Looking for HELP with my sick hen

[AndiHop]

My 5 mo. old Buff Orpington has been ill for 3 days now. She is eating very little. She's sleeping a lot - sleeps standing more than lying down since I've removed her from the flock. Her tail feathers are down, no discharge or fecal matter around her vent, which appears normal. Her crop feels normal. I am not sure if she has started laying. All of my hens are 5-6 mos. old and have recently started laying. She is my youngest. I haven't seen her nesting in the boxes, but I have found a few eggs around the garden and in the coop area, so it's hard to tell who is laying them. I originally thought she could be egg bound (maybe having trouble laying her first egg) since she seemed to show similar signs, although I can't feel an obvious egg. It's been extremely hot lately - heat index 100 or higher. (I give my hens cold watermelon, blueberries in ice cubes, etc. every few days when it's this hot, and check their water several times a day. They have lots of shade and I clean my coop EVERY day.) For the past few days I've been doing the warm epsom salt baths. The first day I did the bath and gave her 150mg of calcium. Yesterday I did the bath and the mineral oil treatment. She hasn't been pooping much, but what she did do looked fairly normal. She hasn't been drinking much so I gave her Pedialyte mixed with water with a syringe a couple times yesterday. She eats a few small bites - I got her to eat a few bites of grape with yogurt today, some kale yesterday, and some black sunflower seeds the day before. Last night she had a watery green poop, which i assumed was from the Pedialyte and kale since that was all she had yesterday. She feels warm so I'm trying to keep her hydrated to fight any fever. I've put her on grass by herself and she pecks around a little, but doesn't eat anything,and then goes off to rest. I don't have a vet who treats chickens, and my local feed stores offer VERY little chicken meds, so I'm hoping someone can offer some insight. How can I get her fever down? Could she have worms even though I'm not seeing them in her stool? Are there any vitamins, etc. I can give her to boost her immune system? THANK YOU!!

 

[Abriana]

You might be way overworking yourself cleaning the coop once a day, it needs to be cleaned out (bedding changed) maybe once every three to four months, and a deep cleaning every spring or so, or after a breakout of sickness. She does seem egg bound, and sometimes passing those first soft-shelled eggs can be a trying task. I'm trying to think who might know about worms, and I think @KikisGirls might. Keep doing those epsom salt baths, and I'm sure other more knowledgeable members will be along soon. I'm sorry I can't help more!

 

[Kiki]

Hi there!

Did you feel inside her for an egg?
Please read how to here:https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/egg-binding-symptoms-treatment-and-prevention.66978/

Coccidiosis is fairly common and she may suffering from it. You may want to check your farm store to see if they keep Corid in stock. It looks like this:

It wouldn't hurt to try it.

If she is not eating and drinking you may want to start tube feeding her til you can figure out what is making her feel so bad.

I'm not sure if giving her a lot of soaks/baths is a good idea if she isn't eating and drinking. She might get too chilled.

Most all dog vets will test fresh poop if you bring it in for worm loads and Coccidiosis, for very cheap.

 

[AndiHop]

I'm also wondering if she could possibly have heat exhaustion/dehydration?

 

[Kiki]

I'm also wondering if she could possibly have heat exhaustion/dehydration?

Dehydration..absolutely if she is not drinking.
I'd tube feed her liquids asap. Electrolytes liquids.

 

[andreanar]

I agree with @KikisGirls In trying the Corid. She is at an age where cocci could hit and she sounds like what mine did when I dealt with cocci. It cant hurt to try the Corid. I would get that started right away. 1 1/2 tsp of the powder to 1 gallon water. Syringe it to her, soak her feed in the Corid water and see if she'll eat that. Id also check her for egg bound.

 

[AndiHop]

You might be way overworking yourself cleaning the coop once a day, it needs to be cleaned out (bedding changed) maybe once every three to four months, and a deep cleaning every spring or so, or after a breakout of sickness. She does seem egg bound, and sometimes passing those first soft-shelled eggs can be a trying task. I'm trying to think who might know about worms, and I think @KikisGirls might. Keep doing those epsom salt baths, and I'm sure other more knowledgeable members will be along soon. I'm sorry I can't help more!

LOL - I don't deep clean my coop every day, but I do remove all the poo from under the roosts. I have an open air coop since I live in Florida, where it is hot almost all year, and it gets VERY humid and smelly. I have a long chicken run/coop and at one end it is enclosed on 3 sides with a door that goes out to a chicken yard. I remove the poo every day to keep flies down, eliminate smell, and to keep it sanitary.
THANKS for the shout out!!

 

[AndiHop]

Hi there!

Did you feel inside her for an egg?
Please read how to here:https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/egg-binding-symptoms-treatment-and-prevention.66978/

Coccidiosis is fairly common and she may suffering from it. You may want to check your farm store to see if they keep Corid in stock. It looks like this:
View attachment 1102201

It wouldn't hurt to try it.

If she is not eating and drinking you may want to start tube feeding her til you can figure out what is making her feel so bad.

I'm not sure if giving her a lot of soaks/baths is a good idea if she isn't eating and drinking. She might get too chilled.

Most all dog vets will test fresh poop if you bring it in for worm loads and Coccidiosis, for very cheap.

I will definitely head out to look for this. THANK YOU!! I can't feel any egg inside her. I've been keeping her wrapped after her bath and change the towel to a dry one when she's nearly dry. But I will skip the bath today. I've been keeping her in a dog cage with a small make shift run on my back porch where it's a little cooler. The heat has been awful. She doesn't seem as warm today. I have been doing the Pedialyte with a syringe. Today I am planning to syringe some yogurt with some food crumbles into her. I also bought some applesauce last night. I will also call my vet to see if she can check her poop. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!

 

[Abriana]

Okay, I thought you meant you were like taking the bedding out and replacing it! Lol But cleaning out under the roosts once a day is GREAT.

 

[AndiHop]

Dehydration..absolutely if she is not drinking.
I'd tube feed her liquids asap. Electrolytes liquids.

I'm wondering if this could have started as dehydration. I know sometimes if the water is hot they won't drink it. I have my waterers in the shade and check them, but I don't know if these are the signs of her simply getting too hot and dehydrated and then being week and drained. I've been giving her Pedialyte with a syringe. I'm not sure how much to give her, but she acts more alert for a bit afterward. Does anyone know how much I should be giving her?