Hen will not stand while eating

[Eggcessive]

Could you post a picture of her feet? A few diseases can cause the feet to swell, such as articular gout and mycoplasma synovitis (MS.) Are her hock joints swollen as well as her feet? Here is some info on MS and gout:

Mycoplasma synoviae

Synonyms: MS, infectious synovitis, synovitis, silent air sac
Species affected: chickens and turkeys.
Clinical signs: Birds infected with the synovitis form show lameness, followed by lethargy, reluctance to move, swollen joints, stilted gait, loss of weight, and formation of breast blisters. Birds infected with the respiratory form exhibit respiratory distress. Greenish diarrhea is common in dying birds (see Table 1). Clinically, the disease in indistinguishable from MG.
Transmission: MS is transmitted from infected breeder to progeny via the egg. Within a flock, MS is spread by direct contact with infected birds as well as through airborne particles over short distances.
Treatment: Recovery is slow for both respiratory and synovitis forms. Several antibiotics are variably effective. The most effective are tylosin, erthromycin, spectinomycin, lincomycin, and chlorotectracycline. These antibiotics can be given by injection while some can be administered in the feed or drinking water. These treatments are most effective when the antibiotics are injected.
Prevention: Eradication is the best and only sure control. Do not use breeder replacements from flocks that have had MS. The National Poultry Improvement Plan monitors for MS.

Articular gout:

This condition is rarely seen and usually a chronic condition. Kidneys are generally normal and may become abnormal with white urate deposits if bird gets dehydrated. Main causes are Genetic, High protein diet etc.
Signs:
1. Depression.
2 .Low feed intake and growth.
3. Dehydration.
4. Ruffled feathers.
5. Moist vent.
6. Post mortem lesions show irregular and enlarged kidneys having crystal chalkywhite urates deposition and all over other organs like Heart, under the skin etc.​

508.articular gout is characterized with periarticular urate deposits (tophi), especially around the joints of toes and the foot. The joints are enlarged and toes - malformed.

509.After opening of affected joints, the periarticular tissue is white. A white semi-liquid matter, due to urate deposits, could also be seen.

 

[dunkziy]

I can do that. Her feet are no where near as bad as those in the 1st picture. Those almost look like duck feet. Her's are pink on the bottom, and the main joint is puffy underneath. I'll get the pictures tonight. She is not eating nor drinking and we are making arrangements to end the suffering for her as quickly as possible if her feet do not get better by the end of the week.

 

[dunkziy]

She has not been eating nor drinking the vitamin enriched water we gave her exclusive access to for the past few days. Her comb went dark again and she hardly moves. I picked her up, which she doesn't like anyway, held her like I do the others and soothed her for 20 mins until she fell asleep. I said a number of prayers asking for the strength to do what had to be done. I then broke her neck as quickly as possible (this took me a longtime to build up to, as you can imagine). It was a quick death. We buried her in the backyard along with and others. I don't like to do this but the kids insist on having a pet graveyard. it's getting full with all the chickens that ultimately pass on. As usual I was the only one crying, I cry at anything remotely touching so the family wasn't surprised. My oldest son told me he felt guilty for not crying along with me. Whatever son, it's ok to not cry at the drop of a hat like your Dad.

 

[Chicken Egg 17]

Yes I have a grave for all of my animals even the baby chicks that die or don't hatch they all have a little marker to tell which one is what and my favorite cat has a wooden box with mulch in in with a bleeding heart flower in it here is a pic of a bleeding heart flower for anyone who doesn't know what it is or Lois like to get its name

 

[Chicken Egg 17]

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry for your loss. It's good that she is not suffering.

 

[Chicken Egg 17]

Are u talking to me or the other person

 

[Eggcessive]

I was expressing sorrow for the loss of dunkziy's chicken.

 

[Chicken Egg 17]

O ok I wasn't sure

 

[dunkziy]

The first year didn't lose any hens from our flock. The 2nd year one of the hens raised some chicks and we lost a few of those, 1 fell in a hole and died, another got taken by a hawk. The next was raccoons reaching through the coop and biting the head off a pullet, she was days away from popping her first egg. Another one escaped the fenced yard and discovered a rat trap and broke her beak off, I don't like losing a member of the flock but I've resigned myself to ending their suffering if I have to and I miss them when they die. It seems that if they get to full size, they seem to do better. I never thought that they would become pets. I thought of them as egg machines that kept my yard clear of ants and bugs, dug up and turned over the compost pile each week and til any loose soil around trees. They are a pleasure to have around, lots of different personalities that I wasn't expecting to see in these girls. Some of them love me, some of them only like the treats I bring, and being handled is the last thing on their minds. I'm pretty sure they are smarter than I think they are and understand more going on than I give them credit. I try to be nice to them as much as possible without spoiling them, though one does get spoiled because she is so cuddly and loves to be held and being close to me. She only likes me, the kids and Wife? she stays away from them, but she will let them pick her up but never asks for it.