My hen won't walk, eat or drink!

[Kaybay134]

Last night I went to close up my coop and check on my girls and one of my hens was wheezing. This morning I went to check on her and she was laying on the floor of the coop and wouldn't get up. I separated her into a dog kennel with food and water and she won't eat or drink. Also has loose stool. I am new to owning chickens so I'm not sure what to do! k

 

[micstrachan]

Hi there. Welcome to BYC!
So sorry your chicken is sick and you have not received a reply. Can you provide a few details?

The following would be helpful:

• age
• diet
• housing
• geographic location
• is she laying eggs? when was the last one?

Please examine her. In particular, check that her crop is empty in the morning. Also check that she has breast muscle on her keel (breast) bone. How does her abdomen (fluffy butt area) feel. is it bloated with fluid at all? Any other respiratory or eye symptoms? Is she open mouth breathing?

For now, can you bring her inside? A warm, dark, quiet setting would be ideal. If you dip the tip of her beak in water, she may drink. If you provide a yummy, protein rick treat, like tuna or scrambled egg, she may nibble a little. Please keep us posted.

 

[Kaybay134]

She is about 5 months old. She hasn't laid yet that I have noticed, I am located in Colorado and the weather has been dry but pretty mild and warm. She is on a heart hen pellet food. I did bring her into a warmer area and she seems like she may have eaten a couple pieces of food and maybe a little bit of water but not much. Tomorrow I'll check her more thoughroly, she was pretty stressed out earlier when I moved her inside. Last night when I checked on her she was open mouth breathing but I haven't noticed it since. My girls have a coop with a run but I let them out into the yard for a couple hours out of the day usually.

 

[azygous]

Did you check her crop this morning to see if it had emptied overnight? If it was still full, you may need to treat her for a crop disorder. This is one of the most common things that can make a chicken sick.

Do your chickens have access to grit? Are they kept cooped and penned or do they free-range?

If you have a compost pile, she may have found something toxic.

The open-mouth breathing is a symptom of stress. If a discharge from eyes or nares is also present, it can indicate respiratory disease.

For us to be able to help you, we need much more information if you can provide it.

 

[Kaybay134]

They are in a coop with a run but I do let them out almost daily. I was concerned that maybe she got into some moldy hay. She looks a little better this morning, her bottom is more perky. I'll check her crop here in a moment. There is no discharge from her nose or eyes.

 

[getaclue]

First, at her age she should be on a starter/grower type feed, not layer (hen) feed yet. Without knowing enough about her, I am guessing she had a respiratory infection. I'd get the Tylan injectable, and give it orally.

 

[azygous]

Have you seen this moldy hay? Did she have access to it? If so, you probably should do a molasses flush. First give her some water mixed with a little Epsom salt, then follow it with some very wet feed with a tablespoon of molasses mixed in. This will flush out and neutralyze the toxins from mold.

If you haven't actually seen any moldy hay, then do not do this treatment.

 

[Kaybay134]

First, at her age she should be on a starter/grower type feed, not layer (hen) feed yet. Without knowing enough about her, I am guessing she had a respiratory infection. I'd get the Tylan injectable, and give it orally.

She's full size, the others have started laying just not her yet. Where can I get the Tylan?

 

[Kaybay134]

Have you seen this moldy hay? Did she have access to it? If so, you probably should do a molasses flush. First give her some water mixed with a little Epsom salt, then follow it with some very wet feed with a tablespoon of molasses mixed in. This will flush out and neutralyze the toxins from mold.

If you haven't actually seen any moldy hay, then do not do this treatment.

I had a bale that I bought that had a moldy bottom to it. I am not 100% certain that she got into it. What about adding some honey to water to see if she's interested? She maybe drank a 1/4 cup of water yesterday

 

[Kaybay134]

**update**

She laid an egg today, she's still isolated in a dog kennel. The egg she laid was very soft and could be her first egg. I gave her an epsom salt bath after and she had a huge poop once I put her back in the kennel. She still won't walk and she has hardly eaten. Could this possibly be egg bound..? I am not sure what the post symptoms are if she was egg bound.