- May 15, 2009
- 1,997
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This has been going on for a little more than a year now. I started out with 10 Red Stars and have 2 left. I do have other breeds but until tonight no issues. I could really, really use some help.
The trouble I'm going to try to explain was only affecting a batch of Red Stars. One by one they will get lethargic, stop laying and the area between their legs gets swollen with fluid. They continue to drink and eat but lose weight. Near the end they drink a lot of water but they don't pass anything. If they are held and pressure is put on their 'bellies' fluid wants to come out of their mouths. I can't bring myself to 'put them down' so I bring them to our vet. He is puzzled by the situation and has done a necropsy on a few. His findings are that they all have infections inside and it's nothing he's ever seen before. He's a 'country' vet who's been around for a while and has had his own chickens for years. One additional thing I can add is that when he puts them down fluid comes out of their mouths and back ends.
The vet and his partners came to the conclusion that there must be something genetically wrong with the batch I have and chalked it up to experience/bad luck.
Tonight I came home and went to check on everyone and I see that another chicken is sick. This time it's an Austrolorpe. Same thing. Lethargic, sitting on the perch during the day with her eyes closed and a swollen abdomen and dirty butt.
I don't understand what is going on. Now I feel that it is something that I am doing wrong. There's nothing unusual about what they eat or their housing. They get a balanced feed from Blue Seal feed. They have 2 runs that they rotate through so they always have fresh grass. They get cracked corn, have oyster shell and grit available all the time and fresh water in the late afternoon and first thing in the morning. I garden organically, we don't use chemicals, their coop is clean and if we get a mouse or two we use traps and not poison.
Has anyone had anything like this happen? Any help would certainly be appreciated.
The trouble I'm going to try to explain was only affecting a batch of Red Stars. One by one they will get lethargic, stop laying and the area between their legs gets swollen with fluid. They continue to drink and eat but lose weight. Near the end they drink a lot of water but they don't pass anything. If they are held and pressure is put on their 'bellies' fluid wants to come out of their mouths. I can't bring myself to 'put them down' so I bring them to our vet. He is puzzled by the situation and has done a necropsy on a few. His findings are that they all have infections inside and it's nothing he's ever seen before. He's a 'country' vet who's been around for a while and has had his own chickens for years. One additional thing I can add is that when he puts them down fluid comes out of their mouths and back ends.
The vet and his partners came to the conclusion that there must be something genetically wrong with the batch I have and chalked it up to experience/bad luck.
Tonight I came home and went to check on everyone and I see that another chicken is sick. This time it's an Austrolorpe. Same thing. Lethargic, sitting on the perch during the day with her eyes closed and a swollen abdomen and dirty butt.
I don't understand what is going on. Now I feel that it is something that I am doing wrong. There's nothing unusual about what they eat or their housing. They get a balanced feed from Blue Seal feed. They have 2 runs that they rotate through so they always have fresh grass. They get cracked corn, have oyster shell and grit available all the time and fresh water in the late afternoon and first thing in the morning. I garden organically, we don't use chemicals, their coop is clean and if we get a mouse or two we use traps and not poison.
Has anyone had anything like this happen? Any help would certainly be appreciated.
