Hen is Wobbly & Diarrhea

[BantamQueenB]

Hi,

I would really appreciate any help....I have a polish hen who had been suffering with loose stools. These were sometimes brown, sometimes milky, there was a tiny amount of blood, but not all the time. I wondered if stress as she had been bullied by the flock very badly, so had separated her. She's also just gone through a moult. However in her self has been fine until Friday 7th Nov when I noticed she's become very wobbly on her feet. She's still eating and drinking well, and coming out of the coop on a morning. I have used flubevet wormer and layers pellets, tried Vit E, ACV, etc. But no change. I have spoke to the vets a few times, but don't seem to have any options other than sending off a stool sample (and worried that may be too long to wait). Any advice? Im at a bit of a loss, esp as shes still eating well?

Thank you in advance xx

 

[azygous]

What is your location? Knowing it can help us figure this out.

If you have access to a vet, collect a couple of current samples of poop and have the vet run a fecal float test for parasites. Your mention of blood showing up in the poop can indicate parasites perhaps eroding the lining of the intestines. This condition, necrotic enteritis, can be caused by worms or coccidia.

The test doesn't need to be sent anywhere. It's inexpensive and any vet office can run it and have results in an hour or less.

If it comes back positive, then treating the identified parasites to get rid of them, and treating the enteritis with an antibiotic will get your hen back to health.

 

[BantamQueenB]

What is your location? Knowing it can help us figure this out.

If you have access to a vet, collect a couple of current samples of poop and have the vet run a fecal float test for parasites. Your mention of blood showing up in the poop can indicate parasites perhaps eroding the lining of the intestines. This condition, necrotic enteritis, can be caused by worms or coccidia.

The test doesn't need to be sent anywhere. It's inexpensive and any vet office can run it and have results in an hour or less.

If it comes back positive, then treating the identified parasites to get rid of them, and treating the enteritis with an antibiotic will get your hen back to health.

Thank you for the quick reply. Im actually based in Suffolk, UK. So not sure if this may be different over here. I was quoted about £350-500 so was hoping I could find another way first!! But maybe I need another chat with them, as think an antibiotic may be the best way xx
Thanks you

 

[azygous]

Yes, the first step is to talk to your vet about running the stool sample for parasites. It's not expensive compared to sending a sample off to a lab for a pathology test for possible bacterial infection.

Since you're in the northern hemisphere, chances are good your hen isn't laying right now, but if she has begun to lay again after molt, these symptoms could also be caused by egg binding. If you suspect this, giving a calcium tablet can help get the egg moving.