Lethargic 3 1/2 year old hen

[ohmychicken]

Please help! One of my ladies isn’t doing well. Noticed a couple of days ago when checking on my ladies that one of my hens that is usually on the top roosting bar was on the ground. We thought she just came in a little late so we picked her up and placed her in the top. The next night she was on the bottom but didn’t didn’t think about it. Yesterday afternoon I went out to give them some tomatoes, grapes, lettuce and spinach when I noticed not all 10 of my ladies were there. I went into the coop to make sure she was laying when I found her laying on the coop floor. She usually comes out to greet me and when I picked her up she wasn’t squirming at all. I took her out to the run and she wasn’t interested in eating the yummies she just laid right down. I took her inside, noticed she had some yellowish poop stuck to the feathers below her vent. I cleaned them off and she didn’t seem to like that. I gave her some gator aid since I didn’t have anything else. She drank that and I filled a small cup with water. She drank it a little at a time. I have checked her vent and nothing looked abnormal. I did check with glove/lubed finger to see if there was anything stuck. I felt nothing. She did poop immediately after and it was awful smelling and very runny. She rested the rest of the night. She is still resting not getting up this morning. Any ideas or help will be appreciated.

 

[dawg53]

I suspect she's an internal layer and a bad infection has set in. I'm sorry to say that no amount of antibiotics will help if this is the case. Clean her rear end as best as you can and provide comfort care.

 

[slordaz]

It's hard when they go down like that for them to recover. Once they are laying down a lot from what I have seen they are usually gone in a day or two even trying to treat them.
Dang chickens are good at hiding when something is wrong until it's to late

 

[Eggcessive]

It does sound like the typical story of a hen with reproductive problems. Internal laying, salpingitis, egg yolk peritonits, oviduct cancer, and sometimes ascites or fluid in the abdomen, are all common in hens over 2. Poultry NutriDrench or Poultry Cell are good vitamin/electrolyte products that you can give orally 2 ml daily. Offer a little scrambled egg, chicken feed made wet with water, and tuna are good things to get her to eat. Make sure that her crop is emptying overnight, since impacted or sour crop can occur with these problems. Sorry about your hen. I would make plans on how to cull her if she gets worse, and is suffering. Here is some reading:
http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/internal-layer

http://www.theveterinaryexpert.com/backyard-poultry/egg-yolk-peritonitis/

 

[ohmychicken]

It does sound like the typical story of a hen with reproductive problems. Internal laying, salpingitis, egg yolk peritonits, oviduct cancer, and sometimes ascites or fluid in the abdomen, are all common in hens over 2. Poultry NutriDrench or Poultry Cell are good vitamin/electrolyte products that you can give orally 2 ml daily. Offer a little scrambled egg, chicken feed made wet with water, and tuna are good things to get her to eat. Make sure that her crop is emptying overnight, since impacted or sour crop can occur with these problems. Sorry about your hen. I would make plans on how to cull her if she gets worse, and is suffering. Here is some reading:
http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/internal-layer

http://www.theveterinaryexpert.com/backyard-poultry/egg-yolk-peritonitis/

So there is nothing I can do but make my poor lady comfortable? I have given her scrambled eggs, waters down mean worms, watered down layer and she nibbles at it but that’s it. She did lift her backside and poop which again was very watery, yellow/greenish and smelly. That’s only the second time since 7pm last night. I did soak her bottom in warm water to clean her up. Dried her really well and placed her back into her cage. She is drinking still but not much eating. We don’t have a vet that deals with chickens so I am at a loss. I have made sure her crop was squishy this morning as it was hard last night.

 

[Eggcessive]

Antibiotics use in chickens is a hotbed issue, but some do treat chickens with reproductive infection with enrofloxacin which treats E.coli and other possible bactria. It won’t cure her, but it could extend her life. Enrofloxacin (Baytril) is banned for use in chickens by the FDA, but some vets still prescribe it for a pet chicken. Do not eat her eggs for at least a month. Here is a link to find it, and dosage is 0.05 ml per pound or 0.25 ml (1/4 ml) for a 5 pound chicken given by mouth daily for 5 days:
https://www.jedds.com/shop/misc/

 

[slordaz]

If your soaking here add some Epsom salt in and should be 10-15 minutes but with condition she is in would do as tolerated, I had one hen that had to warm up the water again she liked the comfort of the warmed water soak

 

[ohmychicken]

If your soaking here add some Epsom salt in and should be 10-15 minutes but with condition she is in would do as tolerated, I had one hen that had to warm up the water again she liked the comfort of the warmed water soak

I did add the Epson salt and she didn’t seem to mind sitting in the water. She just wasn’t happy with me removing the poo from her feathers. Once I left her alone she seemed to just close her eyes and relaxed. She is eating a little and still drinking but not much movement other than that. She will occasionally pull her wings out to the sides of her body. When I talk to her she peeks up and looks at me. This is one of my ladies from my original flock so the attachment is strong. Wow how heart wrenching