Lucky me...

[Ashllen]

Might recognize me from my special needs chicken thread. I've gotten a lot of helpful tips from it and other articles I've been reading, just recently learned about bumble foot, but now that I'm looking... I noticed 2 different hens that like to balance on one foot at a time I thought nothing of it. It's winter the ground is cold, obviously! But I have a new hampshire red named Erza and she has looked like she is molting since November and now I'm looking at her feet and it's pudgy? Just on the pad of both feet. No black scabs, and it's not deformed looking. Am I just being that person that looked thru wiki medicine too long and now think I have 7 different diseases? Or is this actually it?

 

[Razzlefrazzle]

Her feet look pretty good. It's normal for there to be some pudgy cushioning and callouses. On her left foot there does look to be a small scab on her pad, though it might just be a dirty scale... Even if it is scab since it is so small and the pad doesn't look infected I would just keep an eye on it for a few weeks to see if it heals on its own. It's great that you're keeping a close eye on them. I learned the hard way to periodically check feet even if you don't notice anything unusual and had to spend months and months struggling to cure a bad case of bumblefoot.

 

[Ashllen]

Thank-you! I'll wash her foot to make sure it's not a scab. Lol I was panicking because I couldn't remember if that's what her foot normally looked or not!

 

[Ashllen]

 

[Ashllen]

So another thing, I noticed weeks ago that she threw up water. I thought nothing of it, I startled her after she guzzler water. Had a chick do that a few times and she is perfectly healthy. But when I was checking on Erza's feet I noticed she had a waterey blob on her chest? It's more playdoughy now. But checking other hens I think that's just a full stomach? I'm worried because I saw this poop on the ground thus morning.

 

[Razzlefrazzle]

The poop pic looks like someone shed a bit of intestinal lining which is completely normal every once in a while, but if you start seeing a lot of red or mucusy poop something is wrong.

A doughy feeling crop could be dehydration and/or a yeast infection (sour crop). I'd give her some acv water and a crop massage and try to get her crop to empty. If she's having trouble walking she seems pretty weak/sick and I'd isolate her to keep a closer eye on her and see how much she is drinking and what she's pooping.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

The poop is questionable there. When is the last time you dewormed her?
Does she have any lice/mites?
I'd consider deworming, Valbazen, dose is 0.08ml per pound of wieght given orally once, then rpeated in 10 days.
Is she still molting?
Any lice/mites?
I'd check her crop first thing in the morning to make sure it's emptying. If it's not, then I'd begin treating according to this article. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/


The minor scab on the foot is the beginning of Bumblefoot. I wouldn't be too concerned about it, but if you wish, you can work on it with a non-surgical approach as described in this article.
https://www.tillysnest.com/2015/12/non-surgical-bumblefoot-treatment-html/

 

[Ashllen]

This is totally me. I have a neighbor that says “i’ve had over 50 chickens and i only had 2 that passed” and every chicken i get seems to either die of a injury or die of a disease. OR predator!

It makes no sense to me.

Right!? I have had chickens for 4 yrs now and the only thing I had to worry about was all the animals that wanted to eat them! I had coyotes, owls, eagles, and a black bear all taking a crack at them. I move away to a place where there is only crafty raccoons and a random bobcat and now all my chickens are getting sick!

 

[Razzlefrazzle]

Is yawning a normal behavior? She does it alot recently.

Looks like she is adjusting her crop which is a normal behavior. Is this the one that had the watery crop? Did you determine if it was sour crop or what? Won't hurt to check her mouth and throat for lesion or mucus but I think you'd see more consistent open mouthed breathing if that was a problem.

Just had her poop tested. They say she had giardia. But I notice her poop is normal (I have her quarantined) so I think someone else in my flock is pooping nasty...

Did they give you some medication to treat the giardia? If she's got it it's likely your whole flock does which could be causing the bad poop.

Moving is really hard on birds. First it's stressful which throws off their immune system and second they have to develop resistance to any new pathogens in the new environment (which is hard when the immune system is compromised).

 

[Ashllen]

People put dye at the tip of chicken vents to streak a egg with a color to find out who’s laying.

What if you did that? Just a little. It would color the poop.

Hmmm. I shall try that! Rainbow eggs here I come! Lol jk will definitely have to explain to my friends why their eggs are techno colored tho.