Help!!

[bantams4life]

I've noticed my bantam silver laced Wyandotte hen is looking unwell I'm very worried about her. I thought that is just a bug or something that she would have for a little while but she isn't getting better, her skin is yellow and her comb and wattles are not very noticeable she stays back from everyone else and isn't very active she hardly eats and drinks I haven't checked for parasites yet and I haven't checked her poop yet either. Please help I don't know what to do and I'm really worried

 

[chooks4life]

Separate her so you can check her poops and administer one-on-one treatment, might be the best bet.

Yellow skin likely equals jaundice (or liver failure) which can be from any one of many, many potential causes. Not eating is often a good sign the liver is suffering because it makes them nauseous and they can't digest food well while their liver's under the weather; this is a good thing in the short term because a failing liver fails faster when forced to digest food instead of repairing. It can do one or the other, not both, so a fast is necessary for total health in normal animals as well as sick ones.

I haven't seen her poops but if the white is yellow and the black is nonexistent or green, and the whole thing's runny, then it's blackhead. But liver failure can be caused by various things. The vast majority of chickens die from gastrointestinal disease, especially liver disease. It may not be that or it may not have started as that but a yellow face shows the bile is not being excreted properly but instead is tainting the bloodstream; her liver's not cleaning the blood properly anymore. It makes the animal ill, confused, increasingly toxified, and requires treatment because once it's reached this point it doesn't get better by itself.

As to treatment, I only use natural methods (though I would use surgery if needed to) because people in my family are sensitive to antibiotics made by man, so we have to use natural alternatives. I can't advise you if you want to use pharmaceutical drugs for this reason. I don't have any experience with them. For a failing liver I would put the animal on a diet of raw grated potato with honey, and maybe stuff like dandelion or milkthistle. The raw potato can support a failing liver indefinitely, even with severe viral hepatitis, and the dandelion or milkthistle, which are more or less identical in their active chemical constituents, allow the liver to heal itself.

Best wishes with your bird.

 

[bantams4life]

Thank you so much for helping me it means a lot

 

[chooks4life]

Quote: All I've done is reply, but you're welcome anyway. You're helped when your bird is helped. Best wishes.

 

[bantams4life]

I am really upset when I got home it was pouring rain and I found her up at the water dish and she was dead. I feel really bad about it because I could have done something if I had of known what to do.

 

[rehric00]

Very sorry to hear that. I have a sick bird that I have segregated and I am worried what tomorrow will bring. She was acting tired all day, sleeping, even when I picked her up which usually they freak out. I hope mine is ok, but I fear she may not make it either... We will have to see I guess....

 

[bantams4life]

My thoughts are with you and your bird I hope she makes a quick recovery

 

[chooks4life]

Quote: Sorry to hear that. It's not your fault, if that helps at all.

No matter how experienced you become there will always be those random cases where the symptoms take too long to show and the disease is too advanced by the time you notice --- if you even notice. Sometimes they'll just drop dead without symptoms. I always felt bad about it too, I wished I'd known what to do, but it's more productive to spend some time regularly researching info on chooks' health so in future you'll have a better chance to save them. Even experts lost birds like anyone else. Best wishes.