Lola

[Kylie242]

Hi Everyone,

We are quite new to chicken raising however it looks like we have a sick hen "Lola". She is approx. 2yo and was laying until a few months ago. Initially it looked like she was broody as she was always in the nest laying on the other hens eggs. However then we noticed a dirty vent. Have wormed her about 3 weeks ago. Over the weekend she has become quite lethargic and appears pale (to me). She will eat if I take food to her, but I havent seen her drinking. (she may be but I just haven't seen it.) We went tot he produce yesterday and got some Oxymav B which I have tried to give her today. At the moment she is still sitting down and not venturing far. Our other two hens are by her side also but they come and go to forage.

Any insight or help you can provide as to what to do for het would be much appreciated.

Thank you

 

[Kylie242]

Welcome To BYC!
Can you post some photos of Lola and her poop?
Have you checked her over for lice/mites and made sure her crop is empty in the morning before she has had anything to eat/drink?
What did you worm her with (product and dosage)?

Has she been sitting in the box for a few months?

I would gather her up, try to get her hydrated. Electrolytes or poultry vitamins would be good. Once she is drinking, then offer a bit of wet feed or egg to entice her.
Feel her over really well for any swelling/bloat of the abdomen and with her age, look for signs of molting too.

Keep us posted.

Welcome To BYC! Hi, thank you! We wormed her and our other two hens with Piperizine as per the instructions. She was going into the box after our other hens layed, but I would get the egg out then she would go off as normal and forage. I'll check her over now. thanks again.
Can you post some photos of Lola and her poop?
Have you checked her over for lice/mites and made sure her crop is empty in the morning before she has had anything to eat/drink?
What did you worm her with (product and dosage)?

Has she been sitting in the box for a few months?

I would gather her up, try to get her hydrated. Electrolytes or poultry vitamins would be good. Once she is drinking, then offer a bit of wet feed or egg to entice her.
Feel her over really well for any swelling/bloat of the abdomen and with her age, look for signs of molting too.

Keep us posted.

 

[Eggcessive]

If you have vegamite, that might be good to add to her water with a little sugar or honey, plus it has vitamins. Here is another recipe for homemade electrolytes until you can get something for chickens or animals:
https://the-chicken-chick.com/chicken-heat-stress-dehydration-and/

Yes she looks pale. Has she seemed to have lost weight while she slept in the nest box? How long was she doing that? Hens who have stopped laying or molting may have a pale or shrunken comb, but she obviously has something else going on. You can get some extra fluids into her possibly by mixing water or broth into some of her usual chicken feed. A bit of egg or plain yogurt can be good as well.

 

[Kylie242]

Hi. Sorry about Lola. Yes, she looks pale. Also, her urates look a bit discolored to me. I would consider an aloe detox for that.

Does she have a prominent keel bone? I have had great success lately giving malnourished hens baby bird formula. (Some of mine starve themselves during molt and one nearly starved herself to death!) Anyway, you could try that, or grinding her feed into powder and then turning it into a soupy consistency.) I agree hydration is important, as well. More so.

Is her abdomen (fluffy butt) bloated?

Hi, thanks so much for your reply! I am not sure if the keel is prominent but it does feel really bony. I felt the others and they feel the same to me. how do I check for bloated abdomen? I'm sorry, really don't know much about chickens... Great idea re the food, I will crush some up and see if she will have some soup.

 

[Eggcessive]

Has she molted this year? Can you check her skin under the vent and elsewhere for lice and mites? Do you have any pictures of her typical poops? How does her crop feel early in the morning before she has eaten or drunk anything? Crop disorders and reproductive disorders can be common in hens. Does she have any enlargement of her lower abdomen, or has she lost weight? Is she eating or drinking anything? What area are you in? Is it spring or fall there?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

we have a sick hen "Lola". She is approx. 2yo and was laying until a few months ago. Initially it looked like she was broody as she was always in the nest laying on the other hens eggs. However then we noticed a dirty vent. Have wormed her about 3 weeks ago. Over the weekend she has become quite lethargic and appears pale (to me). She will eat if I take food to her, but I havent seen her drinking.

At the moment she is still sitting down and not venturing far. Our other two hens are by her side also but they come and go to forage.

Welcome To BYC!
Can you post some photos of Lola and her poop?
Have you checked her over for lice/mites and made sure her crop is empty in the morning before she has had anything to eat/drink?
What did you worm her with (product and dosage)?

Has she been sitting in the box for a few months?

I would gather her up, try to get her hydrated. Electrolytes or poultry vitamins would be good. Once she is drinking, then offer a bit of wet feed or egg to entice her.
Feel her over really well for any swelling/bloat of the abdomen and with her age, look for signs of molting too.

Keep us posted.

 

[Kylie242]

Has she molted this year? Can you check her skin under the vent and elsewhere for lice and mites? Do you have any pictures of her typical poops? How does her crop feel early in the morning before she has eaten or drunk anything? Crop disorders and reproductive disorders can be common in hens. Does she have any enlargement of her lower abdomen, or has she lost weight? Is she eating or drinking anything? What area are you in? Is it spring or fall there?

Hi! I don't think she has molted, that live noticed. Ok great, I'll check for mites / lice and let you know. I will attach a pic of her poop from yesterday. Ididnt check her crop thismorning, will do that tomorrow morning. In in Australia so its just coming into summer here and quite hot! She is eating when I take food to her but not trying the water that I offer. Ill check for mites now. Oh, I noticed just before that she is trying to stand and seems to need to sit back down, like she gets whoosy.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Does she act like she can see? It may be the angle of the photo, but to me the eye looks a bit different. Does her other eye look like that too?
The poop, imho, is not normal. Could be from dehydration, but sometimes I've seen poop like that with reproductive issues too. I would check her out really well.

 

[Kylie242]

This is her just now... does she look pale?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Is there anything else I can give her to drink other than just water?

You can give her some diluted Gatorade or Pedialyte (children's electrolytes). If you don't have those, then you can make your own. @azygous posted her recipe in this link
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/help-my-rooster-is-not-well.1338343/#post-21898915