Looking for liver-friendly diet for my hen

[Cinnaminute]

Hi, I have a hen with recurring ascites. Her thread with more info: https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...apeworm-or-respiratory.1625922/#post-27792841

I'm looking for info on a liver-friendly diet for her. I do have milk thistle that I'll begin giving her, but I'm looking for suggestions on food and other ways I can help her that I'm unaware of.

I also was wondering if her regular feed, Purina Flock raiser, is okay for her liver. Are oats and watermelon also okay? I use oats as a lure back to their runs, but am willing to change it if it's just not good for her. I use nearly froze watermelon to help them get through the heat, but I can find other alternatives if that's not okay too.

Thanks for any help!

 

[LaFleche]

Milk thistle as tea or in capsules help with liver issues.

 

[nuthatched]

Oats aren't good for chickens, it slows digestion and makes sticky poops

 

[Cinnaminute]

Thank you both for your responses!

For now I'm giving her some dandelion tea and will be giving her some milk thistle capsules. Hopefully those will be enough to give her some support.

I came across something about L-tryptophan being helpful but I don't know much so I'm going to nose around into that a bit.

 

[Barnette]

Hey, just wondering how your hen is doing now? What's her diet?

 

[LaFleche]

Any update for us?

 

[Cinnaminute]

@Barnette @LaFleche

She's been doing great so far! I had given her dandelion tea for a few days to try to help her release excess fluids. That didn't seem to do much, maybe I started it too late. So on July 18th I drained her a second time and so far, so good. She has not filled up again yet. Her comb has shriveled, however, and she hasn't laid an egg since. Probably for the better, honestly. Her body can focus on using those nutrients for her own well-being.

As for diet, approx 90% of it is still Purina Flock Raiser. I do keep a bowl of moistened around to encourage her to eat. She has a good appetite but is still underweight and my Leghorn Gretchen started bullying her away from food, so had to add extra dishes to make sure she gets food.

The rest of what she eats is grass or bugs she finds while out foraging for a couple hours every day and treats (always something every day - scrambled eggs, oats, tuna, banana, grapes, cabbage, bread, or tomato).

I do give her a milk thistle tablet once a week, at least. She's gotten worse about fighting me when I try to shove it in her mouth and I'm afraid to stress her out too much. So I told her she at least has to deal with it once or twice a week.

Supposedly oats is a common source of Tryptophan as is tuna and banana amongst other things. I do try to make sure her treats are mainly eggs (from the other hens), old fashioned rolled oats, bread, or tuna. Not sure if that's played a role or not. I'm just relieved to see her running around happily and living her best life despite her illness.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2908021/



Cleo this morning. Please pardon the mess! The run needs a good cleaning, but I've been caught up with a little emergency the past few days and haven't had the chance to get to it yet this week.

 

[Barnette]

@Barnette @LaFleche

She's been doing great so far! I had given her dandelion tea for a few days to try to help her release excess fluids. That didn't seem to do much, maybe I started it too late. So on July 18th I drained her a second time and so far, so good. She has not filled up again yet. Her comb has shriveled, however, and she hasn't laid an egg since. Probably for the better, honestly. Her body can focus on using those nutrients for her own well-being.

As for diet, approx 90% of it is still Purina Flock Raiser. I do keep a bowl of moistened around to encourage her to eat. She has a good appetite but is still underweight and my Leghorn Gretchen started bullying her away from food, so had to add extra dishes to make sure she gets food.

The rest of what she eats is grass or bugs she finds while out foraging for a couple hours every day and treats (always something every day - scrambled eggs, oats, tuna, banana, grapes, cabbage, bread, or tomato).

I do give her a milk thistle tablet once a week, at least. She's gotten worse about fighting me when I try to shove it in her mouth and I'm afraid to stress her out too much. So I told her she at least has to deal with it once or twice a week.

Supposedly oats is a common source of Tryptophan as is tuna and banana amongst other things. I do try to make sure her treats are mainly eggs (from the other hens), old fashioned rolled oats, bread, or tuna. Not sure if that's played a role or not. I'm just relieved to see her running around happily and living her best life despite her illness.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2908021/

View attachment 3928305

Cleo this morning. Please pardon the mess! The run needs a good cleaning, but I've been caught up with a little emergency the past few days and haven't had the chance to get to it yet this week.
View attachment 3928304

So glad to hear this! Thank you for the update. You are doing such a good job helping Cleo

 

[LaFleche]

Thank you for updating us. I am glad she seems to be doing better.