My rooster is sleeping all the time! What's his problem?

[TarHeelBlue]

Quote:
DITTO! I soooo agree.

 

[NHchicks]

UPDATE:

Well, we brought our rooster inside for the day and let him get warm in the dog crate. And now, I'm happy to report, he's doing fine. Crowing and strutting, altho I haven't noticed whether he's mating.

ONLY NOW, one of our hens just died. 2 years old, the one in the avatar, which is going over like a lead balloon with the broken heart who's holding her, she started acting lethargic the past few days also.

I partially blame our continuing arctic-like cold conditions here, bitter winds, and temperatures still hovering right around freezing during the day, which is unseasonably cold. It's so aggravating, because I feel like if Puffy had not been so cold, she could have recovered like the rooster did.

Anyway, I'm wondering if they might have eaten the styrofoam which has re-appeared from under the snow - I guess I put it out for the garbage and then the snow came in the fall and never left, and now there it is again, only it's all pecked. I brought what I could inside until trash day, but there are still pieces of it stuck in snow that I can't get out, so I'm trying to keep the chickens away from it.

Does anyone know if styrofoam kills chickens? I wouldn't be surprised.

The other 8 hens and the rooster appear to be doing fine. It's still blustery cold out, but someday it just has to warm up so I can spend time out there and get a good look at all of them and clean their coop, etc.

Puffy, by the way, my 2 yr. old hen, was a frozen solid lump on the coop floor this morning. First time I've had to deal with a dead chicken. It was not pleasant. I covered her with hay just so I could shovel her into the wheelbarrow without having to see too much of her. I'm a wimp, but you have to develop a crust for these things, hopefully the crust will come. I'm sure she won't be the last chicken who dies.

I'm so mad at this cold weather. It's bordering on ridiculous.

 

[Miss Lydia]

So sorry to hear about your hen, and your right it won't be the last. But just wanted to give my sympathy and hug you know who for me, it's hard on the little ones. On a brighter note glad to hear your roo has perked up. I know I will be glad to spring come in and stay...

 

[NHchicks]

Update:

I think I know what killed my hen. I think it was sour crop. I had only ever briefly heard of sour crop before and didn't know what it was, but now that I'm looking into it, she had the symptoms: enlarged squishy crop, lethargic, away from the other chickens.

IF I HAD ONLY KNOWN maybe I could have held her slanted to the ground and gently massaged her crop, and maybe loosened what was stuck.

And I think that's the problem my rooster had too, only I think he has it AGAIN, so I don't know. Maybe I'm wrong and it's not sour crop, but he has a squishy bulge too. I was able to pick him up today because he was lethargic (usually he bolts), and I noticed his squishy bulge, and a few drops came out of his beak from my holding him because it must have been squishing his crop. He's not eating but he did drink a lot this morning, so that's good.

And maybe they both came down with this same thing because I had given them all scraps that could have been too big for them to handle. Makes me think twice about what I give them.

Another thought is that snow melt came only a week or so ago and ever since they have been scratching madly in the woods. Maybe they were rusty at hustling up their own food and have been eating too much and too many rough things.

UGH. I can't believe my poor hen died. And now if I lose this rooster I'm going to be really depressed. The other hens all appear happy.

And I did check under the rooster's wings, and no signs of critters under there.

It's supposed to snow several inches tomorrow, so they'll probably be stuck in the coop all day. Maybe that's a good thing.

UGH.

 

[crtrlovr]

Some of the mites are so tiny they're nearly impossible to see without magnification. (smaller than a pinpoint). They can and will kill an adult chicken by making them anemic and literally sucking them dry. I'd treat them all for mites with Sevin dust and I'd also use the Eprinex. If they do have worms, it will kill them, plus it will also kill other internal and external parasites. There is also no recommended withdrawal time, so you don't have to throw away the eggs for 2 weeks.
ETA: as for the styrofoam, I think it's the equivalent of "chicken popcorn". They'll eat every piece they can get their little beaks into...

If styrofoam would kill them, I'd have none left. They ate all but one corner of a 4' x 8' sheet of blue building styrofoam insulation, and most of 2 other sheets, and at least 2' off the end of the other sheets. This was within less than a week. I then took it off the walls and put it up over the rafters to try to give them some insulation and hold at least a little of the heat in the house over the winter, and 2 of the little goobers were able to jump up and bump it enough to scoot one piece just enough so they could get in on top of it through the gap. They built a nest up there, and then started eating the other pieces again.

No more insulation in the coop unless & until I get the $$$ to put up wallboard of some kind over it so the goobers don't eat it.

 

[NHchicks]

What I would like is for a chicken forensic specialist (or just a regular farmer who happens to know about chickens) to come to my place, inspect my flock and my coop, and give me an assessment. I'll bet if people advertised those services, they'd be busy. A vet is too expensive.

But would mites and even worms make a crop large and squishy like sour crop does?

That's a great analogy, that styrofoam is like popcorn to chickens! My husband said he thinks they just like the way it sounds/feels when they peck it. They certainly couldn't be doing it for the taste...