Help!!! Poorly hen :-(

[beckym]

I wondering if anyone can help me. I recently purchased 4 hybrid chickens. One of them has been laying eggs but has now stopped. Its last egg was tiny with no yolk! Its now got a pale comb, not it's normal self and not eating. Has anyone got any ideas of what's wrong with it and what I can do???

 

[nbenevento]

Any other symptoms? Poop stuck to its tail feathers? Blood in the poop or some other description? Eyes watering? Making any noises while breathing or otherwise? Have you checked the crop or felt for it being egg bound? Was there just a speck of something in the last egg, what did it look like?

 

[beckym]

theres no blood in its poop but its runny and stuck to its tail. we have felt the hen from the outside but not sure what we are looking for. It doesn't crackle when breathing but one of the other hens does

 

[nbenevento]

Is there a nasty smell coming from this hen? Any redness around its vent? Have you checked for mites?

 

[beckym]

no redness and cant see any mites

 

[nbenevento]

How about the smell? If it smells pretty bad, it could be vent greet but there is usually redness or sores associated with that. Have you or a neighbor used any pesticides on the weeds in the yard?

 

[beckym]

it just smells like the other chickens and the neighbours are all securely fenced off, no pesticides have been used as most of the garden is patio and shingle

 

[nbenevento]

For now, until you can figure it out or someone else chimes in with a better answer, separate that hen from mother rest in case it is something contagious. Try withholding food and giving it water with Epsom salt in it to clear its digestive tract out. Only do it for about 4 hours and make sure it has fresh water after that as it will be very thirsty. If it is not drinking on its own right now, you may have to give it the epsome salt mixture with a dropper. This is not a cure all, but it may help.

 

[beckym]

I have read elsewhere it maybe egg bound, is this true as it says they need to be put in warm water

 

[nbenevento]

It certainly could be but you should have been able to feel that. You can feel a couple other hens to compare what this one feels like. You have nothing to lose by trying the fix for egg bound anyway.