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is my chicken sick?

kumokumo

Chirping
Jul 16, 2024
56
65
71
hello, my little oeg bantam rooster has been feeling a little lethargic and looking a little pale. he’s been eating and drinking a little, he’s not a very big eater but every time i feel his crop, it’s barely full. we noticed he wasn’t crowing as much in the mornings and his voice became kind of hoarse. his poops are white ish and runny and kind of foamy, idk if it’s because of the rough weather (we’ve had heat flashes and and a semi tornado with lots of rain and lightning in the span of just this week) but our other chickens seem ok. i’m wondering if there actually is something wrong with him?
 

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He's a handsome fella!

Is his crop emptying overnight?

When was he last dewormed?

Check inside his beak for any signs of canker or lesions.

Work on encouraging him to eat his normal feed and to stay hydrated. You can try enticing him with some egg, fish (tuna, mackerel, sardines) or meat.

Is he being picked on by any other roosters or hens?
 
He's a handsome fella!

Is his crop emptying overnight?

When was he last dewormed?

Check inside his beak for any signs of canker or lesions.

Work on encouraging him to eat his normal feed and to stay hydrated. You can try enticing him with some egg, fish (tuna, mackerel, sardines) or meat.

Is he being picked on by any other roosters or hens?
i’ve never dewormed my chickens before, i’m not sure where i could get them dewormed. i’ve been feeding him his favorite seeds, his poop looks a little better than yesterday (there’s more brown in them now) but they’re still a bit foamy. he’s acting kinda slow and odd, like his tail is moving a lot up and down when he breathes. his crop always feels empty, i can feel his bone very well when i try and feel his crop but idk if it’s just because he’s so little
 

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i also gave him a very small dose of advil and just now i gave him some corrid in case.
here’s also a clip of him heaving; he seems very tired and sleepy most of the time, but when he finds his water bowl, he drinks a lot of water. he’s sitting with me for an hour or two so i can make sure he eats and drinks a little, so he goes back into the backyard for the rest of the day.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RHBfJLF6kb4wFU15V_1MHknQmTMs9Q34/view?usp=drivesdk
 
For corid make sure to follow through on the whole treatment for 5 days. The bubbly poop makes me think worms. Round worms are pretty rampant once it becomes hot and humid. For deworming you can use valbazen or safe guard. You dose your birds individually for the most accurate treatment, but you can add it to feed with water. I would deworm your whole flock. You can see about contacting a vet for a fecal float to see what you're dealing with.

There are threads in byc regarding deworming:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/worming-chickens—medicines-and-dosing-information.73369/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/safeguard-mash-zero-day-egg-withdrawal.1254653/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...dications-to-all-poultry-and-waterfowl.73335/

From the chicken chick:

https://the-chicken-chick.com/control-treatment-of-worms-in-chickens/
 
For corid make sure to follow through on the whole treatment for 5 days. The bubbly poop makes me think worms. Round worms are pretty rampant once it becomes hot and humid. For deworming you can use valbazen or safe guard. You dose your birds individually for the most accurate treatment, but you can add it to feed with water. I would deworm your whole flock. You can see about contacting a vet for a fecal float to see what you're dealing with.

There are threads in byc regarding deworming:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/worming-chickens—medicines-and-dosing-information.73369/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/safeguard-mash-zero-day-egg-withdrawal.1254653/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...dications-to-all-poultry-and-waterfowl.73335/

From the chicken chick:

https://the-chicken-chick.com/control-treatment-of-worms-in-chickens/

are these medicines something i can get in a store or do i need a prescription to acquire them? do you think it’s roundworms? only my rooster was acting funny; my other chickens are acting just fine. i was worried he might have early signs of coccidiosis, since he was super pale and acting the same way my hens were when they were little and had it. but i’m not sure?
 
