Illness helpnto identify

[Peoples]

I will do the fecal float via Amazon mail in. And if worms then come back for advice on dosage and all for deworming and treat thr whole flock. If negative then should I surmise cancer and put her to rest? Is that a good plan? As I would not want her suffering either.

So took her out to yard for some outdoor time and her poop look kinda of runny

 

[azygous]

There is bile and mucous in her poop. It indicates her appetite is lacking.

I have a hen right now that I suspect has cancer. She's been behaving a tad "off" for a considerable while. But she still eats and mingles with the flock, albeit on a very reduced level of enthusiasm. I don't euthanize until a chicken has given up on trying to eat and is in obvious discomfort. I know a chicken is in pain when she self isolates, sticks herself in a corner facing the wall and stops trying to avoid me when I try to handle her. Usually the eyes are droopy and the shoulders are hunched and the feathers are fluffed up.

You are with your hen every day so you will need to be the judge of when she's given up, then end it for her.

 

[Peoples]

There is bile and mucous in her poop. It indicates her appetite is lacking.

I have a hen right now that I suspect has cancer. She's been behaving a tad "off" for a considerable while. But she still eats and mingles with the flock, albeit on a very reduced level of enthusiasm. I don't euthanize until a chicken has given up on trying to eat and is in obvious discomfort. I know a chicken is in pain when she self isolates, sticks herself in a corner facing the wall and stops trying to avoid me when I try to handle her. Usually the eyes are droopy and the shoulders are hunched and the feathers are fluffed up.

You are with your hen every day so you will need to be the judge of when she's given up, then end it for her.

I noticed last week a chnage in her. She was not first out the coop in the morning rather she would linger in longer then the rest which was unusual. Then I noticed the puffed out and shortened neck compared to other girls. And then when she let me handle her with zero fight I knew something was up and brought her in. I have given dose of the nutra drench yesterday and today and notice her neck stretch back up. I made her some eggs and she did eat that. As well as worm and crickets. I let her out in yard while I cleaned her cage and she picked at grass and ate some and gave me a squawk when I picked her to take her in. Does this sound like cancer or parasites?

 

[azygous]

Behavior will only tell us whether a chicken is feeling well or sick or is in pain. Behavior can point us in one direction or another as far as cause, but it can't diagnose the illness.

When a chicken has cancer, they may still have good days ahead before they cross the threshold of no return. It's normal for appetite to decrease, and this causes weakness and further aggravates the inappetite. You have good instincts. You recognize that your hen is weak and needs a boost. I add a little sugar to the special feeding to increase the glucose levels. This provides instant energy. When that no longer works, then it may be time to end it.

 

[coach723]

It's perfectly reasonable to do the fecal test to rule parasites out. There are so many possibilities, that we can't possibly cover all the contingencies. If after doing everything that you are comfortable doing, when supportive care is not getting any improvement, when you think quality of life is poor and/or she is suffering, then it's completely acceptable to end her suffering. We all have different levels of what we can, and are willing to do, when caring for a sick bird. I've nursed some for months for injuries, there are other keepers that might not do that. I've nursed some that did not make it ultimately. I've lost several to cancers and salpingitis. I've ended others quickly when I felt that there was nothing I could reasonable do to help them feel better and they were suffering. When something is going on internally it's often very difficult or impossible to know for sure what's going on until necropsy. When a bird stops eating or drinking, isolates themselves from the flock, is obviously unwell, then that's when I usually euthanize. I've had some birds with cancer or salpingitis live for 18 months before the time came. The fact that she's so thin suggests that it's been going on for awhile already.

 

[Peoples]

It's perfectly reasonable to do the fecal test to rule parasites out. There are so many possibilities, that we can't possibly cover all the contingencies. If after doing everything that you are comfortable doing, when supportive care is not getting any improvement, when you think quality of life is poor and/or she is suffering, then it's completely acceptable to end her suffering. We all have different levels of what we can, and are willing to do, when caring for a sick bird. I've nursed some for months for injuries, there are other keepers that might not do that. I've nursed some that did not make it ultimately. I've lost several to cancers and salpingitis. I've ended others quickly when I felt that there was nothing I could reasonable do to help them feel better and they were suffering. When something is going on internally it's often very difficult or impossible to know for sure what's going on until necropsy. When a bird stops eating or drinking, isolates themselves from the flock, is obviously unwell, then that's when I usually euthanize. I've had some birds with cancer or salpingitis live for 18 months before the time came. The fact that she's so thin suggests that it's been going on for awhile already.

Hello. Now I am at a total loss. Update. She is back out with the flock doing chicken things and now seems fine. I sent in for the fecal and blood at the suggested amazon one if I didn't have a local vet to do. Her results came back she is negative for worms and negative for cancer. What would cause her behavior and thinness I described?? I'm at a loss. I thought for sure she was in her way to rainbow Bridge. Kept her in for about 4 to 5 days and nutra drenched for 3 and she is acting all normal now.

 

[azygous]

Don't underestimate the power of Nutri-drench. It can revive a sick chicken, a weak chicken, and one in shock just as chicken soup can revive a human feeling under the weather.

There are long term illnesses that can produce on/off symptoms. One day a chicken will feel fine and act normal. Another day, she may act droopy and not feel up to par. Chronic reproductive infections are like that. But chronic respiratory infection can also be like that, coming and going according to stress levels.

Tests mostly rule out illnesses. To get a targeted diagnosis usually requires a necropsy on a dead chicken.

This isn't to say your chicken has a chronic illness. She may have been having a bout of indigestion or crop slow-down that resolved on its own. You need to keep an eye on her just in case.