Need advice on whether to euthanize a sick hen who's a beloved pet

[leadwolf1]

I'm not an expert. I can only relay what I have read. EYP will eventually kill even with continued treatment. The only completely successful treatment is to have your hen spayed. It is a very risky and expensive option.

 

[guesswhatchickenbutt]

EYP..isn't egg bound. It is internal laying and infection that goes along with it. Do a search on that.

My advice to you would be to have the hen euthanized, I know that is a very hard decision, and have a necropsy done. Find a state lab that will do them cheaply..you can call your local government extension office or find the information online. That way, you will know exactly what went wrong and if it is something that you will have to be concerned about with your new chicks.

I'm sorry you are going through this..our feathered friends are so hard to lose

Thank you! I'd never thought of this. I just researched it and it's $30 for a poultry necropsy. It would be nice to know what is wrong with her. I just have to figure out where I'd have to take her body after she dies. I won't consider it if it's across the state.... Will have to call tomorrow and find out. THANK YOU!

any neurological or respiratory symptoms?
How does there stool look like?

Respiratory - she opens and closes her beak a lot, almost like she's gasping for air in a way.... But she eats and drinks so I don't know.....

Stool - it looks like regular chicken poo - no blood or super stinky poo.


Someone mentioned vitamins and yogurt - I've given them chicken electrolytes in their water a couple of times and I often give her yogurt, cottage cheese and scrambled egg, which she gobbles up instantly.

You know, if I had a 5-6 chicken flock, I'd have put her down already but if I put her down that leaves my BR a lone hen (since my chicks are too small to be in the big run/coop yet). The BR sticks to my BO like glue and I'd hate for her to be alone if the BO can keep on trucking along. I just hope she's not in any serious discomfort.

 

[terryg]

When a hen is no longer roosting and not able to eat with vigor, then it is often due to an ailment which is terminal. Often, the hen is suffering farm more than we realize. Over the years I've done (and continue to) do much to keep my hens alive. But, after doing many home necropsies on my birds I've come to realize that some have suffered for far too long before I euthanized them. I've written about that here:
http://hencam.com/henblog/2012/06/the-kindness-of-euthanizing/
That said, there are ailments that an even very sick looking hen can rebound from. If a hen has a chance of recovering, then my spa treatment often helps. Read this: http://hencam.com/faq/the-spa-treatment/
Also, a "real" farmer practices "all in, all out" which means that they raise the chickens, then harvest or cull all at one time. Backyard hen keepers rarely do this. We add a few new chickens, we nurse a sick chicken back to health, and the flock evolves over time. I've done that for over 16 years. You don't have to cull all when one gets sick.

 

[guesswhatchickenbutt]

Thx - she gets baths at least weekly to get the poo off her bum. I do make it nice warm water and it does seem to relax her... but she's not improving either.

 

[FlyHigher]

Just as leadwolf1 said, successful treatment for EYP involves stopping the sick hen from laying or more exactly, internal laying, completely.
To stop a hen laying, besides spay, one method is hormone therapy treatment.

 

[guesswhatchickenbutt]

OK - I've been reading online nonstop about hatchery hens and EYP - mostly hitting at around age 3. I'm really starting to believe it's what we've got. The only question that I can't find an answer to is - how long can a hen live when she's suffering from EYP? I wonder if they can go on for months or does it take them out quickly like being egg-bound, for example.

Can anyone answer that $20,000 question for me?

Thanks again everyone!

 

[guesswhatchickenbutt]

Is it wrong to answer my own question? lol

I've been reading up on this EYP like a crazy woman and I've learned that a hen can suffer with EYP for a long time before they finally succumb to it

I've found a few blogs where people have written about their EYP hens and some go on for months... so I need to decide if my hen is happy enough to keep on living like she is, or if she's suffering immensely and should be put down. Of course I have no way to figure that out - however, if she's eating, drinking and waddling around - albeit slowly - then I think we'll keep on trucking. She is laying down a lot though, which isn't like her. The moment I notice that she's not coming in from the rain, or putting herself to bed at night or not eating, we'll end it. I think that's the best I can plan for.

Now the mystery is my BR. She looks incredibly healthy, but we're up to 6 months with no eggs.....sooooo....... I wonder what's up with her? Medicating her with Baytril is like medicating a rabid cat - LOL. She's full of energy and has to be wrapped in a towel for her twice daily abx. She's happy to be held, but when she sees the syringe, she loses her mind. This is a good thing I suppose - she's obviously healthy. I wonder if she's in the beginning stages of EYP and the abx might actually help her though? Hmmm..

Anyway - thank you thank you thank you thank you for the info on this. I've gone months wondering if my hens have some sort of communicable chicken disease or if I did something wrong as a chicken owner to cause this. I feel like I've been reading about chicken symptoms and possible diseases all summer long. Finally EYP seems to have hit the nail on the head. I'm incredibly sad because I love my girls, esp my BO who's always been my fav, but I suppose it is what it is and all I can do is learn from it and keep moving forward. I've read that it's very common in hatchery hens and here I am with three little hatchery hens in a brooder box and I have to hope it doesn't strike them down too one day.

Again - thanks so much!

 

[Eggsoteric]

I recently had a 3.5 y.o. Sexlink hen whose symptoms were a lot like your hen's. Betty (also a hatchery hen) stopped laying a few months back and had been listless on and off up until her death this past weekend; her abdomen was "squishy" and she was thin, even though she seemed to be eating / drinking okay. Being a high production bird I suspected she was suffering from EYP and was surpised when the necropsy came back with a diagnosis of cancer.

Good luck with your hens

 

[guesswhatchickenbutt]

I recently had a 3.5 y.o. Sexlink hen whose symptoms were a lot like your hen's. Betty (also a hatchery hen) stopped laying a few months back and had been listless on and off up until her death this past weekend; her abdomen was "squishy" and she was thin, even though she seemed to be eating / drinking okay. Being a high production bird I suspected she was suffering from EYP and was surpised when the necropsy came back with a diagnosis of cancer.

Good luck with your hens

I just went out and felt the abdomens of my 2 hens. The sick BO had a fat super squishy abdomen. She's waddling like a duck when she moves. The BR is thinner than she should be, but her abdomen wasn't squishy - just a bit thinner than it should be. Now I'm perplexed as to why my BR isn't laying at all....

On another thread I started back when this all started someone else mentioned cancer as an option. Interesting that it does mimic EYP so closely. Regardless in a way, it's comforting to know there's nothing to be done, but to make her comfortable.

 

[leadwolf1]

I'm not sure but I think EYP can go hand and hand with cancer. Reproductive cancer can cause EYP and vice versa. Just makes sense.