How is your flock today?

[Parront]

That was the point I was trying to make when I started this small thread. How many people actually do take the time with their flock to see changes in their daily behavior to know that something isn't right with one of their poultry?

It's my understanding from a very knowledgeable member, that birds are very good at hiding their symptoms and when they do start showing physical signs it's generally to late at that point. This is why I was curious to learn what other members do to protect their flocks against parasites etc.

I understand keeping an eye on their poop is one way to see worms, but how long will they have actually had worms before a person can spot them that way? I also understand the whole expensive Vet visit etc. and for a $5.00 bird, that isn't going to happen at our place.

We had to take one of our goats into the Vet to get a lump checked for a possible contagious bacteria and they also done a Fecal Float test to check for parasite eggs. I was very amazed at how easy and simple that test was for them to do right there for $25.00.

Since goats are highly susceptible to getting worms and it's hard to know for sure or not without a Fecal Float test, I figured it was best we start doing our own tests to know for sure. Deworming any animal that don't need it, isn't a healthy practice for the animal.

I was able to find a very nice microscope off CL for cheap and with the few other things we will need to be able to start doing our own Fecal testing with all our animals. It should pay for itself in no time while keeping everyone healthily and free of parasites.

I think dull eyes, lethargy, slow off the perch in the morning, and I would be doing a very close inspection. I scoop up the poop from the quarantine birds, and put it in some water in a jar when it is fresh, see what might be lurking. See if it looks runny. When I first had chickens years ago, I learned by finding the egg-bound hen dead the morning after I noticed her not acting right, staying in the nest box all day, walking funny. When my parrot Dylan showed those symptoms, to the Vet ASAP. Parrot lived. Dylan was and is worth it, sadly a duck or hen isn't. Just the way it is. I give them the same level of care and attention as I give Dylan, the African Grey in the Avatar. I have the same thing in the bird kit that the vet prescribed to Dylan, Calcium Glucconate. I got it from Tractor Supply, $7.00. If you catch it fast, you can save an egg bound hen with that. Oyster shell, is always available, but some young birds --
The best thing is to have a normal baseline that you have established when they are healthy, to be able notice something amiss.

 

[416bigbore]

Hello, How is everyone and their flock doing this fine day?

What a crazy couple of days at our place starting with yesterday morning. It was just about sunrise and I was fixing my first cup of coffee and as I was looking out our kitchen window, I noticed that one of our Isa Brown hens was out in the yard scratching around. So on go the work clothes and out the door to put her in before anything bad happens to her.

Then shortly after I put her in their fenced free range area I went to open the coop door and spotted my other surprise sitting up in the straw bales. Another one of our Isa Brown hens was sitting in her nest with her head down and her butt somewhat raised. At first I thought she was dead!

So I go to pick her up to see what's wrong and then she opened her eyes and started moving slowly. Something was obviously not right with her so I started to check her over not really knowing what her problem was?

I noticed she had some what of poopy feathers around her vent and after taking a closer look, she had something sticking out her vent so I slowly started to pull it out. At first I thought maybe she had another broken egg like last time and it was part of the soft shell membrane?

It was a 3" piece of small soft tube like membrane material light tan in color. It didn't look nothing like a soft broken egg shell as I had thought, so my next thought is she must be egg bound? So I go and get her a 1ml of Calcium Gluconate and give that to her orally, which was not fun doing by myself. LOL

Then she jump down off the straw bale and went over to her waterer for a few drinks of water and back up into her straw nest to rest. Since that tube like stuff I pulled from her vent may have been from an egg that didn't form right and or did break in her. I mixed up a 1T of white vinegar to 1QT of warm water to flush her vent to help prevent any bacterial infection from starting.

That too was a fun process, hen in one arm and loaded turkey baster in the other hand, I GOT-R-DONE ! LOL Then I put her down by her waterer again to see if she would drink anymore water and she did. As she was standing there drinking she stood up a little bit and let a light yellowish watery poop fly. So I am guessing at this point maybe an egg that didn't form correctly in her and she was passing it like the broken egg last time about 3 months back.

Then after she was done and still moving quite slow, I picked her up and put her back into her straw nest to rest again. It was now about 8am so I started all my other daily morning chores. I would check back in on her about every two hours to see if her condition was improving any while still making sure she was willing to drink water on her own, so she wouldn't start getting dehydrated.

Then it was about noon and the craziest thing had just happened, she had dropped a perfect egg in her nest. So I went back into the house and grabber her some mealworms and electrolytes. She slowly picked at the mealworms and did manage to eat six of them. She was doing much better but still not back to her old self yet. The rest of the day she hung out in the yard with the rest of the birds until it was time to go in the coop for the night.

