Hens with bloody diarrhea, help needed please.

[urban dreamer]

I have two coops with two hens each. My newest hens are in the middle of thier quarantine period. I noticed this morning while cleaning out the runs that they have both watery diarrhea and normal poo. After cleaning, my little pullet discharged what looked like bright red "beads" in her excrement. I have never seen this before. Could it be blood or parts of her intestinal tract? The other two hens I have are also going through a bout of diarrhea. How do I treat them and what are the causes of diarrhea in chickens? I don't see any visibal worms in it. I have also found what looks like "butterscotch pudding" (sorry I couldn't come up with a better describtion). Two of my birds (one in each coop) seems to be lying down more often. Is that a sign that they are lethargic? I have had chickens for about two months now and I am new to chicken illnesses. What dose normal, healthy poo look like and how do I know if they have worms or not? If any one could please help me figure out how to treat them and how to prevent this kinda thing in the future I would greatly appreciate it!

 

[lauralou]

The "butterscotch pudding" poo sounds like a normal cecal poo to me. It's just something they do ever so often. As far as the bloody diarrhea, could it be cocci? I'm certainly no expert in matters of chicken health, but that seems like a distinct possibility. Maybe if you do a search of "cocci", you will be able to judge whether the symptoms fit.

I wish I could be of more help to you. Good luck with it!

 

[Kittymomma]

It sounds like it could be normal shed of the intestinal lining and cecal poo. The watery stuff could be from stress or parasites I'm really not sure. Pictures are always good. The two that are laying down, well they could be sick, cold, or just tired.... I'm sorry I'm not being very helpful. Here's a link to a "poop page" hopefully you'll find a match there and have a better idea what is going on with your girls.

http://happyhenhouse.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=poop&action=display&thread=7588

 

[urban dreamer]

I googled images for the cocci poo and its looks very similar to what I found. I also read that before you try to give them any kind of antibacterial for it (where would you get that anyways?) to try yogurt. I gave them all some cooked yams to see if the fiber might help with the diarrhea. Only the two in my quarantine coop have this watery, now bloody poo. The other two hens just have the "runs". Im glad I separted them when I got them! If it helps any, the two new birds are a one year old EE and a two month old EE. The two month old is the one with the cocci-looking poo. My other two birds are two year old BRs. I will try the "poo page" kittymomma thanks.

Is it even right to be talking about such a subject? Its kinda embarrassing.

 

[Kittymomma]

Quote:
If you have kids or critters, you talk about poo. It might be kinda gross and embarrassing, but it's a great clue when something is not right.

What are you feeding them? The 8-week old is prime for cocci especially after the stress of a move. Coccoi is pretty easy to treat, but can kill quickly if left untreated. Unlike antibiotics the corid or sulmet (should be able to get one or the other at the feed store) won't lead to any resistance to the meds if you use it and it turns out not to be needed.

 

[urban dreamer]

I have been feeding them 20% laying pellets. They get treats and greens everyday too. I am worried about the baby. Should I take her to my vet? I have been questioning if it is a roo or not too. That might be a good oportunity to find out. I did some reading about treatment for worms and ect. and alot of them have suggested cider vinegar, pumkin and garlic to treat worms. Yogurt is the only thing I have found about the cocci. After visiting the "poo site" I am pretty sure she has cocci. I don't think the one year old has it, but she still has some watery poo. I want to go ahead and treat them all at once if possible. It also seems it would be in my best interest to get some diatomaceous earth too- good for worms and mites. What should I do to help out right now? Should I go ahead and get some yogurt and cider vinegar tonight and start treating them?

 

[Kittymomma]

If you think she has cocci you need to treat her right away with either corid, which I like better but can be hard to find in some areas or Sulmet. You will find one or both of them at your feed store. If she has cocci and it's to the stage of causing blood in the stool she probably won't make it to see the vet on Monday. Pumpkin, cayanne, and de can all keep a parasite load managable, but won't handle a full blown outbreak. You'll need to treat with wazine and then pour on ivermectin if you have a major parasite problem. Good luck and keep the updates coming.

 

[urban dreamer]

Thanks for tha advice. My DH won't be home for another couple of hours so I will have to wait until I can get to the feed store.

 

[urban dreamer]

Guess what? Feed store was closed by the time my DH came home. I went out and gave her some yogurt tonight. She took it quiet well. She was up and moving alot more in the evening. I just hope I am not too late and wake up one morning with a dead pullet. I intend to go to the feed store first thing tomarrow and pick up some meds for her. If she is alot worst, I will make a vet appiontment Monday. I really appreciate the help.

 

[urban dreamer]

I couldn't find either corid or sulmet at my local feed store. Is there anything eles that can be used to treat cocci? She seemed ok today, no more poos like that one. Everything eles seems just fine. After giving them all pumpkin and sweet potatoes, thier dropping look completely normal. No more diarrhea. I have given the baby yogurt for the last day and a half. Im planning on consulting my vet tomarrow.