Hen slowing down

[Fishsticks06]

I have a hen who is a little over 3 years old. She is a red sex link I bought from a farmer along with 2 others of her breed. She used to be a very active bird and she was the top of the pecking order. Recently, she’s starting to slow down kn her movements a lot, run a lot less, and her reaction times feel very delayed. I believe she is starting to lose weight, but she seems to eat and drink normally. She doesn’t act sick, injured, or recluse, she’s just a lot less mobile and alert as she once was. Her plumage is a vibrant reddish-brown, she has a very red comb, and she has no detectable illness. I think my bird is starting to shut down internally and die? I’ve heard her breed doesn't live very long anyways.

 

[Weeg]

Red Sexlinks don't live very long unfortunately. Though they can live longer than expected, lets see if we can help your lady.
What exactly do you feed just out of curiosity. How long ago did she lay an egg? Does she have any signs of reproductive stress/issues? Have you ever wormed your flock? Is getting a fecal float from a vet a possibility? This sounds like symptoms of worms to me. I believe it is okay to worm them without a fecal float, I keep SafeGuard liquid goat dewormer on hand, @casportpony @Wyorp Rock @azygous may know more about dosage.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Red Sexlinks don't live very long unfortunately. Though they can live longer than expected, lets see if we can help your lady.
What exactly do you feed just out of curiosity. How long ago did she lay an egg? Does she have any signs of reproductive stress/issues? Have you ever wormed your flock? Is getting a fecal float from a vet a possibility? This sounds like symptoms of worms to me. I believe it is okay to worm them without a fecal float, I keep SafeGuard liquid goat dewormer on hand, @casportpony @Wyorp Rock @azygous may know more about dosage.

Good questions. If we can get more info along with some photos that may be helpful.

Also check to see if her crop is emptying.

 

[Fishsticks06]

Red Sexlinks don't live very long unfortunately. Though they can live longer than expected, lets see if we can help your lady.
What exactly do you feed just out of curiosity. How long ago did she lay an egg? Does she have any signs of reproductive stress/issues? Have you ever wormed your flock? Is getting a fecal float from a vet a possibility? This sounds like symptoms of worms to me. I believe it is okay to worm them without a fecal float, I keep SafeGuard liquid goat dewormer on hand, @casportpony @Wyorp Rock @azygous may know more about dosage.

Red Sexlinks don't live very long unfortunately. Though they can live longer than expected, lets see if we can help your lady.
What exactly do you feed just out of curiosity. How long ago did she lay an egg? Does she have any signs of reproductive stress/issues? Have you ever wormed your flock? Is getting a fecal float from a vet a possibility? This sounds like symptoms of worms to me. I believe it is okay to worm them without a fecal float, I keep SafeGuard liquid goat dewormer on hand, @casportpony @Wyorp Rock @azygous may know more about dosage.

All of my chickens have constant access to 16% layer feed, as well as free ranged materials. I will give them a cup of scratch daily as well as healthy leftovers like watermelon rinds and leftover lettuce. I don’t know her egg laying cycles, but I haven’t seen her lay recently. She doesn’t have any sign of stress or reproductive issue, I’ve ruled out any chance of this being egg bound as shes been like this for some time. I don’t worm my flock, but I do give them added supplements in their food like diatamacoeus earth, I’ve heard it helps serve as a natural dewormer. I don’t have any poultry vets nearby, as chickens are deemed “exotic animals” and that is not in their speciality to care for them. I checked up on her and her crop is hard, and she’s sleeping in an empty coop by herself. She still visually looks fine, but she just seems to be a lost slower than the flock in a lot of aspects.

 

[Fishsticks06]

Good questions. If we can get more info along with some photos that may be helpful.

Also check to see if her crop is emptying.

Sorry, it’s late, but I’ll try to get photos tomorrow morning.