Next morning at sunrise I was on my way out to the coop and not really knowing what to expect. I opened the coop door and she was one of the first birds to run out and start scratching around the ground. I kept a close eye on her the rest of the day and she was back to normal as if nothing had happened the day before.

IMO, Calcium Gluconate is some amazing stuff. This was her second time having egg issues and I hope this doesn't become a regular thing with her every few months.

 

[Sally PB]

Next morning at sunrise I was on my way out to the coop and not really knowing what to expect. I opened the coop door and she was one of the first birds to run out and start scratching around the ground.

Yay! Glad to hear it.

 

[416bigbore]

Yay! Glad to hear it.

Thank you, yes very stressful when one of the girls is not doing well and need to hurry up and try to figure it out without an expensive Vet bill attached to it!.

This morning our other three Isa Browns have laid their three eggs for the day by 9am and now I am just waiting on our problemed hen to follow.

 

[Parront]

Hello, How is everyone and their flock doing this fine day?

What a crazy couple of days at our place starting with yesterday morning. It was just about sunrise and I was fixing my first cup of coffee and as I was looking out our kitchen window, I noticed that one of our Isa Brown hens was out in the yard scratching around. So on go the work clothes and out the door to put her in before anything bad happens to her.

Then shortly after I put her in their fenced free range area I went to open the coop door and spotted my other surprise sitting up in the straw bales. Another one of our Isa Brown hens was sitting in her nest with her head down and her butt somewhat raised. At first I thought she was dead!

So I go to pick her up to see what's wrong and then she opened her eyes and started moving slowly. Something was obviously not right with her so I started to check her over not really knowing what her problem was?

I noticed she had some what of poopy feathers around her vent and after taking a closer look, she had something sticking out her vent so I slowly started to pull it out. At first I thought maybe she had another broken egg like last time and it was part of the soft shell membrane?

It was a 3" piece of small soft tube like membrane material light tan in color. It didn't look nothing like a soft broken egg shell as I had thought, so my next thought is she must be egg bound? So I go and get her a 1ml of Calcium Gluconate and give that to her orally, which was not fun doing by myself. LOL

Then she jump down off the straw bale and went over to her waterer for a few drinks of water and back up into her straw nest to rest. Since that tube like stuff I pulled from her vent may have been from an egg that didn't form right and or did break in her. I mixed up a 1T of white vinegar to 1QT of warm water to flush her vent to help prevent any bacterial infection from starting.

That too was a fun process, hen in one arm and loaded turkey baster in the other hand, I GOT-R-DONE ! LOL Then I put her down by her waterer again to see if she would drink anymore water and she did. As she was standing there drinking she stood up a little bit and let a light yellowish watery poop fly. So I am guessing at this point maybe an egg that didn't form correctly in her and she was passing it like the broken egg last time about 3 months back.

Then after she was done and still moving quite slow, I picked her up and put her back into her straw nest to rest again. It was now about 8am so I started all my other daily morning chores. I would check back in on her about every two hours to see if her condition was improving any while still making sure she was willing to drink water on her own, so she wouldn't start getting dehydrated.

Then it was about noon and the craziest thing had just happened, she had dropped a perfect egg in her nest. So I went back into the house and grabber her some mealworms and electrolytes. She slowly picked at the mealworms and did manage to eat six of them. She was doing much better but still not back to her old self yet. The rest of the day she hung out in the yard with the rest of the birds until it was time to go in the coop for the night.

Next morning at sunrise I was on my way out to the coop and not really knowing what to expect. I opened the coop door and she was one of the first birds to run out and start scratching around the ground. I kept a close eye on her the rest of the day and she was back to normal as if nothing had happened the day before.

IMO, Calcium Gluconate is some amazing stuff. This was her second time having egg issues and I hope this doesn't become a regular thing with her every few months.

Calcium Gluconate tastes sweet, the vet prescribed 2 weeks of it in a dropper, 1x a day at night, for my 500 mg (~1 pound) African Grey after she was egg bound. You can dose your hen proportionately for the next 2 weeks. Just once isn't enough to solve the problem. Lots of oyster shell, if she will eat it. No extra scratch treats for her!
PS Dylan got .5 ml in her dropper each night.

 

[Parront]

Dylan the parrot would ask for her "treat" from the dropper. She drank it like from a nipple drinker, very willingly. She was sad when I stopped! Your girl might learn to like it!

