Hen sick

[Lastchancechicken]

My hen is loosing a lot of feathers, loosing weight, and her comb and wattle are pale. She is eating like crazy. I am giving her nutra Drench, feather fixer, scratch, meal worms and crickets. She does not show symptoms of being egg bound but is not laying. When she drinks it gurgles and when she puts her head down the water runs out her mouth/ nose. Any suggestions?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

My hen is loosing a lot of feathers, loosing weight, and her comb and wattle are pale. She is eating like crazy. I am giving her nutra Drench, feather fixer, scratch, meal worms and crickets. She does not show symptoms of being egg bound but is not laying. When she drinks it gurgles and when she puts her head down the water runs out her mouth/ nose. Any suggestions?

Can you post some photos of your hen? What does her poop look like?
How old is she?

From your description of gurgling when she drinks and water running out of her mouth/nose, it sounds like she has an impacted, sour or slow crop.
Gently massage the crop in a downward motion, tell us what it feels like - hard, squishy, doughy, sour smelling, etc.
While you are examining her, feel her abdomen - cup your hand under her vent and between the legs - what does that feel like - soft and pliable, hard, tight like a balloon, fluid filled.

Feel her crop first thing in the morning before she eats/drinks, it should be empty.
Read the following article and let us know which one you think it might be - it can be more than one:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

 

[Lastchancechicken]

Tonight her crop seems low and squishy but I could not appreciate a sour smell. Her poop is normal and she eats well now. Her abdomen falls hard but she is boney. This is day 3 of indoor vitamins and food. She feels better but I still think something is wrong.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Tonight her crop seems low and squishy but I could not appreciate a sour smell. Her poop is normal and she eats well now. Her abdomen falls hard but she is boney. This is day 3 of indoor vitamins and food. She feels better but I still think something is wrong.

Check her crop first thing in the morning before she eats or drinks. It should be empty.
If it's low and squishy, she may have a pendulous crop - it's hard to know until you check it first thing. Report back and let me know.

The abdomen-you mention it falls hard - do you mean it's round and hard like a drum?
Similar to the photo below?

Ref

 

[Cragg Klefor]

Tonight her crop seems low and squishy but I could not appreciate a sour smell. Her poop is normal and she eats well now. Her abdomen falls hard but she is boney. This is day 3 of indoor vitamins and food. She feels better but I still think something is wrong.

It would really help if you could post some pictures of the chicken please. Is it possible she is going through a late molt? How old is she?

 

[Lastchancechicken]

She could be mounting as she never had a first one. She is almost 1 year old. Do they usually lose weight during that?

 

[Lastchancechicken]

Check her crop first thing in the morning before she eats or drinks. It should be empty.
If it's low and squishy, she may have a pendulous crop - it's hard to know until you check it first thing. Report back and let me know.

The abdomen-you mention it falls hard - do you mean it's round and hard like a drum?
Similar to the photo below?

Ref

Not like your picture at all. She just feels like bones.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

She could be mounting as she never had a first one. She is almost 1 year old. Do they usually lose weight during that?View attachment 1654405

The loss of feathers is probably molting. Can you look for new feathers coming in, usually you will see them around the head/neck first.

Molting can make some feel fairly droopy, but the gurgling I would investigate further by checking the crop first thing in the morning before she eats/drinks. Take the food/water out of her cage overnight, this way you have an accurate "feel".

Birds can look like they have lost weight when they molt, just because the feathers are missing. It would be good to weigh her now, then in a few days to see if she has lost/gained or stays the same.

I would also up her protein - a little meat or egg would be good or you can give her chick starter.

Keep us posted.

 

[Lastchancechicken]

I checked her crop this morning and it is empty so I am ruling out a crop problem. I am feeding her increased protein. She is not having the water run out of her nose or gurgling today. She is perkier too. She does have better feathers growing in. I think her molting in winter when it's 9 degrees at night may have been too hard on her. I plan on keeping her warm and well fed for a while. Thanks to all who helped me figure this out.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I checked her crop this morning and it is empty so I am ruling out a crop problem. I am feeding her increased protein. She is not having the water run out of her nose or gurgling today. She is perkier too. She does have better feathers growing in. I think her molting in winter when it's 9 degrees at night may have been too hard on her. I plan on keeping her warm and well fed for a while. Thanks to all who helped me figure this out.

Oh I hope she gets better! It's good the crop was empty this morning.
Molting can be very hard on them and they don't feel very well. Cold temperatures do make it harder.
I like to give my molters extra protein (eggs or meat) and a direct dose of poultry vitamins a few times a week. I've also found mine seem to crave dark greens/veggies, so I usually give a little chopped Kale or Broccoli 1-2 times a week.