KJS
In the Brooder
- Aug 15, 2017
- 9
- 1
- 30
Hi all,
I have a 6 year old light brahma hen who's not doing so great. She is pale, lethargic, and not eating or drinking. Her poop is abnormal too, she's exhibited diarrhea and very large poops. My guess is that she is broody and has heat stress, because she has plucked her chest feathers and is laying down quite a bit. We also live in CO where its been in the 80s and 90s temp range for the past two weeks. She is also somewhat older so her age could be a factor too.
I've been taking her out of the coop every morning and putting her in a separate run in a shaded spot behind the garden. There is food and water in this run but she will not eat or drink on her own. I've been syringe feeding her a mixture of electrolytes and egg yolk, dissolved in water. I put her back in the coop at night to sleep (predator reasons) and then she does the same thing the next day. I've also been keeping her wet is its a hot day, trying to cool her off, and she always has access to cool water too. I have also been trying to break her broodiness everyday by moving her out of the coop.
I'm a bit confused on a few things though-
1. All of the other broody hen I've had will eat and drink when I move them out of the coop, before they return to their clutch.
2. There are nesting boxes with eggs in them in the coop, and it seems like if she were broody I should find nesting her in the nesting boxes, not just be the coop door every morning.
3. I'm not seeing any improvement or decline in her health or behavior.
I was wondering if their could be another reason for the behavior like a parasite or disease that I haven't considered yet?
If she is broody and is very stubborn, would letting her have a clutch of fertile eggs be a bad idea?
what else would you suggest I try to get help her?
I have a 6 year old light brahma hen who's not doing so great. She is pale, lethargic, and not eating or drinking. Her poop is abnormal too, she's exhibited diarrhea and very large poops. My guess is that she is broody and has heat stress, because she has plucked her chest feathers and is laying down quite a bit. We also live in CO where its been in the 80s and 90s temp range for the past two weeks. She is also somewhat older so her age could be a factor too.
I've been taking her out of the coop every morning and putting her in a separate run in a shaded spot behind the garden. There is food and water in this run but she will not eat or drink on her own. I've been syringe feeding her a mixture of electrolytes and egg yolk, dissolved in water. I put her back in the coop at night to sleep (predator reasons) and then she does the same thing the next day. I've also been keeping her wet is its a hot day, trying to cool her off, and she always has access to cool water too. I have also been trying to break her broodiness everyday by moving her out of the coop.
I'm a bit confused on a few things though-
1. All of the other broody hen I've had will eat and drink when I move them out of the coop, before they return to their clutch.
2. There are nesting boxes with eggs in them in the coop, and it seems like if she were broody I should find nesting her in the nesting boxes, not just be the coop door every morning.
3. I'm not seeing any improvement or decline in her health or behavior.
I was wondering if their could be another reason for the behavior like a parasite or disease that I haven't considered yet?
If she is broody and is very stubborn, would letting her have a clutch of fertile eggs be a bad idea?
what else would you suggest I try to get help her?