As for her crop, it appears to be firm and solid even after a day to forage.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I don’t know her egg laying cycles, but I haven’t seen her lay recently. She doesn’t have any sign of stress or reproductive issue, I’ve ruled out any chance of this being egg bound as shes been like this for some time. I don’t worm my flock, but I do give them added supplements in their food like diatamacoeus earth, I’ve heard it helps serve as a natural dewormer.

I checked up on her and her crop is hard, and she’s sleeping in an empty coop by herself.

As for her crop, it appears to be firm and solid even after a day to forage.

You isolated her because she's being picked on or it's just easier for you to access her for a few days?

I would expect a crop to be firm/full after a day of eating and foraging. Check first thing in the morning before she eats/drinks to make sure it's emptying.

I wish DE was a dewormer, but sadly it is not. The benefits are debatable and you can do your own research on that. For deworming, you will want to use an anthelmintic like Fenbendazole (Safeguard/Panacur) or Albendazole (Valbazen). These 2 will treat most worms that poultry have.

There are numerous reproductive disorders that can affect a laying hen. Egg binding is when an egg is stuck or bound in the oviduct, this is usually an emergency and the hen would be in distress in a short period of time.
Cancer, tumors, Peritonitis, Salpingitis, Internal Laying, etc., are all common reproductive issues that can affect laying hens. These symptoms of these conditions can be quite subtle in the earlier stages. Most often you will see a hen start to slow down a bit, their production may slow or stop as well. There is no cure for any of these disorders.

Supportive care can be given. Make sure she's eating and drinking well, deworm, check for lice and mites and see that her crop is emptying overnight. Address "treatable" symptoms as they arise like a slow or sour crop, worms, parasites, etc. Leave the hen with her flock if she's not getting pecked on and let her enjoy life.

 

[Weeg]

I wish DE was a dewormer, but sadly it is not. The benefits are debatable and you can do your own research on that. For deworming, you will want to use an anthelmintic like Fenbendazole (Safeguard/Panacur) or Albendazole (Valbazen). These 2 will treat most worms that poultry have.

Personally, I think that DE can be an affective worm preventative. I can't guarantee that it will help with an infestation, but it can help recent worms from over populating. DE is sharp, so it works by piercing parasites and killing them. Because of this, it can help keep worms under control, though I agree it may not work quick enough, or as affectively as a conventional wormer. This is an opinion backed by research I've done. I could easily be wrong though.

Great post, I agree with everything that was already posted/asked above.

 

[Fishsticks06]

You isolated her because she's being picked on or it's just easier for you to access her for a few days?

I would expect a crop to be firm/full after a day of eating and foraging. Check first thing in the morning before she eats/drinks to make sure it's emptying.

I wish DE was a dewormer, but sadly it is not. The benefits are debatable and you can do your own research on that. For deworming, you will want to use an anthelmintic like Fenbendazole (Safeguard/Panacur) or Albendazole (Valbazen). These 2 will treat most worms that poultry have.

There are numerous reproductive disorders that can affect a laying hen. Egg binding is when an egg is stuck or bound in the oviduct, this is usually an emergency and the hen would be in distress in a short period of time.
Cancer, tumors, Peritonitis, Salpingitis, Internal Laying, etc., are all common reproductive issues that can affect laying hens. These symptoms of these conditions can be quite subtle in the earlier stages. Most often you will see a hen start to slow down a bit, their production may slow or stop as well. There is no cure for any of these disorders.

Supportive care can be given. Make sure she's eating and drinking well, deworm, check for lice and mites and see that her crop is emptying overnight. Address "treatable" symptoms as they arise like a slow or sour crop, worms, parasites, etc. Leave the hen with her flock if she's not getting pecked on and let her enjoy life.

My hen is not in isolation, she is with the rest of the flock, but chooses to sleep in an isolated coop despite having access to the other. I will be giving crop checks, she has had a crop issue in the past but was treated and made an immediate recovery. I’ll try to put my flock in dewormer next time I go to the feed store, and I will send a picture of her now.

 

[Fishsticks06]