Hen not standing/walking well, wide & squatty stance

[Cloyed]

My 2 year old Orpington hen is very off balance, has a wide squatty stance. mostly she just wanst to sit
none of my other chickens have shown any signs of being sick.

she has not laid eggs in weeks. I am embarrassed to say I am not sure how long exactly
2 week ago she stopped roosting and stated to sleep on the floor and if i pick her up and put her down she will fall on her face. But she can get back up again and uses her wings to balance herself

I put her in my large brooder box and put probiotic and electrolytes in her water, then started feeding her eggs with vitamin b complex and vitamin E as well as her layer crumble.
She is eating and drinking. Pooping but not every much. One poop last week looked like egg but after that it has looked normal but very little. I am not sure but I think her abdomen feels like she is retaining fluid.

I need to know if there is anything else I can try or would it be better to have my DH put her out of her misery.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

My 2 year old Orpington hen is very off balance, has a wide squatty stance. mostly she just wanst to sit
none of my other chickens have shown any signs of being sick.

she has not laid eggs in weeks.

2 week ago she stopped roosting and stated to sleep on the floor and if i pick her up and put her down she will fall on her face.

I'm sorry about your hen.
If you feel her abdomen below the vent between her legs is there bloat or a feeling of fluid?

The description you give sounds like she may be suffering from reproductive disorder. Which one is hard to know unless you lose her and have a necropsy or do one yourself.
Sadly, Peritonitis, cancer, internal laying, etc. can be common in laying hens.

There's a few things you can try to see if she will perk up, but sometimes these are short term measures. It really boils down to what is going on with her and if it is reproductive problems how advanced it may be.
If she's got fluid in the abdomen, then draining can make them more comfortable, the condition/dysfunction that is causing fluid to accumulate would still exist, but some have found the hen is able to function well for a while.
An antibiotic to help with infection or inflammation can also be used as part of supportive care to give some relief. Amoxicillin is commonly used or a stronger antibiotic like Baytril can be used, just remember this one is not approved for use in poultry, so if she were to happen to lay an egg observe a throwaway period.

You are giving vitamins that I would give. Check to see if her crop is emptying overnight. I've found that when mine have reproductive issue, the crop slows too and can turn sour quickly. So keep watch on that.

As for if it's time to put her out of her misery - only you can make that decision. You are there to see how she's doing and can best make that judgment call.

If you have photos you wish to share of your lovely hen, I would love to see her.

 

[Cloyed]

Thank you for the information and nice thoughts. Farrah took a turn for the worse last night I had to go the work and when I got home my DH said she passed away. I am pretty sure he just could not stand to see her suffer for another night. He did look to see what the problem was and told me it was just water no eggs ect. So I guess we did all we could do. Farrah was a strong & sweet hen. She survived being attached by the neighbors dog when he was 6 months old and my DH also saved her from a large hawk last year. She will be missed. These pictures are of her when she was young. RIP

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you for the information and nice thoughts. Farrah took a turn for the worse last night I had to go the work and when I got home my DH said she passed away. I am pretty sure he just could not stand to see her suffer for another night. He did look to see what the problem was and told me it was just water no eggs ect. So I guess we did all we could do. Farrah was a strong & sweet hen. She survived being attached by the neighbors dog when he was 6 months old and my DH also saved her from a large hawk last year. She will be missed. These pictures are of her when she was young. RIP

I'm sorry to hear about Farrah
Lovely hen, thank you for sharing the photos. BO's are sweet ladies for sure.

Fluid in the abdomen can be caused by a number of things - from organ failure/dysfunction to reproductive problems. Sadly it's never a good sign. I do think you did all you could.

 

[BugStalker]

I'm sorry for your loss. It reminds me of one of mine: I think the first sick hen I posted about here was a Buff Orpington about that age with about the same symptoms. I couldn't tell she had water-belly and thought she was egg bound and kept her alive for a while, but she laid what looked like a cancerous egg. I had her necropsied, my first necropsy, and she had reproductive cancer.

 

[BugStalker]

I'm sorry for your loss. It reminds me of one of mine: I think the first sick hen I posted about here was a Buff Orpington about that age with about the same symptoms. I couldn't tell she had water-belly and thought she was egg bound and kept her alive for a while, but she laid what looked like a cancerous egg. I had her necropsied, my first necropsy, and she had reproductive cancer.

Oops, sorry, I misread the year.