need advice ASAP

[tnthomas29]

Please I need advice if it's not even to late. We got this chicken from our neighbor which was always my girls favorite. She is a big chicken, from what I have seen online, I think she is a Columbian and older. I have never seen her lay an egg. We did get a huge one last week which was crazy. She now is hardly able to walk, stands with her nose in the corner standing like an eagle stance. If i lay her down it hurts because her belly is so bloated. She will scarf food, but I have to try and trick her.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Please I need advice if it's not even to late. We got this chicken from our neighbor which was always my girls favorite. She is a big chicken, from what I have seen online, I think she is a Columbian and older. I have never seen her lay an egg. We did get a huge one last week which was crazy. She now is hardly able to walk, stands with her nose in the corner standing like an eagle stance. If i lay her down it hurts because her belly is so bloated. She will scarf food, but I have to try and trick her.

It sounds like she is possibly egg-bound (that unmoving upright stance). If you can feel her abdomen you might notice that it is quite full and tight. There are supposed remedies for that here at BYC and on the Internet, but in my experience it is most kind to cull the bird once this problem starts.

I've had birds go quiet and stand funny when they're molting, but that's pretty obviously different.

 

[cafarmgirl]

Rumpled egg shells like that are often a sign of disease, infectious bronchitis being one that causes such shells.

The bloated belly is not a good sign. She could be an internal layer or she could have ascites, fluid buildup in the body cavities caused by cancers, disease or problems with major organs such as liver, kidneys or heart, it can also be a side effect of internal laying.

Have you checked to see if she is by chance egg bound? Put on a glove with some lubricant and check inside her an inch or so and see if you feel an egg. It's possible but I'm more inclined to think this is something else.

It sounds like there may be more then one thing going on with this hen. I hope you've kept her in quarantine and not put her in with your other birds if you have others?

 

[tnthomas29]

Anyone have any suggestions on what my options are if she is not egg bound and it is cancer etc? I don't want her to be suffering ; (

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Anyone have any suggestions on what my options are if she is not egg bound and it is cancer etc? I don't want her to be suffering ; (

Cull her if she's suffering.

I wouldn't cull a bird for wrinkly eggs. That could just be age.

But the way you describe her standing, her full abdomen, that you think she's suffering ...

 

[cafarmgirl]

Chickens by nature hide any illness as long as they can, to show weakness and illness is to be taken by a predator. So by the time they are so sick that they just can't do that anymore they are really feeling crummy.

I've dealt with quite a few birds with a bloated abdomen due to internal laying and/or ascites. I put them down when it's obvious that their quality of life is just not there anymore. Otherwise these birds can sometimes hang on for a very long time and die a slow death. Just depends what the underlying cause actually is. Sometimes it's better to give them an easier way out.

On the flip side, if you have access to an avian vet and don't mind spending a fair amount of $$ you could take her in, get an x-ray and see what's going on in there. This can get spendy fast and usually the outcome is the same. I've tried that a few times, I don't do it anymore.

 

[tnthomas29]

Hi everyone,I need help. I have lost like 3 or 4 chickens in the last couple months, I have no idea what is going pn. I have researched so much. Is last one started limping on her rightfoot, so I crated her,found her to be lethargic, feet curled but would drink and eat when I put it up to her. This morning she had passed. I have one that is also crated that is the first that was limping she is still doing decent. The others we lost a few months ago was when we had HOT weather and thought they got over heated. Also, is there something I can do to prevent my other flock from getting bumblefoot etc. I didn't see any signs, besides the one that passedoesn't I did just notice dark scales on her legs yesterday.