Hen Unable to Move Unknown Cause

[Gary335]

Hi all. So yesterday evening I found one of my hens laying in between my run and the coop. I could tell right away something was wrong. I thought maybe she was stuck, so I gently removed her and placed her down out in the open, and immediately saw that she was unable to stand or move. I could not see any obvious injury, although being new to chickens I must admit to being a little afraid to mess with her legs too much, I don't want to exacerbate any issue she might have. I then picked her up and placed her inside the coop, where she has remained since, virtually unmoved.

She does drink water, but will not eat. I believe she is a Rhode Island Red, and is my biggest girl of the flock. I'm not sure her age, I just acquired her and have not yet gotten any eggs from her, though I know it can take them some time to acclimate to a new environment and start laying again. To guess I'd say she's at least a year, and could be older perhaps even old enough to no longer be laying. Her poop looks a little runny but nothing too serious. Although her butt needs cleaned, since she can't move the poop has nowhere to go. I feed my flock layer feed, and occassionally toss some dried bugs in for a treat. Also provide some oyster shell from time to time. The rest of the flock appear healthy.

Thanks in advance for any advice on what this could be and what I shiould do. The photo shows her as she has been for 24 hours now.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would try to get her drinking water and electrolytes or poultry NutriDrench would be good to give 2 ml orally. Offer somme cooked egg and mushy chicken feed mixed with water. A newly acquired hen might have been caged without water or food before you brought her home. Has any other hen or rooster been in contact with her to have injured her? She may have gotten stuck if your chickens bullied her. Has she had any droppings and are they abnormal? Let us know how she is doing once she has drunk water and eaten.

 

[Gary335]

I would try to get her drinking water and electrolytes or poultry NutriDrench would be good to give 2 ml orally. Offer somme cooked egg and mushy chicken feed mixed with water. A newly acquired hen might have been caged without water or food before you brought her home. Has any other hen or rooster been in contact with her to have injured her? She may have gotten stuck if your chickens bullied her. Has she had any droppings and are they abnormal? Let us know how she is doing once she has drunk water and eaten.

Thanks for your response! I have not noticed any issues as far as other hens that might have injured her. They all seem to get along relatively well outside of the normal stuff you might expect from a group of chickens getting their pecking order figured out. I do not own any roosters. I discussed her droppings in my original post. Please refer to that.

 

[Gary335]

Well this morning I found that she had passed away overnight. Thanks again for your help! I guess the only thing to do now is keep an eye on the rest of the flock and make sure none of the rest suddenly develop the inability to stand.

 

[Eggcessive]

I am sorry that you lost her. Hopefully it was nothing contagious. Most state vet labs offer necropsies to find out a chicken’s cause of death. They do them usually M-F. The body must be kept cold and refrigerated, nit frozen, and taken in soon after death or shipped overnight. Some people do home necropsies to open the abdomen and have a look at organs. You can take pictures of organs which may be posted here for opinions. If you should notice any other hens who have unusual symptoms, I would get a necropsy right away. Here is a list of state vet labs to contact if you need it:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry...L5h4Xt137GBu32pWJZSRUY5DYhQyVrd4ODmF-Ab8otocc