Hen listless and unresponsive with watery stool: please help

[dustbath]

She died a little over an hour ago. My favorite hen.

Now I am struggling over what killed her and how to protect the rest of the flock. I've disinfected everything possible that she came in contact with. I also added some amprolium to the water for the rest. But maybe it wasn't cocci? What about fowl cholera? Or something else?

I'm wondering if I should switch to sulfadimethoxine, that seems to be effective for a wider range of problems.

 

[dlhunicorn]

I am sorry you lost your hen and what I say now is to help you next time something like this happens I want to stress that I am not saying I think it is the cause of death of this bird ... in fact I am wondering if this bird was ever wormed (heat >(stress/not eating) plus worms can be a deadly combo)
1)Never mix two different meds in the water...ever (unless a vet specifically directs you to do so). Make sure if you give a med that you give the correct amount and give it for the advised amount of time. (giving a "little" will do absolutely nothing to help the problem and may serve only to weaken the bird without any benefit)

2)When you suspect your bird may be dehydrated (ie. > hot weather) do not give sugar water but ELECTROLYTES (you should always have this at hand especially in the summer) .... sugar (so only sugar in the water) can often exascerbate dehydration.

3) In hot weather it is advised to take away feed during the daytime and add a supplement as the birds will eat less when heat-stressed.
:aww

 

[dustbath]

I had an autopsy done yesterday and it turns out that she was suffering from hepatitis, probably avian infectious hepatitis, according to the vet. The vet actually told me it was ok to mix the amprolium with the terramycin but of course it was completely unnecessary. The sad thing is that she must have been sick for about a year. I should have reacted when she stopped laying. I did call the cooperative extension at that time, which told me that it was normal and not to worry!

Thank for the advice about the electrolytes. I'll keep them on hand and stay away from sugar for future.

What is a supplement?

The vet advised treating the rest of the flock with terramycin for 2 weeks, in case she was infectious. I'm unclear about the dosage instructions (the vet couldn't help: he isn't an avian vet). The package has only instructions in mgs, which I can't measure. The volume instructions I found say to add 1 tsp to a gallon of water. But how do I know how much my birds are actually getting? I don't want to overdose them but I'm concerned.

 

[brownfarms]

So sorry for your loss. :aww