My Chicken is puffed up, lethargic, and standing still. HELP

[Rubydtk421]

Hi. I have a flock of 6 chickens I got last spring. This is my first time with chickens, so there is a lot I don't know. Yesterday, I noticed my golden sex link pullet had her feathers all fluffed out. I thought it was strange but didn't worry too much. Today she is the same. She just stands around and isn't interested in eating or drinking. I've been doing all sorts of research trying to figure out how to help her. She is one of my best layers, but hasn't laid in 2 days. I checked to see if she was egg bound, but didn't feel anything. I checked for lice/mites and she seems fine there too. She's not coughing or wheezing. Her comb is still red and she doesn't have any discharge from her eyes. I haven't seen her leave any dropping since I separated her from the flock and put her in an animal crate inside. But I didn't notice any crazy looking droppings out in the coop or run area. I'm feeling way out of my league here.

 

[Eggcessive]

Welcome to BYC. Her symptoms seem to fit coccidiosis, except that you haven't seen diarrhea or blood in stools. Worms could be another possibility. Just to make sure she isn't egg bound, I would check inside the vent 1-2 inches with a gloved finger. Check her crop to see that it is emptying, and not impacted. Look at the skin all over and under the vent for lice or mites. I would probably worm her with Valbazen 1/2 ml given orally, and repeat in 10 days. SafeGuard Liquid Goat Wormer 1/4 ml per pound of weight for 5 straight days could also be used if you can't find Valbazen. If you see diarrhea, then get Corid (amprollium, Ampromed,) a cattle medicine in powder or liquid, and treat for coccidiosis.

 

[MrsBrooke]

It's possible she could be overrun with Cocci... I would start a round of Corid 9.6% liquid or 20% powder ASAP in her water.

9.6% is 2 Tablespoons liquid per gallon
20% is 1.5 Tablespoons powder per gallon

You can divide the dose accordingly to make half gallon or less for single chickens. Make a fresh batch daily.

Have you felt her crop? Does it feel full? Empty? Hard? Spongy?

Are there any masses in her abdomen? Does she feel like she's full of water or hard?

How are her poops?

If she's off her water, you may have to tube feed her to keep her hydrated, so she will survive long enough for the treatment to work.

Keep us posted!

MrsB

 

[Rubydtk421]

Thanks for your help. She finally pooped and it was very runny. I'll try to see what I can get my hands on at the local feed store as far as medication.

 

[MrsBrooke]

x2 on the worming.

Do you worm your flock at least once or twice a year with Safe Guard or Valbazen?

I've seen Valbazen in just about every feed store I go in. It's labeled for goats, but you can use it in poultry. A little chicken-keeper secret!

Follow Eggy's dosing and advice from the previous post.

Hope your mama feels better soon!

MrsB

 

[Rubydtk421]

Vet called me back and recommended I start with tetracycline hydrochloride powder in her water.

My daughter is using a syringe to get her to drink it.

I felt her crop and it isn't empty but it's not hard and swollen, which is a good sign.

The local feed store didn't have any deworming meds, so we'll just start out with this and see how she is in the morning.

Does anyone know about how much I need to get down her so she isn't dehydrated?

Thanks, again, for all the help so far.

 

[enola]

Did the vet mention a diagnosis?

 

[Rubydtk421]

x2 on the worming.

Do you worm your flock at least once or twice a year with Safe Guard or Valbazen?

I've seen Valbazen in just about every feed store I go in. It's labeled for goats, but you can use it in poultry. A little chicken-keeper secret!

Follow Eggy's dosing and advice from the previous post.

Hope your mama feels better soon!

MrsB

I'll have to take another look for the deworming stuff for sure. Thanks.

 

[Rubydtk421]

Did the vet mention a diagnosis?

He thought it sounded most like coccidiosis, that's why he told me to start with the tetracycline. He told me that it might be worms, too.

I'm a little confused though, because everything I read about tetracycline is that it's for chickens with respiratory illness, not Cocci. Did I just go out and waste $ on the wrong stuff??

 

[Eggcessive]

For coccidiosis, I would recommend Corid. It treats all 9 or more strains. Duramycin 10 is used for respiratory diseases. Oxytetracycline and chlortetracycline are sometimes used to treat coccidiosis, according to the Merck Manual, but Corid is a better choice. Corid would be in the cattle medicines aisle of your feed store.