Ok so basically about a month ago my cock (welsummer) died, we had seen him deteriorating over a small time period, he had been sitting still for ages and his feathers went down and flat, then I found him and he was still, just dead. And now one of my hens (white star) has been showing the same signs, such as Lethargy and standing on one leg with head cocked to side. they do not perch at night and i have tried to gwt them!! ANY ADVICE PLEASE I LOVE THEM AND I DONT WANT TO LOOSE THEM!!!! THANKS
How old are they? Anything changed- weather? feed? new birds? bedding? water? feeders or waterers? How is their poop- runny? green? weird stuff in it? Have they been eating and drinking?
I'm so sorry for your loss! I'm not so sure what it is. But here is a website that might help you out! He lists Poultry diseases. Just click on them and see the syptoms, if you don't find any that fits what your bird/s have then it is most likely none of those. (Some you can't click on.) http://msucares.com/poultry/diseases/dissymp.htm I really hope your bird/s get better!
Have you wormed them, the flock? When, with what? You say three months past the point of laying, that would make them about 8 months or so, right? The entire flock is this age? You can search EACH symptom that the one or ones you lost have shown. If they have never been wormed and if they free range especially, it is time to worm the flock. Search "Worming with Valbazen" here on BYC. Note posts by dawg53 for info on the worming, on Valbazen, the oral dosage, etc. A regularly cleaned coop, roosts, run -- good food (layer if you have them for eggs)... check them for mites. Clean water -- Apple Cider Vinegar added to the water helps keep it from getting slimy in the waterer. Hay or PINE shavings in the laying boxes, nests. I would worm them (if you haven't) right away. You will need to repeat the wormer in ten days and withhold eggs for the whole time to the 15th day after the last worming. Get Valbazen at the feed store and syringes (without needles) as well... so that you can dose orally, each chicken. 1/2 cc/ml per standard chicken. 1/4 cc/ml per bantam or small chicken. Worms can cause a variety of symptoms, including limping and death. Good luck.
Are you giving them any supplements? Sometimes either to much supplements, or lack thereof can cause issues. What is their environment, my sister lost a lot of birds to strange illness, then she realized they were pecking old paint chips off the back inner barn wall. We don't know what it was tainted with led, arsenic, asbestos. She moved them out of the barn and the losses stopped and they perked back up. It could be a variety of things, but checking them for worms, feed issues, vitamin issues, and enviroment can help a lot. When we have had random illness that we can't nail down exactly we have given them cranberry powder in their food, rooster booster, and extra greens and protien and it seems to help sometimes, and then sometimes.. well not so much. But it is worth a try Christal
