help,, unwell, very under weight ,hen

[andy]

hi there
can any body give me some idea how and why a hen could get it self so under weight it looks like it is going to die,
this is not my hen,i went to see a lady today who keeps around 30 hens,
as i walked towards the run ,she daid "
"oh this ones still not very well look"
it was sat on the run floor,all the other hens were lively, i went in and picked it up,and i noticed it was very very under weight, its comb was to the side,and i noticed it has or had scally leg ,the other hens that i see didnt,
she mentioned that she had a hen die on her the other day,
i know that when she buys new hens there not pullets, she just gets what she can get hold of,, and just puts them straight in with the other hens,,
the hen that died and the one that is unwell she bought only a few weeks ago,

this lady does not know alot at all about chickens, i told her about the scally leg and she has never heared of it,
ive told her to seperate the sick hen straight away and take care of it,,

any advice any body thank you

 

[chickenzoo]

Worms or mites/lice come to mind, can cause anemia real fast!

 

[speckledhen]

If she has been a heavy producer, she may be dying of salpingitis, an infection of the ovaries/fallopian tubes. Fecal matter can go from the cloaca into the tube from a relaxed sphincter and set up an ecoli infection and peritonitis. If a hen has had infectious bronchitis, that can make her prone to salpingitis. They tend to lose lots of weight and appear weaker and weaker, despite still eating.