Hen is lethargic and not eating, another died recently with similar symptoms

Rlmp817

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I have an almost 2 year old hen (blue langshan) she is noticeable thiner & lighter than normal.

She is lethargic, pale comb, not eating/drinking well. She is looking flat with ruffled feathers. Her crop is empty, no orders. She does not feel to be eggbound.
I see no injuries, she does have a small clustar of lice around her head feathers, but I don’t notice them elsewhere.
She has been like this for since Friday 1/22, her ‘sister’, also a blue Langshan, had nearly identical symptoms for about 3 days before she died on Saturday 1/16. No othet flock members seem to be ill.

She normally eats a locally milled lay/18%protein feed.
She is offered normal feed, kitchen scraps & clean water, with a small amount of free range time weekly.
Her poop looks thin/watery & has a greenish tinge to it.
I isolated her today for a bit to see if she would eat. I offered her scrambled egg with crushed eggshell earlier and she pretty well ignored it. When Input her back with the flock and tossed the egg in for the other birds she did join in and ate a little before fluffing herslef back down and looking miserable. I do not have a good way to isolate her long term & keep her protected from the elements, it is supposed to be wet & cold all week.

There are no local avian vets to see, so that is not an option.

I use ecoflake bedding in the coop & deep litter in the run. I have 8 hens & 1 rooster.
 
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Do you have a wire dog crate that you can set inside the coop with her, along with food and water? For the lice, permethrin spray or garden dust will kill them, and if repeated in 10 days will treat the newly hatched ones.

Has she laid eggs recently? How does her crop feel—empty and flat, full, hard, doughy, or puffy? Pictures of her droppings could help. By age 2 some hens can suffer from reproductive cancer, internal laying, ascites (water belly.) Has she molted in recent months? If she has not been wormed recently, that might be something you might want to do with Valbazen or SafeGuard Liquid Goat Wormer. Or you could take some fresh droppings in to a vet to get a fecal float for worms or coccidiosis.
 
Do you have a wire dog crate that you can set inside the coop with her, along with food and water? For the lice, permethrin spray or garden dust will kill them, and if repeated in 10 days will treat the newly hatched ones.

Has she laid eggs recently? How does her crop feel—empty and flat, full, hard, doughy, or puffy? Pictures of her droppings could help. By age 2 some hens can suffer from reproductive cancer, internal laying, ascites (water belly.) Has she molted in recent months? If she has not been wormed recently, that might be something you might want to do with Valbazen or SafeGuard Liquid Goat Wormer. Or you could take some fresh droppings in to a vet to get a fecal float for worms or coccidiosis.

I do have a crate, but the coop is too small to have her in it over night. I can separate her in the run durring the day, but not overnight.
I will treat the lice tomorrow, I have a spray that helps, but today it was windy & cold, and I didn’t want to get her wet.

Her crop is empty and flat.
She molted in Oct/Nov & is fully feathered again. I don’t believe she started laying again since molting.
she has not been wormed recently, but I did pick up some SafeGuard incase that was recommended. I can start that tomorrow.

I read the Coccidiosis symptoms and they do seem to fit. I can get CORID from a friend.
 
Corid dosage is 2 tsp of the liquid, or 1.5 tsp of the powder per gallon of water for 5-7 days. SafeGuard Liquid Goat Wormer dosage is 0.23 ml per pound given orally for 5 straight days.
 
Corid dosage is 2 tsp of the liquid, or 1.5 tsp of the powder per gallon of water for 5-7 days. SafeGuard Liquid Goat Wormer dosage is 0.23 ml per pound given orally for 5 straight days.
Would it be ok to do both at the same time? Would that be harmful for the hen as she is weak?
 
Some people wouldmdo them at the same time. You could also give the Corid first, then worm her after that is complete. Some B vitamins and probiotics would help once Corid is finished.
 
Some people wouldmdo them at the same time. You could also give the Corid first, then worm her after that is complete. Some B vitamins and probiotics would help once Corid is finished.
Thank you! I will think about what you said & decide tonight how to treat her. I appreciate your help!
 

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