NEED ADVICE: Day 3 with sick hen

[cvchick]

I have a 2+ year old laying hen that has been lethargic and not eating since Saturday. I found her upside and almost lifeless in her coop Saturday morning. The only symptoms I can confirm are that she is unable to stand up, is very lethargic, and hasn't been able to eat or drink on her own.

I've been feeding her yogurt, watered down mash, and water by syringe every few hours. I started her on an antibiotic yesterday. There's been no improvement. She occasionally shakes her head rapidly - just out of the blue. And she does opens her eyes when I feed her.

I'm concerned she might have worms so I took this picture of her poop from earlier today.



We have one other hen that does not have any issues (at least as of right now!).

I appreciate any advice you can offer. Thanks!

 

[silkiechick1994]

Let me be the first to say Welcome to Backyard Chickens!!!! It's unfortunate that it's under these circumstances though. I'm very sorry your chickie is sick. If you believe she has worms and have not wormed her, there are some very informative articles here about worming.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/910/de-worming-chickens
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/221808/worming-with-wazine
This one might help as well.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/830934/chicken-has-diarrhea-lethargic-not-eating-or-drinking

One of the best things you can go is give her vitamin water. I use Lyfe Lytes tablets but Gatorade will work in a pinch. give LOTS of it with water as it will help stabilizes her system. The yogurt and mash mix is good as it gives protein and calcium in one go. Make sure she is warm also. See if she has labored breathing, wheezing, running nose, as this could mean she has a respiratory disease. I would worm immediately with Wazine if you believe she has worms. She won't get better until she is able to keep the nutrients you are feeding. The link above should give you dosage instructions. Most of all, give all the TLC you can give because she's going to need you. All you can do is try your best and give her the best care you can. Keep her fed and watered and hopefully she will make it through. I hope this helps you and I wish you the best of luck.

 

[Eggcessive]

Welcome to BYC. Check her for lice and mites especially under the vent. Worm her with SafeGuard horse paste or liquid goat wormer--it gets all chicken worms except tapeworm (and you can see those with your eyes.) Wazine only treats roundworm and cecal worms can be deadly. Check her crop first thing in the morning--it should be empty and flat. If not she could have sour or impacted crop. Check her vent for possible egg bound. Could she have contracted coccidiosis from a new chicken or have you recently moved her? She has many of the symptoms, although a chicken her age would normally be immune to the strain on your property.

 

[cvchick]

Thanks for the replies! I started her on Wazine today - the local place I go to didn't have safeguard. Should I source Safeguard tomorrow then and give up on the Wazine? I've not seen any signs of tapeworm whatsoever.

I will check her crop and vent in the am.

We did move her and our other chicken to a new property but that was back in early August. The only other change has been the weather - it's turned significantly cooler but they have both been through cold nights before.

The only new change that has happened since my initial post earlier today is that her feathers are more fluffy than usual, particularly around her neck and head. She's still very lethargic but seems happy to eat/drink whatever I give her by syringe.

 

[silkiechick1994]

I would continue the dose of Wazine for the remainder of the treatment and then use the safe guard treatment. The only reason I say this is because if your chickens do have all these nasty worms it would be easier on the hen to only kill a few at a time with the Wazine and then take out the remaining worms with the safe guard paste. Now some people just go ahead and give the safe guard straight away but it has been known to cause significant stress in the birds. When I dose mine I try not to cause any more stress on them then I have to. Otherwise it turns into chaos with them running around lol

 

[Eggcessive]

Thanks for the replies! I started her on Wazine today - the local place I go to didn't have safeguard. Should I source Safeguard tomorrow then and give up on the Wazine? I've not seen any signs of tapeworm whatsoever.

I will check her crop and vent in the am.

We did move her and our other chicken to a new property but that was back in early August. The only other change has been the weather - it's turned significantly cooler but they have both been through cold nights before.

The only new change that has happened since my initial post earlier today is that her feathers are more fluffy than usual, particularly around her neck and head. She's still very lethargic but seems happy to eat/drink whatever I give her by syringe.

I'm not sure if she could have coccidiosis after 4 months on the soil, but the symptoms are ruffled feathers, lethargy, diarrhea, not eating, and sitting puffed up with the neck drawn in. Corid (amprollium) is a thiamine inhibitor (of the cocci) and is pretty safe. Dosage is 1 tsp powder or 2 tsp liquid in 1 gallon of water for 5 days. Sometimes an underlying case of cocci will cause a low immunity to other chicken diseases that they could normally shake off. SafeGuard or another wormer Valbazen are fairly gentle. You could worm again in 10 days with one of those. The SG paste is less expensive. Cecal worms can cause blackhead disease, and unfortunately many people don't realize that Wazine, a wormer that folks have used for years, doesn't get that.

 

[cvchick]

She's still hanging in there today. It looks like she is trying to stand up but is unable to so hopefully that is a good sign. She's taking Wazine and the antibiotic through syringe. I'm able to get yogurt down as well and some watered down mash but not much.

I'm off to get Corrid from the store and to see if they have Safeguard. Question - Can I begin Corrid while she's also taking the antibiotic and Wazine?

Thanks again for your replies!

 

[cvchick]

She had a good afternoon yesterday - tried to stand up and was pecking at food for the first time since Saturday. I decided not to begin Corrid because she had such a good day and I figured that had to be attributed to the antibiotic and/or Wazine that she was taking.
Today she is much like she was yesterday. She can sit up now but can't stand yet. I took her outside to get fresh air and visit the coop but that was a mistake. Our other chicken immediately came over and pecked at her. Once she is 100% healthy again, how do you suggest I re-introduce her?

 

[cvchick]

We're on Day 6 with our sick chicken and today she's not doing so well. She's still indoors and has been all week. She seems to have reversed over the past 12 hours or so because now she can't sit/stand like she could yesterday and she is completely uninterested in eating or drinking whereas the past few days she's been eating/drinking well. I've tried syringe today and she's turns the other way. I've placed her fav foods in front of her and she just ignores them. She know has her legs stretched out in front of her and is resting on her belly. She's tried to get up from that position several times but has not been successful.

As for meds, she is still on the antibiotic and Wazine (though not much since she won't drink). Her poops were great the past two days and today they've been more liquid than solid and have been mostly white to yellowish-white.

She's alert with her head up and looking around a bit but that's about it. I'm at a loss for what's wrong.

 

[Eggcessive]

What antibiotic is she on? I think you may lose her if she cannot eat or drink. Did you get Safeguard for her? Can you post a picture of how she is lying. Did you say her legs were out in front of her? Like this? http://partnersah.vet.cornell.edu/avian-atlas/search/disease/502