Lethargic Chickens

[kyleen]

Hi everyone. It’s been a while since I’ve needed to post here. Last week my 4 year old chicken died. Her crop wasn’t impacted. She had a slightly poopy butt no real signs of other illness. Recently, I’ve noticed many of my chickens seem lethargic. They are crouching down. Some of them have poopy butts and lost their vent feathers.
I’m going to do a thorough cleaning of the coop today – but something is off. I just can’t pinpoint it.

 

[kyleen]

@Wyorp Rock you’ve been incredibly helpful in the past. Egg production is also down. Several weeks ago I was at a friends flock. She said they previously had northern fowl mites across the street and scaly leg in hers. But I changed my clothes and shoes before I came into contact with my flock.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi @kyleen


Look your girls over for lice/mites, if you find any, dust them with a permethrin based poultry dust and use a permethrin based spray to treat housing, nesting boxes, etc.

Have you dewormed your girls recently?

 

[kyleen]

Hi @kyleen


Look your girls over for lice/mites, if you find any, dust them with a permethrin based poultry dust and use a permethrin based spray to treat housing, nesting boxes, etc.

Have you dewormed your girls recently?

I have not dewormed them in a while

 

[kyleen]

I have not dewormed them in a while

Thank you. I didn’t see any lice, but mites are smaller. I cleaned the coop and dusted with sevin powder and screwworm spray.
There poop looks normal- watery at times, but it’s hotttt in AZ Summers. I also recently switched their food brand (still 16% layer)

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you. I didn’t see any lice, but mites are smaller. I cleaned the coop and dusted with sevin powder and screwworm spray.
There poop looks normal- watery at times, but it’s hotttt in AZ Summers. I also recently switched their food brand (still 16% layer)

Any of them molting?

You may want to think about deworming if it's been a few months.

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.

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

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

 

[kyleen]

Any of them molting?

You may want to think about deworming if it's been a few months.

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.

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

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

Thank you. I will complete this.
They may be molting- how can you tell molting from picking etc?
One of my girls feet looks odd. Possibly scaly leg mites. I’ll take a picture when I get back into town.
Thank you for your help.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you. I will complete this.
They may be molting- how can you tell molting from picking etc?
One of my girls feet looks odd. Possibly scaly leg mites. I’ll take a picture when I get back into town.
Thank you for your help.

With molting you'll see feather loss and new pin feathers emerging.
With picking, often feathers are nipped, broken and rubbed off.

IF your girls are starting to molt, then I'd use Valbazen instead of Safeguard for deworming. Safeguard can affect feather growth when in molt.

 

[kyleen]

Hi again. Does this look like scaly leg mites to you? This is my 9 year old girl. She still lays and is a great chicken. But wouldn’t let me hold her to treat if it were…

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi again. Does this look like scaly leg mites to you? This is my 9 year old girl. She still lays and is a great chicken. But wouldn’t let me hold her to treat if it were…

It could be the beginning of SLM, or Old Hen Legs, hard to tell!

At 9 it sounds like she's doing great. I would apply some vaseline, Castor Oil or Nu Stock cream to her legs/feet, working your treatment of choice up and under the scales of the legs/feet. Do this week for a several weeks. This will smother any SLM if they are there, if it's Old Hen Legs, then you've given her a spa treatment and spoiled her