Odd Chicken Behavior.

[Critterwoman]

Hi all. I have a question I wondered if anyone could answer.

I have a hen that occasionally will stand in one spot and go round and round and round in circles. Can you tell me what may be causing this and what I can do about it. Hi all. I have a question I wondered if anyone could answer.

I have a hen that occasionally will stand in one spot and go round and round and round in circles. Can you tell me what may be causing this and what I can do about it. :/

 

[Wyorp Rock]

How old is she?
What type of food/treats do you feed?

It could be a vitamin deficiency, injury or something in her ears. Add some poultry vitamins to her water. Check her over for any signs of injury. Also examine the ears (inside them too) for any sign of infection or lice/mites.

 

[Critterwoman]

She is probably 3 years old. I give greens to them, like salad mix (not so much iceberg lettuce. No nutritional value) fresh spinach, other types of fresh lettuce, corn on the cob, yogurts,tomatoes, etc. Fresh veggies. Yogurts sparingly. Specialty beads that have lots of seeds in them.
I haven't checked her ears yet, and as I'm thinking she always turns the same direction, to the left.

 

[QueenMisha]

How do her eyes look? If you wave your hand in front of her eyes or quickly wave it toward them, does she react or recoil?

What is their main ration and what percentage of ther diet would you guess the greens/treats you give them make up?

 

[Critterwoman]

How do her eyes look? If you wave your hand in front of her eyes or quickly wave it toward them, does she react or recoil?

What is their main ration and what percentage of ther diet would you guess the greens/treats you give them make up?

 

[Critterwoman]

They are in bed so don't know about the eye thing. Treats probobly make up 10% of their diet. A little scratch once in a while along with layer crumbles. What are you thinking? And what is the eye thing?

 

[QueenMisha]

They are in bed so don't know about the eye thing. Treats probobly make up 10% of their diet. A little scratch once in a while along with layer crumbles. What are you thinking? And what is the eye thing?

I'm inclined to think blindness, or possibly a neurological issue (which can be caused by head trauma or sometimes vitamin deficiency). Diet sounds fine so you may be dealing with head trauma or what I call "spontaneous blindness" - basically a bird goes blind with no obvious cause. A bird who is blind or partially blind may or may not show cloudy eyes, and a good test for sight is by waving your hand quickly toward the head, as if you were going to hit the bird. Any bird able to see will recoil away from the hand.

 

[Critterwoman]

She doesn't seem to be blind. I reintroduced her to the flock and they chased her all around till she went and hid. I removed her from the flock again. She doesn't seem to be turning in circles as much as much as she was. Don't notice her tipping her head before she starts turning. She does seem to be turning most usually to the left. I checked her ears and nostrils and they look clean.