My 6 yr old hen has fatty liver

[Stockpilejoy]

Hi Stockpilejoy! And Welcome
Your poor chicken, she's had a good chicken mama for 5 years!

Just a thought, considering you have mentioned you recently changed their feed, and that she ate a snake and therefore is likely to eat things while freeranging which may not be the norm..
I would check that crop first and foremost in case of a blockage. Also, make sure she is eating those pellets and not just pretending to (picking up in beak and dropping in true "Oh I'm fine" chicken style). I am wondering is she weak and/or lacking nutrition through one or both of the mentioned.

There is however no getting away from the fact that she is of a good age and she has an underlying issue, but there could be more life in her yet. Best of luck with her!
Oh, and photo's would be great!

She is very bad to pretend when she is eating and is horrible about pushing out all the food to the ground. I had to resort to placing big black bowls under feeder and each day I scoop it back into feeder. Through the years she has periods that last a few days that I can tell she does not feel well. During those times she is very picky and won't eat from my hand but instead just fakes it. I will pamper her with electrolyte in her water and healthy foods I know she likes. I've noticed over the past several weeks that her face looks different to me. Can't pinpoint what's the big difference but she does not look like my Harriet. The photo below was taken yesterday. I thought I posted it yesterday but think I didn't do it right.

 

[Cragg Klefor]

Aw she is lovely
Do you have any older photos of her to compare?? Sometimes something can look more obvious in a photo so maybe you would see something yourself!

You are obviously well aware of her eating habits then. I was kinda hoping the star gazing and sudden sitting would be helped by some poultry nutrients or something but perhaps not

 

[Stockpilejoy]

Aw she is lovely
Do you have any older photos of her to compare?? Sometimes something can look more obvious in a photo so maybe you would see something yourself!

You are obviously well aware of her eating habits then. I was kinda hoping the star gazing and sudden sitting would be helped by some poultry nutrients or something but perhaps not

Thank you. Yesterday she didn't have any strange activity. I have ordered some Rooster Booster Poultry Booster at the Tractor Supply Co. It has a variety of vitamins and supplements that may help her feel better. I've recently read that Vit E and Biotin helps fatty liver disease and this Poultry Booster has these ingredients.

 

[Stockpilejoy]

I've read that fatty liver is way under diagnosed in poultry mainly because many don't realize their hens have it until they suddenly die of internal hemorrhage and find out diagnosis from necropsy report. I was a newbie with my flock of four and seemed to always overreact with any slight change in behavior. I had concerns because she was losing feathers mid summer instead of fall and abruptly stopped laying with pale comb. When she went 3 days without laying and her eating decreased I looked up what to do in my book "Chicken Health For Dummies" and did some online research. I quickly examined her up and down...I was shocked to see she had a featherless swollen bottom with feather shafts still intact. It looked as if she had sat on a porcupine .. I immediately put her in warm water thinking she was egg bound. When I posted pic of her featherless swollen bottom online, a chicken expert told me she was just going through a molt, not to worry because many hens act that way during molt. I was relieved but had already scheduled vet appointment that day so I went ahead and took her. I didn't want to take chance with her being egg bound. Had that happened in the fall I would have just thought it was her first molt. Her molting season always goes by so slow starting mid summer through fall. My hens have always acted and looked somewhat unwell during molting season. I feel It was by chance or luck that I found out early on that she had liver disease.

 

[rebrascora]

What you have described sounds like a pretty typical moult.... feather loss, pin feathers coming in on a bald patch which makes them look like a porcupine, loss of appetite, under the weather and comb going pale with cessation of egg production. It is more common to occur in the autumn/fall but can occur in summer or the depths of winter. It can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to several months to complete a moult and each bird is pretty individual in how it experiences it.
To my mind it is purely coincidental that your vet discovered Fatty Liver Disease.... as you say, many people do not know their bird has it until they drop dead from a major haemorrhage or rupture and it is identified via necropsy and many more people undoubtedly assume their bird had a heart attack and don't get a necropsy so it may be much more common than we know, especially as modern chickens are often considered pets than livestock and people spoil them with lots of treats and keep them in small pens where they don't have the opportunity or inclination to forage for food to burn off those excess treat calories.

