Just laying around the chicken yard —

[jBabychickn]

@coach723
Poops from overnight
Crop is small, unremarkable. She’s ate only a little yesterday, was empty in the am ..

Today Day 4: More of the same no changes
Gave her a direct dose of Poultry Cell last night

I also have oyster shells out for free feeding
I feed them Kalmbach Henhouse reserve

 

[coach723]

Droppings look pretty normal, I see nothing remarkable. There are feathers, I'm not sure that she's not actually starting molt....Is anyone else molting now? I see feathers and feather shaft dust/particles in/around the droppings, so someone appears to be, and the feathers in the picture are white... Sometimes molt is so soft and gradual that it can be missed if not really looking for it. I'm not saying that you are wrong, when we feel something is off, we are usually right. I just don't see anything obvious that helps home in on why she may not be feeling 100%. And sometimes molt really affects them a lot, even if it hasn't before. I have several molting right now, they are standoffish, tend to lay by themselves away from others, and don't always eat well.
You can try giving some poultry nutri drench for a few days, it's faster absorbed and gives them a boost, and may help with appetite. Don't use for more than a few days running, once a day, too much can cause diarrhea. Try giving her some scrambled egg, see if she can be enticed to eat that. There are also recipes on line for things like 'molt loaf', a higher protein treat you can try. I would try to stick with things that are good protein sources. And continue to monitor the crop. You can also make a mash with the feed, just mix with some water, experiment with consistency, some like it thicker, some like it runnier. They usually like it that way.

 

[jBabychickn]

Droppings look pretty normal, I see nothing remarkable. There are feathers, I'm not sure that she's not actually starting molt....Is anyone else molting now? I see feathers and feather shaft dust/particles in/around the droppings, so someone appears to be, and the feathers in the picture are white... Sometimes molt is so soft and gradual that it can be missed if not really looking for it. I'm not saying that you are wrong, when we feel something is off, we are usually right. I just don't see anything obvious that helps home in on why she may not be feeling 100%. And sometimes molt really affects them a lot, even if it hasn't before. I have several molting right now, they are standoffish, tend to lay by themselves away from others, and don't always eat well.
You can try giving some poultry nutri drench for a few days, it's faster absorbed and gives them a boost, and may help with appetite. Don't use for more than a few days running, once a day, too much can cause diarrhea. Try giving her some scrambled egg, see if she can be enticed to eat that. There are also recipes on line for things like 'molt loaf', a higher protein treat you can try. I would try to stick with things that are good protein sources. And continue to monitor the crop. You can also make a mash with the feed, just mix with some water, experiment with consistency, some like it thicker, some like it runnier. They usually like it that way.

Great ideas! Thank you! I’ll incorporate those for sure.

I believe those feathers are her Sisters; she lost all her tail feathers last month. I’ve cleaned most of them up but ya know how that goes they tend to linger for awhile, so you’ve got a great point. She could very well be coming into molt, just right under my radar.

Will update in a few days!

 

[jBabychickn]

Great ideas! Thank you! I’ll incorporate those for sure.

I believe those feathers are her Sisters; she lost all her tail feathers last month. I’ve cleaned most of them up but ya know how that goes they tend to linger for awhile, so you’ve got a great point. She could very well be coming into molt, just right under my radar.

Will update in a few days!

Great ideas! Thank you! I’ll incorporate those for sure.

I believe those feathers are her Sisters; she lost all her tail feathers last month. I’ve cleaned most of them up but ya know how that goes they tend to linger for awhile, so you’ve got a great point. She could very well be coming into molt, just right under my radar.

Will update in a few days!

@CoopBoots @coach723

Well, my friends…
The answer is: Molting !!

Today was a much better day, now I can conclude my assessments with a reasonable Diagnosis. — Miss Pippa has been flapping her wings and sending feathers everywhere!

She’s still resting a lot, but now I know why. She still hasn’t laid, but now I don’t expect her to.

Last night, I gave her a dose of Nutri-drench and I think that helped to replace some energy for her as she seemed to act like she feels a bit better today, by being up more with eating/drinking.
I’ve added the Nutri-drench to their watering pan that they most prefer to drink from. I’m keeping plain water in the hanging waterer so that’s available too…
I don’t think I’ll need to be dosing her with it anymore as long as I see her continuing to drink on her own like she did today. She did really well.

Please Click Down Below this Description:
— Pippa will be the white Silkie/Easter Egger that’s actively drinking water from the shallow pan in the middle of the chicken yard. Then, you can observe her walking to & around the large green feeder. (Please excuse the gross fly trap hanging in the tree!! LOL!)

CLICK HERE

Thanks to you guys, I was able to talk all of this thru. — I didn’t panic. I didn’t go & spend stupid amounts of money on a Avian Vet that’s 85mi. away. I didn’t over-treat my birds with medications they didn’t need, thinking I was helping them. The list goes on…
Thank you!!
— Johnna : )

 

[coach723]

Glad it's figured out! Just keep an eye on her, give her some support if she needs it. I have occasionally had one that I would separate once a day and give a scrambled egg to, so there was no competition, to boost nutrition. They sometimes lose weight, so something to watch for. Also sometimes when they don't eat well they can have some deficiencies. If you see any balance issues, walking like drunk, stumbling, anything that could be neuromuscular, give a B complex tablet or capsule daily until that resolves. I've had a few like that, sometimes just one or two doses gets them back to normal. The b's are safe, extra will be excreted, so no worries.
And I've seen WAY grosser fly traps!
I learned the hard way to hang them up wind of where you tend to be!

*Edit* I think I mean down wind, I'm direction-ally challenged! I mean which ever way the wind blows the stink away from you.