Lethargic, droopy tail Rhode Island Red

[andreacoak]

My Rhode Island Red, Cinnamon, has been droopy-tailed and lethargic all day. I gave her an espom salt bath, isolated her, and provided her with electrolytes. She will still eat dried grub worms but is uninterested in drinking; she wants to stay very still, with a hunched back. Her most recent poop was greenish colored and watery. She feels thinner than the other birds. Additionally, her comb, which is always floppy on the back half, is floppier than usual, but still brightly colored.

My suspicion is that she's short on calcium, and perhaps egg bound or suffering from EYP. She appears to be straining to pass an egg. I got one egg earlier this week that had a poorly-formed shell. I'll try giving her some calcium this evening.

The rest of the flock appears healthy; no indication of mites or worms in poop.

I'm looking for suggestions if she's not improved by the morning, and wondering if I might have misdiagnosed. Thank you!

 

[andreacoak]

Morning update: the calcium seemed to help her regain a bit of energy. She ate some more flies, drank a bit of electrolyte from the spoon, and clucked at me when I administered more calcium.

I'm assuming I should do another epsom salt bath and give her another massage to encourage the egg to pass? Thanks for your guidance!

 

[Razzlefrazzle]

I'd give her about 600mg of calcium a day for a week or so (calcium citrate with D is good if you have it). If she likes (or doesn't hate) the epsom salt baths I'd continue with those as well.

Since she feels skinnier than your other girls she may have an illness (cancer, infection, etc, etc) that is causing her issue. How old is and when is the last time you dewormed the flock? Does her belly between her legs and below her vent feel swollen, lumpy or squishy? I'm guessing her crop feels pretty empty since she is not eating much?

 

[Saveria]

It is actually better to not massage the area in case it accidentally breaks the egg inside. I would continue with the calcium if it seems to be helping her to improve. Let us know if she appears to have a broken egg in there, or if she passes anything that looks like the inside of an egg or shell fragments.

 

[andreacoak]

I'd give her about 600mg of calcium a day for a week or so (calcium citrate with D is good if you have it). If she likes (or doesn't hate) the epsom salt baths I'd continue with those as well.

Since she feels skinnier than your other girls she may have an illness (cancer, infection, etc, etc) that is causing her issue. How old is and when is the last time you dewormed the flock? Does her belly between her legs and below her vent feel swollen, lumpy or squishy? I'm guessing her crop feels pretty empty since she is not eating much?

Thanks for the info! I'll keep up with 600 mg of calcium citrate with D for the week. She doesn't seem to hate the epsom salt bath, but fell asleep this morning as soon as I finished blowdrying her feathers.

She is about 2 years old; her crop definitely feels empty. She ate better this afternoon - some scrambled egg and bsfl. Her belly between her legs and below the vent feels swollen and firm.

So far, she hasn't passed anything that looks like a broken egg; thanks to eating a bit more, her stool this evening looked pretty normal (though is still sparse).

As far as deworming, I've never given that a try, but will read up asap. Thank you again! And any further guidance is appreciated!

 

[andreacoak]

It is actually better to not massage the area in case it accidentally breaks the egg inside. I would continue with the calcium if it seems to be helping her to improve. Let us know if she appears to have a broken egg in there, or if she passes anything that looks like the inside of an egg or shell fragments.

Thank you! I will not massage again, and I'll keep an eye out for any droppings that appear to be an egg.

 

[andreacoak]

Morning update: the calcium seemed to help her regain a bit of energy. She ate some more flies, drank a bit of electrolyte from the spoon, and clucked at me when I administered more calcium.

I'm assuming I should do another epsom salt bath and give her another massage to encourage the egg to pass? Thanks for your guidance!

One further update -- She is no longer standing and hunched, and no longer appears to be straining; she's laid down instead. Her tail feathers are up. However, her breathing appears to be heavy (no coughing, wheezing, or panting, but a noticeable, body-wide effort). Thanks!

 

[Chipmunk Chicks]

I'm sorry you are dealing with a sick chicken. It is always so stressful, but it sounds like you are doing all you can to help her feel better, and hopefully make a complete recovery. (((Hugs)))

 

[Razzlefrazzle]

Thanks for the info! I'll keep up with 600 mg of calcium citrate with D for the week. She doesn't seem to hate the epsom salt bath, but fell asleep this morning as soon as I finished blowdrying her feathers.

She is about 2 years old; her crop definitely feels empty. She ate better this afternoon - some scrambled egg and bsfl. Her belly between her legs and below the vent feels swollen and firm.

So far, she hasn't passed anything that looks like a broken egg; thanks to eating a bit more, her stool this evening looked pretty normal (though is still sparse).

As far as deworming, I've never given that a try, but will read up asap. Thank you again! And any further guidance is appreciated!

2 years old is still pretty young, so hopefully this is just a reproductive glitch, so to speak, and she will recover fully. A firm, swollen belly fits with egg binding, egg peritonitis, or infection. If the swelling is severe it can put pressure on the air sacs (and other organs) making a chicken struggle to breath. You'll want to be careful to keep her stress minimal so as not to tax her respiratory system further. For suspected egg binding cases I put my girls in a dim, steamy bathroom after their dose of calcium and let them (hopefully) do their thing. It sounds like she might be improving, but if she continues to struggle and vet care isn't an option, I would probably give her an antibiotic like amoxicilin in case she has EYP or an oviduct infection.

Let us know how she does.

 

[Chickalettas]

I had something similar happen with my chicken recently and I gave her water mixed with ip6 through a syringe. Also scrambled eggs mixed with red pepper flakes, turmeric powder and cayenne pepper. additionally I would open her beak and make her eat small cut up raw garlic. She was so weak, wouldn’t drink on her own and kept falling asleep. She would only eat the scrambled eggs slowly. After doing all the above for a few days, she is back to running around with the flock and doing great. Highly suggest ip6 for chickens.