relatives you could ask to go look in their bathrooms for any leftover prescription antibiotics, you can use those on chickens. I have several of those that people have given me for my chickens.

I have read through this post bc I have a hen in similar circumstances. Lethargic, standing puffed up with eyes closed, her comb and waffles are dull. I brought her in the house, I worked her with safe guard goat wormer, she does not feel egg bound, I have her a warm bath and cleaned her up bc her butt was messy. At first she was eating and drinking a little on her own and now it’s only when I encourage her.
She is due for her follow up worming tomorrow....I have molasses and can make up the mixture for a flush....I have corid on hand as well as Tylan50.....

my question is what direction can you give me in regards to order I should apply these things??

 

[azygous]

Worming is a good start.

Things for you to check that could help steer us in a direction are crop, vent, and poop. Feel the crop now. Is it full, squishy, hard, empty? Check the crop again in the morning. Is it still full?

Vent - is the vent dripping fluids? Color? Smell? Is it pulsating? If you push on it, does the hen squat and try to poop?

Poop- a photo would help. Is it runny? Color? Unusual odor?

Hen's habits - egg laying history. Last egg? History of shell-less eggs? Hen's age?

 

[LulaBell]

Worming is a good start.

Things for you to check that could help steer us in a direction are crop, vent, and poop. Feel the crop now. Is it full, squishy, hard, empty? Check the crop again in the morning. Is it still full?

Vent - is the vent dripping fluids? Color? Smell? Is it pulsating? If you push on it, does the hen squat and try to poop?

Poop- a photo would help. Is it runny? Color? Unusual odor?

Hen's habits - egg laying history. Last egg? History of shell-less eggs? Hen's age?

Vent looks normal/healthy....it was messy and had dried liquid poop all around it. I gave her a warm soak last night to clean her up and trimmed the feathers away. It was fine/clean when I checked her this evening.

Crop is basically empty. Over the last couple of days it has been less full in the evening compared to when I first brought her in. But that was expected as she has not been eating much.

she has had mostly solid / normal looking poops. Tonight I did notice slightly looser droppings in her cage.

Overall there have been no overwhelming signs that say definitely what might be wrong. She has list a ton of weight, she maybe no more than 2# right now. Unsure of her age as we got her maybe 2 years ago from a neighbor. She’s had no history of lash egg or other health problems. We free range during the day with constant access to layer crumble and fresh water

 

[azygous]

Thanks. Unfortunately, the things we ruled out with your response would have been treatable. That leaves cancer and bacterial infection. The latter usually shows its presence with runny poop full of mucous. That leaves cancer.

I need to caution you that it's not possible to accurately diagnose a chicken over the internet. We can only try to help you rule things out. We can't tell you for sure the hen has cancer.

One other thing I didn't bring up since it's middle of winter and unlikely, though not impossible, and that is coccidiosis. Since you've already started worming, it will hurt nothing to also treat with Corid for coccidia in her intestines. All this does is block the B-vitamin thiamine to starve any coccidia. If you have liquid Corid on hand or can buy some tomorrow, give her the drench formula of .1ml per pound of body weight undiluted Corid for three days once a day. This is in addition to the Corid water, one teaspoon per half gallon water for five days. If this is her problem, you might see some improvement in a day or two.