My diarrhea mystery...

[Chippylyons]

I have three chickens, about 7 months old, in an enclosed run. I noticed loose stools in one of them, starting about 3 weeks ago. She was also observed trying to poo frequently with little or no poo coming out, but still runny. I now think two of them are suffering from diarrhea, as of the last few days. They both have slightly dirty poo butts too, because of the runs. They are still eating, drinking, laying, and behaving as they normally do, at least while I am around. They have only been laying for about a month, so I have not really established an average # of eggs to really say if the egg production is the same or slightly decreased. I have also had one of them laying eggs with no shells, about once a week. I wonder if there is any connection to whatever is causing the diarrhea. I have read so many posts on here about diarrhea in birds, but I just cannot figure out what is going on...The poo looks much like it normally does in color, just completely loose instead of solid.

If anyone has any thoughts about what could be causing this, I would love to hear them. My biggest suspect is some sort of worm, although I have not actually seen any....

 

[Eggcessive]

Have you recently gotten any of these chickens from another place or added a new one? Worming them with SafeGuard horse paste or Liquid Goat wormer, or with Valbazen would be the first thing I would do. 1/2 ml of either one, repeat in 10 days. Toss eggs for total of 24 days. All chickens have some worms if they are on the ground. You may only see roundworm once in a while in the poo, but there are several other worms that chickens may get. Wazine, a drug that feed stores recommend, will only get roundworms, and none of the others. The second thing I would do is to put some probiotics in their water 2-3 days a week, and Probios is a good brand. On a warm day, I would clean their vent areas, and trim any excess fluff. Look for any bare spots with red or white patches that could mean vent gleet. Here is a link about it: http://www.tillysnest.com/2012/12/vent-gleet-prevention-and-treatment.html

 

[Chippylyons]

Eggcessive - None are new or from elsewhere.

I also read about adding DE to the feed. Has anyone tried that for worms? Or is more for preventative purposes?

 

[ten chicks]

Do you give them lots of treats/table scraps,if so cut back on them and see if diarrhea subsides. What feed are they on? Do your girls have access to oyster/crushed egg shells for added calcium?

 

[Chippylyons]

I still have them on chick starter due to having so much of it still. I have been supplementing with table scraps and kale. They have oyster shells and a few days a week I give them some crushed egg shell as well.

 

[ten chicks]

I still have them on chick starter due to having so much of it still. I have been supplementing with table scraps and kale. They have oyster shells and a few days a week I give them some crushed egg shell as well.

Cut out scraps for couple of days,see if diarrhea improves. Shell-less eggs can occur in new layers,but can also be a result of not enough calcium.

Look at vent gleet,just in case. Here is a link for vent gleet.

http://www.tillysnest.com/2012/12/vent-gleet-prevention-and-treatment.html

 

[TwoCrows]

If you have gone over everything with a fine tooth comb and just can not figure out why they are having diarrhea, then consider their diet. Not all feeds sit well with all birds. I have a hen that is very sensitive to certain feeds and will get diarrhea and slow/sour crop. So if all avenues have been searched, and you can't see any health reasons for their diarrhea, consider a new feed and this may clear up the runs.

 

[Eggcessive]

Eggcessive - None are new or from elsewhere.

I also read about adding DE to the feed. Has anyone tried that for worms? Or is more for preventative purposes?

I still have them on chick starter due to having so much of it still. I have been supplementing with table scraps and kale. They have oyster shells and a few days a week I give them some crushed egg shell as well.

How old is your chick starter? Chick starter (unmedicated) is fine food and just like 20% flock raiser or all flock food, which is what may chickens eat with crushed oystershell on the side for extra calcium. But if it is old, it can lose nutrients and vitamins, plus develop mold. If you have the bag--check the date. DE won't do anything for worms when wet inside the body. Worm medicine is easier on chickens than worms, to quote someone here on BYC. If you don't suspect coccidiosis, which is why I asked about new chickens, enteritis is common, and can cause brown diarrhea, but they would look depressed and act sick. I would treat for worms and try the probiotics, and limit extras. Salty table scraps can be harmful, and may cause gout.