Lethargic hen, yellow diarrhea, minimal movement.

[bwick29]

Hello everyone.

Posting here hoping that the wealth of everyone's information can help us out.

We have a 13 month old Barred Rock who is quite under the weather. I've done exhaustive Googling/forum reading/etc and am only more confused by the results. Many symptoms are general signs of chickens being ill and others are associated with multiple issues so it's hard to narrow them down to a specific cause.

Her list of symptoms:
- Diarrhea. Poo is creamy-yellow. Entirely runny. Doesn't appear to be any solid substance at all.
- Diarrhea buildup below vent.
- Standing still. Rarely moving. Showed no interest going into coop at night.
- May (or may not) have gently labored breathing, but it's not labored enough for me to confirm this as a symptom.
- Generally lethargic
- Crop seems spongy and didn't drain after last night's food-less quarantine.
- Keeps her head pulled in close and her butt upward.

Here's what we've done:
- Cleaned up the buildup below vent.
- Quarantined.
- Felt for any impacted eggs. Not very experienced, but didn't feel anything.
- Provided electrolytes last night. (Appears she may have drank some.)
- Provided fresh water as well.
- Ordered Safe-Guard (will be here tomorrow) as a preventative measure that may help in this case.
- Verified no visible injury or other abnormalities (eyes/legs/etc).

Here are some further thoughts:
- Vets in our area are awfully booked and we aren't aware of any with Avian experience. This likely rules a vet visit out, sadly.
- Her color is great still. Comb is bright red without any signs of issue.
- Her weight is great still. Not losing/gaining abnormally.
- We aren't sure the last time she laid.
- We have seen one egg from the flock that was soft without a shell. We can't confirm it was hers, but it's surely worth noting.
- She seems to be interested in a sip when we gently introduce her beak to the water.
- Edit: No other birds in the flock are experiencing any similar symptoms.

I hope the information dump above is enough for some direction. I'm personally leaning toward either an issue with her crop or with worms, but we've see no evidence of the latter (it just matches a lot of symptoms). I say this with the full disclosure that I truly have no idea.

Wife loves her "fat girls" and I do anything to help keep everyone (wife and birds) happy and healthy. Thanks in advance!

 

[3mile]

I am having very very similar issues if you read my post from early today. 2 chickens 14 months old dead the last 2 weeks with the same symptoms. I am treating with corid now. I have also been thinking of treating for worms. Let me know how your flock is doing and I will try to do the same

 

[bwick29]

I am having very very similar issues if you read my post from early today. 2 chickens 14 months old dead the last 2 weeks with the same symptoms. I am treating with corid now. I have also been thinking of treating for worms. Let me know how your flock is doing and I will try to do the same

I'll keep this thread updated with anything new that we see or do. To be honest, I'm a bit out of things to look for/try. Hoping to get some suggestions here and while I know it's a common post, I'm hoping that our detail in symptoms/treatment/observations triggers a response from someone that helps. Best of luck with your flock!

 

[Auntiejessi3]

Hello everyone.

Posting here hoping that the wealth of everyone's information can help us out.

We have a 13 month old Barred Rock who is quite under the weather. I've done exhaustive Googling/forum reading/etc and am only more confused by the results. Many symptoms are general signs of chickens being ill and others are associated with multiple issues so it's hard to narrow them down to a specific cause.

Her list of symptoms:
- Diarrhea. Poo is creamy-yellow. Entirely runny. Doesn't appear to be any solid substance at all.
- Diarrhea buildup below vent.
- Standing still. Rarely moving. Showed no interest going into coop at night.
- May (or may not) have gently labored breathing, but it's not labored enough for me to confirm this as a symptom.
- Generally lethargic
- Crop seems spongy and didn't drain after last night's food-less quarantine.
- Keeps her head pulled in close and her butt upward.

Here's what we've done:
- Cleaned up the buildup below vent.
- Quarantined.
- Felt for any impacted eggs. Not very experienced, but didn't feel anything.
- Provided electrolytes last night. (Appears she may have drank some.)
- Provided fresh water as well.
- Ordered Safe-Guard (will be here tomorrow) as a preventative measure that may help in this case.
- Verified no visible injury or other abnormalities (eyes/legs/etc).

Here are some further thoughts:
- Vets in our area are awfully booked and we aren't aware of any with Avian experience. This likely rules a vet visit out, sadly.
- Her color is great still. Comb is bright red without any signs of issue.
- Her weight is great still. Not losing/gaining abnormally.
- We aren't sure the last time she laid.
- We have seen one egg from the flock that was soft without a shell. We can't confirm it was hers, but it's surely worth noting.
- She seems to be interested in a sip when we gently introduce her beak to the water.
- Edit: No other birds in the flock are experiencing any similar symptoms.

I hope the information dump above is enough for some direction. I'm personally leaning toward either an issue with her crop or with worms, but we've see no evidence of the latter (it just matches a lot of symptoms). I say this with the full disclosure that I truly have no idea.

Wife loves her "fat girls" and I do anything to help keep everyone (wife and birds) happy and healthy. Thanks in advance!

Maybe they can help you.
@Wyorp Rock
@Eggcessive

 

[bwick29]

Unfortunately, we were too late and she's passed . Best of luck to anyone else with similar issues.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would feel of her lower abdomen between her legs to see if it is larger than normal or looks like fluid in the belly. Did you insert a clean finger into her vent 2 inches to feel for a stuck egg? Have you ever seen any thin or shell-less eggs from your hens. Shell-less eggs can be hard to pass, and may break inside. Pictures of her droppings are welcome. Do you feed layer feed and have crushed oyster shell in a pan for free taking? Some might suggest giving her a human calcium tablet or Tums, in case she is having trouble passing an egg. Others might suggest an antibiotic, such as Fish Mox, in case of a reproductive infection. It would probably be good to separate her in a dog crate with food and water, so that you can see if she lays, and watch how much she is eating. The dog crate can be with the other chickens for comfort.

Oh, I just saw your last post. Sorry for your loss. If a necropsy could be done at home, sometimes you can take pictures of the abdominal organs and get some help here.

 

[Auntiejessi3]

Unfortunately, we were too late and she's passed . Best of luck to anyone else with similar issues.

so sorry

 

[bwick29]

I would feel of her lower abdomen between her legs to see if it is larger than normal or looks like fluid in the belly. Did you insert a clean finger into her vent 2 inches to feel for a stuck egg? Have you ever seen any thin or shell-less eggs from your hens. Shell-less eggs can be hard to pass, and may break inside. Pictures of her droppings are welcome. Do you feed layer feed and have crushed oyster shell in a pan for free taking? Some might suggest giving her a human calcium tablet or Tums, in case she is having trouble passing an egg. Others might suggest an antibiotic, such as Fish Mox, in case of a reproductive infection. It would probably be good to separate her in a dog crate with food and water, so that you can see if she lays, and watch how much she is eating. The dog crate can be with the other chickens for comfort.

Oh, I just saw your last post. Sorry for your loss. If a necropsy could be done at home, sometimes you can take pictures of the abdominal organs and get some help here.

To try and help anyone else who stumbles across this with the same issue....

I did try the gloved finger ~1.5in or so and felt nothing. Belly seemed normal.

Don't provide extra oyster shells, but we do use a feed with oyster shells added.

Not sure how to even perform any useful post-mortem procedures so I doubt I'd be able to report back with anything other than a mess.

Thank you for trying to lend us a hand. We genuinely appreciate it.

 

[3mile]

Yes. Appreciate the update. I have mine on corid starting today. Hopefully it helps before I have another one drop.

 

[3mile]

I guess i try de worming if this doesn't work?