Is my chicken dying?

[Shalmeno]

I have a five month old black sex link who I'm concerned about. She is not voluntarily roosting. She goes into a corner and just sits. Also some background I started everything backwards and I am still building their coop. Weather turned cold this week and it has barely stopped raining for three days. Temperatures overnight have been in low 40s. Have put tarp over run and put heating bulb in run lamp. Any thoughts on why she's so lethargic? I have noticed some days it takes her a long time to lay. She will sometimes nest for 30 minutes or more before laying an egg.

 

[<3 N.C Chicken Chick <3]

hmmm maby shes just trying to warm up?

 

[Shalmeno]

I have considered the warmth issue and have moved her to a slightly warmer and much drier area for the night. Just hoping she's not ill.

 

[<3 N.C Chicken Chick <3]

dose she sleep in an nest box on on an pearch?

 

[KandiandJerry]

Could it be possible that she is egg bound?

 

[happyhens120]

Here's an article about coccidiosis that you might find interesting. Reading about her huddling in the corner makes me think of this article. I'm not sure if she's too old to get it or not, but the lethargic behaviors is one of the symptoms of the disease. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you and hoping it's just a spell she's going through!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=26709-coccidiosis-and-medicated-feed

 

[CMV]

It's funny that as soon as rain was mentioned I thought "cocci". I guess great minds think alike, happyhens120. Birds are never too old to get cocci, contrary to what we believe. My hens were 2 years old when they had their round of it during a particularly soggy summer. Chickens get used to a certain amount of it through constant exposure, but during certain times it can reach problematic levels and cause chickens' systems to get overwhelmed. I am thinking your bird may be overloaded with cocci in the absence of any other symptoms. A quick course of treatment shouldn't hurt her even if cocci is not the problem. You may need to discard her eggs for a few days, but that is a small price to pay if it saves your bird.

I wouldn't be too concerned about her taking so long in the nesting box. She's a newish layer, so it can take a while for her to get her laying routine tweaked. (I have a bird that takes about 2 hours in the nesting box. The other birds get really annoyed with her because she always parks herself in the favorite box.)

I hope she recovers. Good luck.

 

[happyhens120]

Quote:
Agreed! I'm somewhat of a newbie (only been at this chicken thing 6 months or so), but I read all I can about them and that's the first thing I thought of too.

 

[Lucysmom002]

check her crop! make sure she's not impacted