Listless hen

[moomoo]

Hi everyone and thank you for the warm welcome. we live in Queensland Australia. We acquired 4 point of lay pullets at Christmas time, within a week or two we were getting 2-3 eggs per day. My girls are brown and I do not know their breed I think they are a cross.Today the girls had free time in the garden and I noticed one of them was rather listless, she did scratch around for a bit and then she'd plonk herself down and just sit there, sometimes under a shrub and at other times in the open, it is extremely windy and overcast today, but we have had high temperatures of up to 33celsius she was not staying with her friends and was generally just keeping to herself. I believe she is the one not laying any eggs, the other hens don't seem to be harassing her at this stage. They are being fed a "Premium top layer mash" get plenty of fresh water and scraps from the kitchen every day.
Can anyone give me an idea if there is something I could do to help her reach her potential. I am quite worried. we did pick her up and feel her bottom area but there didn't seem to be any blockage and her little poo she did was white and yellow.
all feedback would be most welcome
Many thanks
MOO MOO
PS just gone out to check on her its not dark yet for another hour and she has got first position on the roost the other girls are still mooching around!

 

[TwoCrows]

Give her an all over exam. Look at the skin for redness and bugs, checking closely around the vent area and behind the neck. External parasites can suck the life right out of the bird. So can internal parasites as well. Have they been wormed recently? Check the crop (right side of the breast), and this is best done first thing in the morning when it should be empty...is it soft and squishy or hard? What color is the comb? You might also do an internal exam to check for a stuck egg. KY jelly on a latex glove index finger and gently insert your finger into her vent to see if you can feel an egg.

Poop that has yellow caps instead of white can mean internal infection. If you are seeing a lot of poop with yellow caps instead of white caps, if she were my bird, I would start her on antibiotics. I have a hen, a few years ago, that had poop that looked like this and she got pretty sick. Sick enough I had to syringe antibiotics down her throat for 3 days till she started drinking and eating on her own. I used Sulfadimethoxine on her. But I since learned that Duramycin would probably have worked better. Both of these will do the trick however.

You might also post this question in the emergency section of BYC for more ideas on how to treat her...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/10/emergencies-diseases-injuries-and-cures

Good luck with your hen. I hope she makes a full recovery.

 

[Wyandottes7]

Welcome to BYC!

We're glad to have you. TwoCrows has given good information.

 

[roostersandhens]

 

[1muttsfan]

Hi and welcome to BYC from northern Michigan

 

[jmello]

Thank you and it's a pleasure to join. I have 3 hens. Two Rhode Island reds and a Hersey giant. I'm a novice so I appreciate the wisdom of experienced chicken folk. Greetings from Texas.

 

[TwoCrows]

Thank you and it's a pleasure to join. I have 3 hens. Two Rhode Island reds and a Hersey giant. I'm a novice so I appreciate the wisdom of experienced chicken folk. Greetings from Texas.

Hi and welcome to BYC!

This is the place to be for lots of knowledge. We are just FULL of it!

Enjoy BYC!

 

[BantamLover21]

Glad you joined us! I'm sorry to hear about your sick hen, unfortunately, I don't know what could be wrong. I would post this in the emergencies section of the forum, and see if people there can help you.

 

[sourland]

Welcome to BYC. Hopefully your hen has improved.

 

[gander007]

Alright

great to have you onboard with us

TwoCrows gave you some excellent advice