help: not sure what's wrong!

[Lb4paws]

Hi-

My 9 mo old Sliver laced Wyandotte is not acting right. My sister noted that she didn't come down off the perch when she went in this morning. When we went in tonight she also stayed up on the perch but everyone else came down for treats. I offered food in my hand and she ate a little. we have 5 chickens and 3 of them lay brown eggs so I am not sure when she laid last.

But as we watched I also noted that she would shake her head every 5-10 seconds. I tried to hold her to get a better look at her and she became stressed. she did some open mouth breathing. she seemed a little unsteady but i'm not sure that's true or just because she was trying to get away from me. so we just watched her for a minute. she pooped while we were watching. her vent looks clean and normal. I tried gentle palpation of the area (externally) and all felt soft. But from what I understand she doesn't sound egg bound.

we separated her from the others and put her in a dog crate in an office. so she has her own food and water in a warmer room.....but not too warm. once we put her in the crate she sat calmly, breathing more normally, and not shaking her head anymore. she seemed nervous so she didn't move much or eat or drink. I didn't want to force her to drink because I didn't want to cause more stress. i'm hoping over night she will acclimate to the crate?

thoughts anyone?

 

[chicknmania]

Open her mouth and look carefully at the inside of her mouth, and down her throat, with a bright flashlight. Look for whitish or yellowish spots...lesions. These can be a sign of canker. Canker can also cause foul smelling breath. If you catch it early enough, it is treatable successfully. This is easiest with two people..one to hold her and open her mouth, and one to look with the flashlight. You can open her mouth by gently pulling on her wattles, or gently pulling on the upper and lower tip of her her beak so that her mouth opens. If her mouth looks ok, that doesn't necessarily mean she DOESN"T have canker, as they can have it internally too...but in any case do the same thing with her ears, look in them with a flashlight to see if they are inflamed or discharging, as she could have an ear infection.

How does her crop feel? Is it emptying overnight? Is she eating and drinking ok? Are her eyes clear and bright and does she have any facial swelling or any kind of discharge from her nose, beak, eyes?

Have you dewormed your flock? If not, worms can be a possibility too.

I'm thinking of Canker first, as I've seen that as a symptom before in birds that have had canker. She also could have something lodged in her mouth or throat, so look for that as well,

Warmth and quiet is good...even better if you they can have warmth and quiet and still hear and see their friends.

Anyway, let us know what you find.

Welcome to BYC.

 

[Lb4paws]

OK, thanks for the suggestions. We'll look tonight.

We watched for a while last night as she was in her isolation pen. She relaxed and started eating and drinking. She at one point pooped out a rather large amount of thick clearish poop with a little green area. But she continued to act like she had to poop and was a bit puffed out. Since we were worried about egg bound we decided to go for the warm butt bath. She tolerated it rather well. Since that went well I went for the cloacal exam. I am a vet tech by trade, however have never worked with chickens. Anyway, I used lube and my pinkie finger very gently. I felt no sign of an egg. Another friend with a few chickens is still concerned that it may be an egg. I don't know.

We also had a packet of electrolyte/probiotic powder from when they were little and we mixed up some of that for her water.

She seemed well this morning. There was a good sized poop, loose but not runny. I gave her some meal worms and she was eating a little when I left. We're are crossing our fingers!!

 

[chicknmania]

Also, have you dewormed her and the flock? That is another very good possibility, and if you haven't done it, do it now. Use a broad spectrum dewormer...Valbazen or Safeguard. You should be able to get the Safeguard (Panacur)suspension if you are a vet tech, it's readily available. If I were you, I'd go ahead and deworm her...or get a fecal done if you can, from the vet. I don't think she's egg bound, personally, but I suppose it's possible.

 

[Lb4paws]

Ok. I haven't done any deworming. She does have diarrhea. We did another warm butt bath last night which she seems just fine about. There's no sign of an egg so I feel less likely egg bound as well. She seems the same otherwise...alert, eating a little, she just seems a little uncomfortable and less active.

I will look for a local vet who will do a fecal. (I'm currently working at a vet supply company...not in a clinic...and when I did it was small animal emergency) I have access to Valbazen and panacur paste because they aren't listed as prescription. I'd have to get the vet to give me panacur suspension...unless I can get it at Farm and Fleet or Tractor Supply. But what is the dose for chickens?

Thank you!

 

[Lb4paws]

oh, and I did look in her mouth last night and I think it looks fine.......but it is the first time I have look to be honest....

 

[chicknmania]

Quote:
My vet let me have some Panacur suspension and he didn't require an exam of the animal, he just did a fecal. He's not an avian vet. He prescribed 1cc per chicken per day for five to seven days. That was for a standard size 3 to 8 lb bird. Don't wait to deworm, do it asap. Because worms can quickly kill a chicken once they are sick with them. Someone on here once said that 98 per cent of chicken illnesses can be traced back to parasites, and I think that's absolutely true. I lost my Silver Laced Wyandot pullet at just about the same age as yours due to Capillary worms. So go now, don't wait! If you have never dewormed your birds, it's safe to deworm them even without a fecal, especially with something like Panacur or Valbazen. For birds that are not sick with worms, it's probably ok to use Strike 3 for the whole flock, but you want to orally dose your sick bird. And then do it again ten days to two weeks from now. the main purpose of a fecal is to see what kind of worms you have. It it's capillary worms ( they are like thread or hook worms) they are a definite problem, very hard to eradicate. After you deworm the flock, you should probably plan on deworming them every six months. Remember there is a withdrawal period for any dewormer unless you are using Strike 3. I like to alternate Strike 3 and Levasole for our flock, and I have been deworming them quarterly, because they had a serious infestation of Capillary worms a year ago.

 

[Lb4paws]

Picking up the panacur susp. after work. Will start tonight. Silly question......on the off chance that she does lay an egg.....is it safe to eat while deworming?

Also, what is internal laying?.......I've seen this come up in posts but don't fully understand.

 

[casportpony]

Picking up the panacur susp. after work.  Will start tonight.  Silly question......on the off chance that she does lay an egg.....is it safe to eat while deworming?

Also, what is internal laying?.......I've seen this come up in posts but don't fully understand.

Panacur suspension and liquid Safeguard are *identical*, both are 10% fenbendazole, which means that 1ml of either has 100mg of fenbendazole. The amount I use is 0.23 ml per pound for five days. This amount will treat large roundworms, cecal worms, gapeworms, capillary worms and possibly some species of tapeworms.

Safeguard paste and Panacur paste are also the same, and the dose for either one is the same as the liquid dose.

-Kathy

 

[casportpony]

You might find some useful info here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...mergency-and-supportive-care-updated-1-3-2016

-Kathy