Hen found in water dish

[nycampchickens]

Hello all, this morning I went down to our barn to find one of our hens laying in their water dish!! I picked her up and put her on the ground, but she was complete dead weight - the only reason I knew she was alive is because she was blinking. I wrapped her in a towel, brought her inside, and put her in my heated office. She doesn't appear to have any injuries, no feathers missing, her bum looks normal. It's been about 4 hours, and she's now moving better, responding to noises better, and she can lightly grip my fingers with both feet. She still can't stand, though, she's leaning over to one side while laying down, and the most concerning bit (to me, at least) is that she hasn't eaten or drank anything. I put food and water right in front of her so she doesn't even have to move to get to it. Has anyone dealt with something like this before? What sort of recovery can I expect? Is there anything more I can be doing for her?

Thanks,
Julia

 

[sourland]

sorry for the circumstances. She is probably still hypothermic. It would be best if she does not eat until her core temperature has returned to normal. Hydration would be okay if she becomes thirsty.

 

[Eggcessive]

Does she have any wounds or signs of attack by a prdeator or a flock member? It is hard to know why she would suddenly collapse into the water. Was she completely wet? I am supposing that it is very cold right now in your coop? If she is damp, a hairdryer can be used to dry her. I would concentrate on holding a small cup or scoop up to her beak to offer water and some bits of scrambled egg, wet chicken feed, or tuna. Fluids are most important. Poultry NutriDrench is very good to give for a boost in electrolytes and vitamins 2 ml daily given orally.

 

[nycampchickens]

Does she have any wounds or signs of attack by a prdeator or a flock member? It is hard to know why she would suddenly collapse into the water. Was she completely wet? I am supposing that it is very cold right now in your coop? If she is damp, a hairdryer can be used to dry her. I would concentrate on holding a small cup or scoop up to her beak to offer water and some bits of scrambled egg, wet chicken feed, or tuna. Fluids are most important. Poultry NutriDrench is very good to give for a boost in electrolytes and vitamins 2 ml daily given orally.

I looked at her when I found her, and again about an hour ago, and couldn't find any signs of attack. I'm going to look again in a few hours once she's a bit more dry and (hopefully) moving better. I have no idea why she would be laying in her water bowl!! That's why I'm so confused. She was laying normally in it so it almost looked like she chose to sit there. Yes, it's super cold, and the water all around her was frozen. Just a few minutes ago she took a sip of her water! Good news on that front.

 

[cmom]

I'm sure there are a lot of opinions. This is mine. I would make sure she is dry. I used a hair drier on low and gave her a heating pad wrapped in a towel on low to lay on to get her temperature up. I have used some of my birds regular feed with a little Sav-A-chick Electrolyte & Vitamin Chicken Supplement because that is all I had on hand at the time, and water mixed in and made a little mash and got my bird to eat it. She did perk up, every hour or so I would try to get her to eat some. It did take awhile but she did eventually recover. Good luck...

 

[Eggcessive]

It is hard to know why, but she might have not been eating a pnd drinking enough and become weak. I would keep an eye on her, look her over for lice and mites, check her crop to see that it is filling up during the day, and then emptying overnight. If she normally lays, check for egg binding, or problems walking. Hopefully, she will recover.

 

[cmom]

I'm sure there are a lot of opinions. This is mine. I would make sure she is dry. I used a hair drier on low and gave her a heating pad wrapped in a towel on low to lay on to get her temperature up. I have used some of my birds regular feed with a little Sav-A-chick Electrolyte & Vitamin Chicken Supplement because that is all I had on hand at the time, and water mixed in and made a little mash and got my bird to eat it. She did perk up, every hour or so I would try to get her to eat some. It did take awhile but she did eventually recover. Good luck...

I didn't mention above I had a similar situation and that is what I did.

 

[RosemaryDuck]

Do you have a rooster? It's possible either he or something else chased her to the point of exhaustion and the dish is just where she ended up, and that's why you don't see any wounds. Hope she recovers soon!