Yes, you can get these at tsc (any farm store) or order online. It will be marked for cattle or goats (or in that section of the store). I have had one chicken that acted off and wormed the whole flock only to find a different chicken with a worm load (as noted in the feces). You don't always see worms or not all will have an issue, but they all have worms regardless. It's just when there is an overload it becomes an issue.
I can't be sure this is his issue, but bubbly poop is often a sign of a worm overload. The only way to know which worms would be a fecal done by a vet.
Coccidiosis could be the issue as well. It will not harm the flock to be treated. Just follow through on the whole treatment.

Have you checked for lice or mites?
 
i’ve never dewormed my chickens before, i’m not sure where i could get them dewormed. i’ve been feeding him his favorite seeds, his poop looks a little better than yesterday (there’s more brown in them now) but they’re still a bit foamy. he’s acting kinda slow and odd, like his tail is moving a lot up and down when he breathes. his crop always feels empty, i can feel his bone very well when i try and feel his crop but idk if it’s just because he’s so little

i also gave him a very small dose of advil and just now i gave him some corrid in case.
here’s also a clip of him heaving; he seems very tired and sleepy most of the time, but when he finds his water bowl, he drinks a lot of water.
Do you provide Grit (Crushed Granite) for your chickens?
I would encourage him to eat his normal feed. While seeds are nice, they may not be the best option for a bird that is not well.

He's drinking a lot of water - Re-Check the crop. Do make sure it's emptying overnight.

I would not give Advil. It doesn't really sound like he's in pain and it would be better to leave it off, if you feel that you must give him some type of pain relief, then give Aspirin according to this article.

To treat most worms that poultry can have except for Tapeworm you can use Safeguard (Fenbendazole) or Valbazen (Albendazole). Both are given orally by weight; they do not mix well with water.

Hard to know if deworming him will help or not, we are just making suggestions.
If you wish to deworm, then you can use Fenbendazole (Safeguard) or Albendazole (Valbazen) to deworm him. IF you are in the U.S. you can usually find Safeguard (Goat Liquid or Equine Paste) at stores like TSC. Valbazen is generally ordered online.

Safeguard dose is 0.23ml per pound of weight given orally once a day for 5 days in a row.
---OR---
Valbazen dose is 0.08ml per pound of weight given orally once, then repeated in 10 days

Here's how to give oral medications:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...dications-to-all-poultry-and-waterfowl.73335/


Work on encouraging him to eat his normal feed and to stay hydrated. You can try enticing him with some egg, fish (tuna, mackerel, sardines) or meat.
 
Yes, you can get these at tsc (any farm store) or order online. It will be marked for cattle or goats (or in that section of the store). I have had one chicken that acted off and wormed the whole flock only to find a different chicken with a worm load (as noted in the feces). You don't always see worms or not all will have an issue, but they all have worms regardless. It's just when there is an overload it becomes an issue.
I can't be sure this is his issue, but bubbly poop is often a sign of a worm overload. The only way to know which worms would be a fecal done by a vet.
Coccidiosis could be the issue as well. It will not harm the flock to be treated. Just follow through on the whole treatment.

Have you checked for lice or mites?
one of my chickens has a very small amount of lice that are very stubborn; we’ve ran out of our lice medicine and have yet to buy it but when i checked him (i thought it might’ve been the lice), i didn’t find anything. my chickens refuse to eat normal store bought chicken feed so my family feeds them corn, seeds, meat, vegetables, and noodles (occasionally). he should be getting grit because he free ranges in my garden, but i can try putting some sand in the garden in case he isn’t getting the grit he needs. he seems a lot better today; a lot more alert and active, he’s chirping and crowing. his crop never seems to be full though? i’m not sure why, but every time i check his crop, i don’t feel anything. i see him eat, so i don’t know what’s going on. it’s been like that ever since we’ve had him, i just assumed he was like that but im not sure what it could be. he’s always been active, crowing, and friendly so idk ? i’ll think about deworming, ive never done it before and ill discuss it with my family. these chickens are my pets and i love them a lot; especially my little white rooster.
 
Your chickens need to be fed a diet suitable for chickens. They only refuse feed due to always getting fed "treats". A healthy flock starts with proper nutrition.

It sounds like you've got a lot going on with your flock.

I'd stick with the advice @Wyorp Rock has offered.
 

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