Hen shaking head and lethargic-Help!

[TheTexasChickenGirl]

My Salmon Favorelle hen won't stop shaking her head. She keeps lying down, especially under our deck in a cool dark area. She's eating and drinking but not a lot. Every 5-10 seconds she shakes her head. We thought she might have something that's making her go blind, because her best buddy Suzy came partially blind and is now completely blind. I checked her eyes for cloudiness but didn't see any. I can post pics of her eyes if needed. Any ideas?

 

[TheTexasChickenGirl]

We live in Texas so it's pretty hot. At first I thought it was because her muffs where getting in her eyes, but I didn't want to cut them without making sure it is that.

 

[TheTexasChickenGirl]

 

[TheTexasChickenGirl]

I saw some weird redness around her eyes, and that’s what her poop looks like. It looks different from everyone else’s poop!

 

[mandymcg05]

The poop looks more of the "urine" part of their pooping. I'm sorry. Hopefully someone can help!! Do you have a local vet you can call for advice?

 

[TheTexasChickenGirl]

Yes I do but I wanted to use the vet as a last resort, hoping to sort this out without having to pay for an appointment. It could be some sort of crop thing, but I can't find how to check and what to look for.

 

[TheTexasChickenGirl]

Has anyone ever had this happen to their chickens? Should I put vegetable oil in her ears for ear mites? She hasn't gotten any better today, I'm pretty sure she slept in the egg box (weird because she hasn't started laying yet) even though I put her on the roost last night. I found her in the box this morning when she didn't come out of the coop. Possibly fell off the roost? I did notice when you hold her and then she flies off (not likely anymore, she will perch and lie down on my arm now) when she hits the ground she wobble and tilts forward to stop herself with her beak. She has bad balance. I have no idea what to do!!! I tried quarantining her, but her buddy Suzy wouldn't hear of it and wouldn't stop squawking for her. We live in a city and the neighbors don't enjoy them talking. So now she's back in the run and just hides under the deck in the shade. Does anyone know what this means? She doesn't eat much but I have been changing the water regularly and making her drink outside of the run and away fr the pressure of the others.
No one else has shown any of these symptoms.

 

[PrincessPeggy]

One of my hens, Dolly, has almost the exact same symptoms, except her eyes seem fine. It just started yesterday and I was pretty panicked when she was stumbling around so I took her to the vet today. The vet didn't find any parasites and Dolly's vitals all checked out normal, so the vet prescribed a calcium supplement and an antibiotic (plus injections of both in the office). She found a few mites, but said that wouldn't cause the symptoms and also suggested a vitamin that goes in the water. Maybe you can try the same treatment if your hen still has issues. I'll update you if Dolly doesn't improve and the vet tries something else. I hope your hen recovered! It's amazing how attached we get to these silly girls .

 

[TheTexasChickenGirl]

I did bring my hen to the vet too, because she was so sick she couldn’t stand up. She had a ton of weight loss and you couldn’t feel her crop she had shrunk so much. It turned out that she had the worst case of coccidiosis that our vet had seen and she got treated immediately. Sadly she passed away that night. Her (blind) best friend Suzy passed away after her a week later. We treated what was left of our flock (only 2) and no one has shown any signs.
I really hope your Dolly makes it.

 

[PrincessPeggy]

I'm so sorry you lost both girls! We lost one hen last year to a dog attack -- a gutter shifted out of place after a heavy rain and left a hole just big enough for Eliza to slip through to the part of the yard that the dogs stay in. My heart still aches for her . Luckily Dolly seems to have responded well to the treatment. She was able to walk into the "big yard" with the other girls and took a dirt bath with them. She's still wobbly when she walks and she moves slower than normal but seems more like Dolly today. I feel like I got really lucky.