 

[BlueBaby]

Hello, How is everyone and their flock doing this fine day?

What a crazy couple of days at our place starting with yesterday morning. It was just about sunrise and I was fixing my first cup of coffee and as I was looking out our kitchen window, I noticed that one of our Isa Brown hens was out in the yard scratching around. So on go the work clothes and out the door to put her in before anything bad happens to her.

Then shortly after I put her in their fenced free range area I went to open the coop door and spotted my other surprise sitting up in the straw bales. Another one of our Isa Brown hens was sitting in her nest with her head down and her butt somewhat raised. At first I thought she was dead!

So I go to pick her up to see what's wrong and then she opened her eyes and started moving slowly. Something was obviously not right with her so I started to check her over not really knowing what her problem was?

I noticed she had some what of poopy feathers around her vent and after taking a closer look, she had something sticking out her vent so I slowly started to pull it out. At first I thought maybe she had another broken egg like last time and it was part of the soft shell membrane?

It was a 3" piece of small soft tube like membrane material light tan in color. It didn't look nothing like a soft broken egg shell as I had thought, so my next thought is she must be egg bound? So I go and get her a 1ml of Calcium Gluconate and give that to her orally, which was not fun doing by myself. LOL

Then she jump down off the straw bale and went over to her waterer for a few drinks of water and back up into her straw nest to rest. Since that tube like stuff I pulled from her vent may have been from an egg that didn't form right and or did break in her. I mixed up a 1T of white vinegar to 1QT of warm water to flush her vent to help prevent any bacterial infection from starting.

That too was a fun process, hen in one arm and loaded turkey baster in the other hand, I GOT-R-DONE ! LOL Then I put her down by her waterer again to see if she would drink anymore water and she did. As she was standing there drinking she stood up a little bit and let a light yellowish watery poop fly. So I am guessing at this point maybe an egg that didn't form correctly in her and she was passing it like the broken egg last time about 3 months back.

Then after she was done and still moving quite slow, I picked her up and put her back into her straw nest to rest again. It was now about 8am so I started all my other daily morning chores. I would check back in on her about every two hours to see if her condition was improving any while still making sure she was willing to drink water on her own, so she wouldn't start getting dehydrated.

Then it was about noon and the craziest thing had just happened, she had dropped a perfect egg in her nest. So I went back into the house and grabber her some mealworms and electrolytes. She slowly picked at the mealworms and did manage to eat six of them. She was doing much better but still not back to her old self yet. The rest of the day she hung out in the yard with the rest of the birds until it was time to go in the coop for the night.

Next morning at sunrise I was on my way out to the coop and not really knowing what to expect. I opened the coop door and she was one of the first birds to run out and start scratching around the ground. I kept a close eye on her the rest of the day and she was back to normal as if nothing had happened the day before.

IMO, Calcium Gluconate is some amazing stuff. This was her second time having egg issues and I hope this doesn't become a regular thing with her every few months.

I'm glad that you were able to catch the problem in time to help her, even if it interrupted your morning coffee. I hope that she won't keep having that problem.

 

[Parront]

Thank you, yes very stressful when one of the girls is not doing well and need to hurry up and try to figure it out without an expensive Vet bill attached to it!.

This morning our other three Isa Browns have laid their three eggs for the day by 9am and now I am just waiting on our problemed hen to follow.

How is your problem girl doing?

 

[416bigbore]

@Parront She is still doing good, no four egg today so maybe she is holding off until tomorrow? She is also soon to be a year old and I hope this egg issue of hers is over.

When giving a chicken Calcium Gluconate orally with a syringe stuck down into their esophagus I am guessing they don't get much of a chance to taste it to see if it is sweet or not. LOL

I think our 1 pint bottle from TSC was only $7.00, definitely cheap enough to keep on hand for emergency's.

 

[Parront]

@Parront She is still doing good, no four egg today so maybe she is holding off until tomorrow? She is also soon to be a year old and I hope this egg issue of hers is over.

When giving a chicken Calcium Gluconate orally with a syringe stuck down into their esophagus I am guessing they don't get much of a chance to taste it to see if it is sweet or not. LOL

I think our 1 pint bottle from TSC was only $7.00, definitely cheap enough to keep on hand for emergency's.

I have an unopened one on hand! It is just easier if they co-operate -- tame birds will drink it all on their own. I did do the expensive Vet visit for the parrot, same applies to the $4.00 bird as the $1400. one! Keep it up with the Calcium Gluconate for a couple of weeks, only a year old is pretty young to be having this problem. Usually is is when they first begin to lay, or when they are older.