Hi Everyone. I am probably just being overly obsessive with this little chicken but I would love any/all advise that I could receive. I have an 8 week old bantam cochin. She has been out in our chicken coop/run with all her buddies for the past two weeks. She has been in perfect health. Today, however, I went up to give them some treats and she didn't appear. I found this to be extremely strange since she is usually the first one to greet me at the fence. I found her lying down and not really wanting to move. I approached and she ran from me but immediately went back to resting. I picked her up and examined her carefully. I can find no external injury or sign of illness. I brought her in the house and put her in a safe cage with food and water, laced with ACV. Her poops are totally normal. There is no sneezing, coughing, etc. There is no sign of any discharge. Eyes are bright and shiny. She just acts extremely lethargic. She doesn't appear to want to eat and her crop is almost non-existent. She was fine this morning when I let them out of the coop. The only change in diet that I can think of is the potato bugs that my husband gave them. Could this have caused stomach upset? She is my 7 year olds chicken and is a family favorite...she is just the sweetest little thing. Any thoughts/suggestions would be appreciated. My son is beside himself with worry!
My advice is get some GSE (grapefruit seed extract). It will help whether it is viral, bacterial, fungal or parasitic. I have a post on my blog about treating sick chickens. Though this does not sound like coryza, I would still try some of the treatment options mentioned there. http://earthmama24.blogspot.com/2011/03/natural-treatment-of-infectious-coryza.html Hope she gets better soon!
