I don't know what is wrong with my chicken. Can anyone identify these symptoms?

NatLovesChicks

Hatching
May 9, 2015
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My Americana hen, Annabeth, is in a state of emergency, so pls respond quickly if you are reading this. She is almost 3 years old, and she has been walking funny for almost 2-4 weeks. She was kind of waddling and not walking very fast. She has never eaten that much, but she could not jump the foot or so to the steps up to the treehouse where she sleeps. Then, she started laying down all the time, which is very suspicious and uncharacteristic. We had a minor opossum attack, and she is missing two wing feathers and has a small, shallow scratch on her wing. She was hiding in a bush, so that must be the cause. We took her in and gave her a bath just in case. Over the next few days, her condition worsened, and we had to take her inside. We have been giving her periodic baths with Epsom salt, and we have been cleaning out the bathtub each time after her bath. We have been feeding her cayanne pepper, oatmeal, dried cranberries, pumpkin seeds, a hard boiled egg, and some crushed up egg shell. She is still eating and drinking, but just barely. We also put Epsom salt in her water and food. At first we thought she was constipated because she has been constipated before, but she did not lay any soft-shelled eggs or poop a lot. We have been searching chicken illnesses with these symptoms: swollen, red abdomen; trouble walking; leaning to the side while sitting; problems cleaning themselves; a dirty bottom; and a solid lump in her abdomen. We have narrowed it down to two illnesses: ascites or egg binding. Please help me if possible. I am NOT willing to put her down.(if absolutely necessary, I guess I will, for my bird)
My sincere thanks to all who attempt to help me and my angelic little girl.:)
 
Welcome to BYC. At her age she could be having symptoms of internal laying, egg yolk peritonitis, or ascites ( water belly.) They can have upright walking, not lay anymore, or lay soft shell eggs, have diarrhea, and frequently sit down a lot.
 
If she is egg bound you can give her 500 mg of calcium (one human sized tablet). You can put in the back of her mouth, or you can grind it up and put it in something she will eat (scramble eggs, etc.)

If she has peritonitis, she will probably need antibiotics which you can sometimes get from the feed store or the vet.
 
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Thank you sooooooooo much! I will definitely try that! My only worry is that I felt around inside her vent area, and I didn't feel an egg. I'm not sure if she is really egg bound or if she just has ascites. :/ thank you for your help! :)
 
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Just checked on her again! Her poop looks more solid than it has looked in weeks! I will feed her more calcium from ground up egg shells and give her another bath! I hope this works!
:D
 

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