Muscle weakness and sleepy eyes in an otherwise healthy chicken

[poonam]

hi folks

does anybody know what my chicken might have going on? she loves to eat and drinks just fine, wanders around and is otherwise okay, but she's always had sleepy looking eyes and has a slightly hard time jumping up to perches. she even hesitates going down steps or running too fast. she's not standing around fluffed up, but she is slower than my other chickens.

She's 7 months old.

Poonam

 

[jjthink]

Hmmmm....how long have you had her?

What is her diet?

Can you post pics?

Does her poop seem normal?

Is she laying eggs?

JJ

 

[poonam]

i've had her for 3 months. she's not too great at eating her layer crumbles, but she free ranges in an organic garden most of the time. She does eat scrambled eggs, sunflower seeds, oatmeal, bananas, and random food like that. occasionally she'll also eat chickfeed. She eats worms in the garden as well.

She is laying for the past 1 month or so (She's 7 months old).

I got back from work today and she looks extremeley down. sleepy head, won't move around too much. kind of dopey.

her poop seems normal. I haven't smelled anything funky.

I'll try to take some pictures and post them. she looks okay for the most part, except sleepy, and the area around her eyes looks pale.

can worms do that to a hen? excessive sleepiness and muscle weakness?


poor girl.

 

[jjthink]

Oh dear....poor girl...

Is she worse now than days ago or is this a steady state situation (you mention sleepy eyes since you got her?.....)?

Worms/mites can make them tired, mopey for sure, but so can lots of other things......... Do you know if her weight is good? It may be beneficial to treat for parasites just in case though it is a stressor to what seems like an already stressed system so ideally it would be good to know for sure if she has worms or other parasite first. This would require either happening to see them on her or in her poop or stool testing by a vet's office. Lacking that, you could try it in the hope sthat the pros outweigh the cons.

My hen Ellie a couple years back very suddenly got droopy and weak - rushed her to the vet (no easy feat on Labor Day - but thankfully one vet opened his office to see her) - blood work was consistent with infection and/or inflammation (of unknown origin). Treated symptomatically (antibiotic...) and she turned right around and has been the picture of health since. We never knew what hit her but I feel like she wouldn't have made it without the meds.....

To hopefully help bolster her strength I would get nutritional supplements into her. If you have Avia Charge 2000 put in her water a little each day to light iced tea color (can order on line). Some folks like Rooster Booster. Baby parrot feeding formula may give her added strength also.

Being 'extremely down' is extremely serious, unfortunately. If a vet is an option I would hurry.

JJ

 

[bawkbawkbawk]

Are chickens susceptible to Herpes virus? My son rescued a kitten from a shelter and its eyes were virtually swollen shut by a Herpes virus that we treated, but it still spread to another one of our cats. Both cats still with us and doing fine, but we had multiple bouts of antibiotics and when "under stress" the virus will re-surface.

 

[poonam]

well thanks everybody. She seemed to pick back up a little in the evening and laid an egg without a shell. seemed a little better but still looks pretty sleepy eyed. We actually bought her from a person who claimed they were totally healthy but one of the chickens had the same symptoms and we returned her. Our girl has since shown these symptoms, kind of off and on, but does look sleepier than my other chickens. She's not very perky, and she really has trouble getting up and down the smallest of steps, so i do feel like something is the matter.

I just can't afford to take her to the vet here.

Do folks know of some affordable places in california where i can send her poop for a test for worms? I have read it's not good to deworm them without knowing for sure what is going on.

thank you in advance for the help. I hope she makes it. she seems to pull through and do okay for the most part. but something is off, I can tell.

 

[jjthink]

Does she have oyster shell available at all times? (soft shell/no shell not good)

I would hurry on the nutritional supplements.

JJ

 

[daytonfarm]

Treat her for coccidious, I have been dealing with a similar situatioin and the only thing i didn't treat for was cocci, talked to Chicken Doc and he said that older chickens can get it and it doesn't have to be bloody. That would make since if they were new to your place and then got sick, you have a different version of cocci on your place that they were not immune to. Very easy to treat and if it doesn't make her better at least you have ruled that out.

 

[poonam]

Thank you DaytonFarm. that's what i was thinking too. an internal thing, worms or cocci. i'm going to do that right away.

 

[flockkepper]

I am beside myself today trying to figure out what is wrong with my roo. He was almost non responsive this am. Acting like he was to weak to stand or hold up his head. He just laid he head over my arm and was acting weak. I forced electrolytes down him with a dropper he is in the house now in a cage acting a little better. But now he has watery poop. What can I do for him.