I am pleased Harriet is looking a bit brighter. She appears to be hanging pretty low in the belly between her legs in that photo in post 11. It may just be the camera angle but to my mind she also has a slight swelling on the right side of her face just below her eye in those last photos.

 

[Stockpilejoy]

What you have described sounds like a pretty typical moult.... feather loss, pin feathers coming in on a bald patch which makes them look like a porcupine, loss of appetite, under the weather and comb going pale with cessation of egg production. It is more common to occur in the autumn/fall but can occur in summer or the depths of winter. It can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to several months to complete a moult and each bird is pretty individual in how it experiences it.
To my mind it is purely coincidental that your vet discovered Fatty Liver Disease.... as you say, many people do not know their bird has it until they drop dead from a major haemorrhage or rupture and it is identified via necropsy and many more people undoubtedly assume their bird had a heart attack and don't get a necropsy so it may be much more common than we know, especially as modern chickens are often considered pets than livestock and people spoil them with lots of treats and keep them in small pens where they don't have the opportunity or inclination to forage for food to burn off those excess treat calories.

I am pleased Harriet is looking a bit brighter. She appears to be hanging pretty low in the belly between her legs in that photo in post 11. It may just be the camera angle but to my mind she also has a slight swelling on the right side of her face just below her eye in those last photos.

She definitely looks like she is low riding her pantaloons. I've noticed it over the last several months along with looking more fluffed up. Sadly when that first molt hit she stopped laying completely. Rather that happen than her running risk of hemorrhaging while trying to lay an egg.

 

[rebrascora]

She definitely looks like she is low riding her pantaloons. I've noticed it over the last several months along with looking more fluffed up. Sadly when that first molt hit she stopped laying completely. Rather that happen than her running risk of hemorrhaging while trying to lay an egg.

Yes, the stress of trying to lay, especially if the cloaca has been reduced in size due to fatty deposits, can be the cause of a liver rupture. Unfortunately the fatty deposits can also lead to the oviduct and ovary becoming misaligned and internal laying occurring as a result. I would be quite surprised if your bird has not ovulated since she was a pullet, especially if you corrected her diet before liver disease started to show, so I would suspect that she is either filling up with egg yolks or perhaps she has some large ovarian cysts. If you can afford to take her back to the vets a further exam may shed light on the current problem which may or may not be connected. A lot could have changed between that initial diagnosis 5 years ago and now.

 

[MissChick@dee]

I’m reading all of this and it seems as if Harriet has had wonderful care. I can tell you take very good care of your chickens. Your story will help people understand what over treating can do. I’m guilty so I can relate.
What would I do?
Just give her lots of attention. Just the fact she’s lasted this long with her prognosis is amazing. Keep doing what your doing. And keep in mind although she’s ill her quality of life is better than most chickens would ever have. Your a good chicken mom. You did the very best you could and Harriet knows this. Best wishes

 

[Cragg Klefor]

I’m reading all of this and it seems as if Harriet has had wonderful care. I can tell you take very good care of your chickens. Your story will help people understand what over treating can do. I’m guilty so I can relate.
What would I do?
Just give her lots of attention. Just the fact she’s lasted this long with her prognosis is amazing. Keep doing what your doing. And keep in mind although she’s ill her quality of life is better than most chickens would ever have. Your a good chicken mom. You did the very best you could and Harriet knows this. Best wishes

 

[Stockpilejoy]

I’m reading all of this and it seems as if Harriet has had wonderful care. I can tell you take very good care of your chickens. Your story will help people understand what over treating can do. I’m guilty so I can relate.
What would I do?
Just give her lots of attention. Just the fact she’s lasted this long with her prognosis is amazing. Keep doing what your doing. And keep in mind although she’s ill her quality of life is better than most chickens would ever have. Your a good chicken mom. You did the very best you could and Harriet knows this. Best wishes

Thank you so much for your kind words. She is very much loved. She started out somewhat of a bully and has mellowed and matured tremendously over the years.