hen with blue comb, bright yellow diarhea, lossing weight and slow

[alaskanhenhouse]

I do add a small amount of food grade DE to there feed once in a while, it's been about a month. There is also some in their dust box. If she was to eat too much of it, say pecking in the dusting box, do you think this could affect her like this?

 

[alaskanhenhouse]

She's easy to spot and i was watching her good today. I saw her twice at the water bowl and was right there at the feeder this evening when i was dishing out.

I didn't feel her crop but i can tomorrow. I only remember feeling how meatless her breast meat felt when i picked her up. She's a gold comet so i know she's not suppose to be a fatty but it's worse than a 3 month old rooster.

I'll try collecting a fresh dropping sample tomorrow for a vet. but what do i ask him to look for, just parasites?

 

[alaskanhenhouse]

One of my researches came up with trichomoniasis, infection of the lower digestive track. it mentions old straw bales as a source of contaminants that can cause some of these symptoms(doesn't mention dark comb) but generally in turkeys. Anyone familiar with this illness? There was an old straw bale by the garden that they pecked down to nothing.

 

[d.k]

* DE wouldn't cause diarrhea-- at least I've never heard of that ever here. If it's contaminated somehow, who knows?? I'm with Silkie-- the garden is really suspect. . . Is there ANY way to isolate her and the others showing diarrhea symtoms? Even a temporary pen? ED: You've got all kinds of possibles-- Mold and bacteria in the straw bale, parasites and cocci-potential in the garden.

 

[alaskanhenhouse]

Well there is my green house but it's a dirt floor that has housed my ducks all winter so not really. I can keep them confined to their yard ( but still not seperated ) so they don't get into the garden. it is pretty wet with standing water from the melthing ice.

Besides worms i don't know what could be affecting them in the garden other than rotting vegie scraps that didn't get pulled or removed.

 

[d.k]

* The visit to the garden and especially the eating of the rotten hay bale are just too coincidental to the egg production drop and the diarrhea episodes to be ignored. More experienced members will come online shortly-- but, IMO toxins and/or parasites will be the call, unless they notice some other piece we missed, which is possible, but we'll see. THEY WILL HAVE a much better grasp on possible treatments.

 

[dlhunicorn]

When was the last time the birds were wormed? If never wormed then do so (entire flock) I would go with a broad spectrum wormer like ivomec Eprinex (use the spot on method >apply to back of neck)
Read about it here:
http://shilala.homestead.com/ivomec.html

one online source:
http://www.americanlivestock.com/pc-406-787107-ivomec-eprinex.aspx

for more info on poos see the info here:
http://dlhunicorn.conforums.com/index.cgi?board=poos&action=display&num=1158478320

 

[red-hen]

Quote:
DE is meant to be given every single day if it is to be effective as a wormer.

If you're taking a poop sample to the vet, just explain everything to them as you did to us, they are professionals at diagnosis and will probably have this sorted out faster than we will here on the forum since they can perform tests and witness the bird in person.

I hope this gets sorted quickly so you can sell your eggs again.

 

[alaskanhenhouse]

well, i looked and looked yesterday but couldn't locate any of the yellow diarhea that i had seen before so i could take the sample to a vet, but i did find a fiberous pile on a next box that contained some of the same color to it. So i scrapped it up, put it in a jar with water to seperate and see what was in it. Lots and lots of seed hulls.....and a large black rubberband or "O" ring! Although the yellow seemed to be a solid, i didn't try smashing any or anything. by appearance of shape it looked like flat corn. Oh and no grit in it either! So maybe she was stopped up by the rubber, malnurished due to undigested feed. I don't get it how that turned her blue but....could it be the condition/illness she had has already run it's course?

I had a hard time locating the gal but once i did she is regaining normal color in her comb and just as active as before. by last evening only the comb part right above her nostrils was still discolored.

Could be a coincidence but.....now i have to go back to the drawing board because it appears the drop in egg production has nothing to do with the 'ill' hen.

thanks everyone for your rapid support.

 

[d.k]

* Have they molted yet this season?? I CAN'T EVEN IMAGINE what it must look like when that many chickens go into moult, but I know that 'getting ready' for it usually results in production drop-off. What's the average age of the flock, also? If they've already molted you could try a little cayenne in their feed to kinda 'kickstart' production--But, the one time I used it, I felt that my hen's eggshells got rather noticably thinner so I didn't use it again. Might have just added a little too much, though.