Not sure whats wrong.

[Carissa Ann]

Hi all, needing some advice on what do do about my hen. She is about 19 months old and recently ( for me today is Saturday and she started on Monday ) started straining like she was having contractions. At first I thought maybe she was constipated but after reading some forums and websites I thought she might be egg bound, so I did the warm bath and kept her in the bathroom with the lights of to stop the egg laying process to prevent more eggs from becoming stuck. I felt around and couldn't feel any signs of an egg ( She has always been a picky layer, only laying for about 2 weeks then stops for about the same time and this all started around her 'break time'). After a few hours and another bath my partner found some poo with worms in it, so I read more forums that said it possible for worms to cause pain so I went to the Vet and bought Baycox and started putting that in her water on Tuesday (3mls per Litre of fresh water) but she refused to drink that as I was told to put it in a metal bowl and not plastic she preferred to drink from the plastic ice cream container we use for her water. She has been eating OK, not as much as usual but still eating and her poop looks normal, a little bigger and less often but LOOKS normal. After a few days leaving her with the Baycox water and her not drinking it I started to feed it to her through a baby syringe and have been doing that for 2 days now about every 1 1/2 -2 hrs and giving her about 10-15 mls each time but she is still straining. She hasn't gotten any worse since it all started but isn't getting any better. She will get up and walk around for about 30mins but then goes back into her cage. She is free range and the only chicken we have. Since its been 6 days now and from what I've read if she was egg bound she would have died if she didn't pass the egg within 48 hrs.

Just wanting to know if there is anything else that could be wrong with her.

Oh and when she is out of the cage and walking around she will stamp her feet and fluff her feathers alot and puts hay on herself when in the cage, not sure if relevant or not lol

 

[Outpost JWB]

Since you are new to BYC, let me 1st welcome you!

Now back to business.....Have you checked for mites? Did you do a follow up treatment with worms? A lot of the signs you described sounds like maybe your hen is trying to be a broody hen. A broody hen will make crazy noises, want to stay on her nest all day, pluck her under feathers, fluff out like a crazy banshee when you try to get eggs from under her. Growl, have large broody poops-but they are much larger than normal. I hope your hen gets better soon. Glad you checked her for egg binding. That would have been my 1st guess.

 

[dawg53]

You stated that you saw worms in her feces. You need to worm her immediately. If you dont, the worms will eventually cause her death. It would be a good idea to worm your other birds as well. If you live in the UK, use Flubenvet. If you live in the U.S....use Valbazen, Australia...use Levamisol.

 

[Carissa Ann]

Thanks very much for the replies.

First of all I regularly check her for mites and lice and she is clean. Second if she is just being broody is the straining normal? Cause that's my main concern that she is in pain as the sound she makes ( possibly growling I am not sure) with the straining sounds like she is. Third the Baycox I've been giving her is for the worms. I am located in Australia and that is what my local vet recommended and didn't say anything about any follow-up treatments just to re- worm her in 3 months. We don't have any other birds, just cats that are indoors only.

 

[Outpost JWB]

Thanks very much for the replies.

First of all I regularly check her for mites and lice and she is clean. Second if she is just being broody is the straining normal? Cause that's my main concern that she is in pain as the sound she makes ( possibly growling I am not sure) with the straining sounds like she is. Third the Baycox I've been giving her is for the worms. I am located in Australia and that is what my local vet recommended and didn't say anything about any follow-up treatments just to re- worm her in 3 months. We don't have any other birds, just cats that are indoors only.

Does she act like she is having any trouble walking or anything? Just want to make sure it is not an injury of some sort. My broodies make a growling noise. It really doesn't sound like a straining.

You could put an egg under her and observe her behavior. Make sure to follow up with the worming. Keep us posted. Hope all goes well.

 

[Carissa Ann]

She walks fine no problems there. Will follow up with the worming and see how shes goes. How long do hens stay broody?

 

[dawg53]

Thanks very much for the replies.

First of all I regularly check her for mites and lice and she is clean. Second if she is just being broody is the straining normal? Cause that's my main concern that she is in pain as the sound she makes ( possibly growling I am not sure) with the straining sounds like she is. Third the Baycox I've been giving her is for the worms. I am located in Australia and that is what my local vet recommended and didn't say anything about any follow-up treatments just to re- worm her in 3 months. We don't have any other birds, just cats that are indoors only.

Baycox is used to treat cocci, NOT worms.
http://www.thefarmstore.com.au/animal-farming-equipment-brands-1/brands-a-f/baycox
http://www.farmco.com.au/images/Bayer-Baycox-Poultry-Label.pdf
This is what you need to worm your birds:
http://www.planetpoultry.com.au/medications/322-levamisole-concentrate-100g-poultry-wormer.html

 

[Carissa Ann]

OK I think I will go and talk to the vet again and get more info then.

I told them she had worms and that's what they gave me.

 

[Outpost JWB]

Good idea. Not sure how the program goes in Australia, but I know here in the states veterinarians are not trained very well (if at all) in regards to chickens. You need to first eliminate any illnesses she may have. @dawg53 knows his stuff when it comes to worming. I have seen that on several threads.

I wish you the best of luck with your hen. If by chance she is broody, you can break her of this cycle by removing her off the nest each time she goes there, locking her out of the coop during the day when she can free range or placing ice cubes in the nest box (but it gets the nest material messy!). A broody hen will stop laying eggs until she is done being broody. Please keep us updated.

 

[Carissa Ann]

Thanks for all the info, I will go up to the vet tomorrow and see if i can talk to the avian vet and see what they say. Unfortunately I can't buy a lot of stuff over the counter without taking her in there for a checkup (if this goes on too much longer i will). I will also try shutting her out of her cage tomorrow and see how she behaves.