Hen can't walk, and is making gurgling noises!! HELP!

Mrs. Fluffy Puffy

Fluffy Feather Farm
12 Years
Jan 26, 2010
16,007
244
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Texas, Panhandle
My BO hen Rose was lying in the coop on her side and was tossing her head back and forth like she was gurgling. We have her in the yard in the shade, as it's 100+ outside..........what do you think the matter is?

I tryed to give her some water but she just on kept tossing her head around and making that weird sound?

~ Aspen
 
Thank you so much! I could kiss you right now! I put her in our pool ( holding her of course) and she stopped making the strange sound and stopped tossing her head, I left her in there for about 10 minutes. I took her out and she is wrapped up in a towel, the little ones are holding her for me. What do I do know? Dry her off and put her in a cage by the AC?

Thank you SO MUCH!
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~ Aspen
 
don't put her in a cage by the AC if she's still damp; she might get TOO chilled. Let her stay in the house with you guys; maybe put her on a towel in the bathtub where she can get off the towel and onto the cool surface of the tub, or on a tile/lineoleum floor surface. I hope she makes a full recovery.
 
Oh! YAY!!!! Thanks so much for giving it a try and I'm so glad she's recovering quickly. A chickens body temperature is about 107...so 100 degree day is going to be hard on their inner cool systems.

I wouldn't want her to catch a chill near the A/C, but in a cool room away from the actual cooling unit, she should be ok. Dry her off with a towel as best as you can.

Chickens can handle cold much better than heat. Heat is a killer for them (esp. the bigger bodied birds with small combs) so if you know it's going to be hot, get them in the shade or better yet, if you don't mind sharing your A/C with her...bring her indoors if that's convenient.

Nice job!
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I lost a BO hen last summer during our record-setting stretch of long, humid days. It was miserably humid, and I knew the chickens were suffering from it as much as we were. I made 2 small brush piles in the run, and sprayed down the soil underneath the brush piles and under the big shade tree. They LOVED hanging out under the brush piles & the tree where it was cooler. The evaporating water lowered the temp by several degrees. A few times a week I'd leave a mister connected to the water hose and let the fine spray go for an hour or so. It did jump the water bill somewhat, but it certainly helped the chickens, guineas, ducks, and the turkey feel much better. I also fed them cold cantaloupe or watermelon, and mostly thawed but still very lightly frozen mixed vegetables -- the store brand big bags were just fine. (My indoor birds liked the mixed veggies, too.
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) Some people put ice in the waterers to keep it cooler, or at least change the water 2-3 X per day to keep it fresher and cooler. I also kept one or two fans going most of the summer at night. In my experience, it's been more of a challenge keeping them from overheating than it has making sure they stay warm.
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She is wrapped up in a towel now in the kitchen. I don't think we have to worry about her getting too cold in our house, even with the AC on it's still 90 in the house....

Should I try'n give her some cold water now, or just wait a bit?

~ Aspen
 
When I first put the brush piles in the run, my DH fussed and fussed, and thought I'd lost it. He now acknowledges that they were a pretty good idea (better than the idea of leaving the 2 big ones out in the field for shelter for critters ... ) They provide a semi-sheltered place to hang out with each other OR get away from each other, they're quickly accessible for cover if an aerial predator shows up (funny how quickly and quietly they can scuttle under there and become practically invisible!), and they're cooler than strolling around out in the open. They made LOTS of use of them last summer, and I'm sure they'll do so again this summer. As we prune trees (or as Mother Nature does it for us
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) I just add the new branches to the pile. As they dry out, they begin to settle and the tips break, compressing the pile a bit. The new limbs keep it "poofy" and lofty enough to have different "levels" inside the pile to perch on.
 
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We have a tree/brush in our front yard that is shadly underneath and the broody hens and chicks like to go dust bath/sleep under there during the heat of the day. Sometimes I spray it as well, to help keep them cooler.

~ Aspen
 

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