Help, please. Sick lethargic Buff, need some advice for flock . . .

[minniemuffin]

Hi everyone, I am glad to have found your site. I have been raising chickens for over a year now and have been very luck so far. I have 14 hens, 1 rooster, and 5 feisty little chicks. I noticed one of my hens, a beautiful buff, was "puffed up" (feathers all fluffed up and ruffled) and off by herself the other day, she also was not roosting at night, yesterday was more of the same, no roosting, but was eating, today her eyes have turned from gold to blood red, her comb has receded, she looks awful and doesn't want to walk. Lots of diarrhea (white and green - no blood), no appetite. My chickens are free range during the day and go up to a nice pen at night, lots of fresh good food, plenty of fresh water. I didn't see any sign of injury or mites/parasites. She smells rotten and I believe she isn't going to make it. My question is this, when my husband gets home, we are unfortantely going to have to humanely cull her and then incinerate the carcass for safety's sake (I have her isolated just as of today), My question is this, does anyone know what this is? I have so many other chickens and they all seem fine, but could I have the beginnings of an epidemic? I keep them for eggs only and do try to keep them happy and healthy, I would hate to lose anymore. Thanks for your help in advance!

 

[lauralou]

I'm no expert on sick chickens, but hopefully my reply will bring you back to the top of the list and someone else who knows more may see this.

First of all, you did the right thing by separating her from the others. The green color of the diarrhea may be due to the fact that she isn't eating.

You said she smells rotten. Is it that she has diarrhea on her behind, or maybe a sour smell from her crop, or is it more like the smell of rotten meat? I know it's sometimes hard to distinguish, but the difference could be important.

I wish I knew what to tell you. Good luck with the situation, and please keep us posted!

 

[flymamma]

i just lost my buff last week . She was puffed up and had BAD runny poo , acted cold , her walk was uncoordinated . I called Dr. Peter Brown he said it sounded like a classic case of Cocci . By the time I noticed she was acting sick it was too late for her . I put the whole flock on Corid , just in case . My Delware started looking sick the day after my buff died ... she is still alive and well thanks to the Corid .

 

[lauralou]

That's a good point. I've read that cocci doesn't always present as bloody poo. It would be worth it to give medication a try. If you can't find Corid, most feed stores sell Sulmet. Which is good to have on hand for several common chicken ailments.

 

[flymamma]

heck out this link . It has a lot of gret info about the other symptoms of Cocci . Since there are different types , it stands to reason there would be different symptoms for each .

http://www.firststatevetsupply.com/poultry-health/coccidiosis.html

 

[minniemuffin]

Hi everyone and thank you for your replies. I didn't want you to think I was unappreciative. I had her in a separate cage with fresh food and water and started her on neomycin (excuse the spelling), it's what we use around here for the cows and works great on my cats! (in appropriate doses of course). We only have one decent animal doctor and by the time I could call him this Monday morning, I could tell she was "past the point of no return" and she died that afternoon. My husband, who has raised chickens longer than I have, thought she might have had some form of virulent type of "chicken cancer?" (was he just making that up?) We hooked the pen up to the tractor and pulled it about 20 yards away so there wouldn't be a better chance of infection to the others. It's been almost a week and everyone, including the babies, look great. We piled straw over the old pen site and will leave it over the winter.

Coccia sounds like a likely culprit but maybe she got into something in the shed, who knows? I hated to lose her but am glad everyone else is fat and sassy and starting to lay better, I put a heat lamp in the cage and some of the girls have started a nest they lay in as well so if I can get one to go broody again, maybe some more chicks!.

Thanks again and I definately appreciate this site. It's been a great learning tool. I want to enjoy the benefits of fresh eggs and selling a few chickens every now and then, but I also want happy healthy chickens, too.