My best buff silkie Hen

BamaChicken

Orpingtons Bama Style
12 Years
Nov 14, 2007
4,266
51
251
Here she is in the house because she is not eating much and I can't find a thing wrong with her. She just featherd back in from a moult and looks awesome. She is a show bird. She is a little underweight. She was just sitting on the edge of a laying box the other day when everyone else was running for corn. It has been cold so I brought her in the house to keep an eye on her and make her comfortable. Has anyone else had a hen do this? I have had one other but it was in the summer and when I gave her some Handfeeding formula she perked right up. I opened this ones beak and made her eat a liltte of it this morning but she hasn't eaten any since. Her crop is soft and empty. I can't tell that she is eggbound either. She is a pretty thing makes pretty babies so I don't want to lose this girl.
001-4.jpg

002-2.jpg
 
I have had silkies do this. Usually my favorites too. I just recently lost one hen who was sick, respiratory, and I got that cleared up quick, but, she never did eat again on her own. I tried everything to get her better, I gave her Tylan, I gave her vitamins electrolytes, Cocci medicine, I fed her handfeeding formula, seeds, egg, scratch, anything to get her to eat. After two weeks of almost daily tube feedings, I let her go. I do not know why she shut down like that. How can you tell if a bird has become an internal layer or something like that? That was the only think that I noticed was that she didnt lay the time she was inside.

I hope your girl has a better outcome, she appears to be up and moving in the box, thats a good thing right? Has the other birds kept her from food? I guess being inside would fix that. I had a black silkie pullet that was that way, just not agressive enough.
 
Yes, some of the gentler ones who are lower on the totem pole sometimes get crowded away from the food. THe other thing that could be at work is whether she can see enough to find her food. Get pink hair tape (Sally's Beauty Supply, or sometimes Walgreens) and tape up her crest--don't pull so tight that her eyes bulge, but do pull enough to expose them. If you can't find the hair tape, use any tape with a low adhesive to prevent pulling out feathers when you remove it. Barrettes and rubber bands don't stay in.
 
She has no visible signs of sickness. I am going to try a few things. tonite. Non of my hens seem aggressive and she has been in the with them for a year. She is one of the older ones.. I bought her from Bobbi Porto last year at Lake City. She was being shown and I bought her before they started judging as I had to leave and be somewhere else. Like i said she just came through a molt and looks great. I will let you know in the morning how she is fairing. Her name is Pop Tart
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom