Pale and dry comb

[Mercyr79]

Hi. My 2.5 year old hen is ill but I can’t figure it out. She’s slow, lethargic and won’t eat. I see her drinking water though. Her comb is not the usual bright red and it looks dry. She has poop stuck to her butt feathers and some white drippings. Her vent looks good. I see her drinking water though. We have isolated her and I will give her nutrí drench I’m the morning. Any advice is greatly appreciated. I’m still new at this and I just want to help her Thank you

 

[Galaxy_rules]

Poor girl!
@LTAY1946 @Tookie @TwoCrows

 

[Tookie]

I would check her over for lice or mites to make sure she doesn't have any.
Also check her crop early in the morning and see if it's empty or not.
Is her abdomen bloated at all? (Abdomen is located underneath the vent and behind the legs.)
Is she having any trouble breathing?
How's your weather been?

 

[dawg53]

I agree with Tookie. Inspect her closely for lice or mites especially around the vent area. It's imperative to use warm water to remove stuck feces from her rear end and look for Fly Strike.
Two other possibilities are that she needs to be wormed with Valbazen or Safeguard. The other is that a dark comb could be a heart valve problem or other heart issue.

 

[Mercyr79]

I would check her over for lice or mites to make sure she doesn't have any.
Also check her crop early in the morning and see if it's empty or not.
Is her abdomen bloated at all? (Abdomen is located underneath the vent and behind the legs.)
Is she having any trouble breathing?
How's your weather been?

Thank you. I will check those things this morning. It’s just hard because I don’t really know what an empty crop feels like. They always feel the same to us when we check them… Will the abdomen be hard if it’s bloated?

 

[StinkyAcres]

Thank you. I will check those things this morning. It’s just hard because I don’t really know what an empty crop feels like. They always feel the same to us when we check them… Will the abdomen be hard if it’s bloated?

Do some comparisons with your healthy chickens. In the evening when your other chickens are on the roost feel their crops; they should be full at that time. Then you can compare it to how it feels in the early morning when it should be empty. When it is empty it's hard to detect. The crop is located just in front of the keel bone. Also compare the the size and firmness of their abdomens.

 

[Certified Chicken Lover]

What's the weather like where you live, could she be suffering from frostbite?

 

[Mercyr79]

What's the weather like where you live, could she be suffering from frostbite?

The weather is starting to get colder but we are still at 70F in the day and in the high 40’s at night. I tried to give her some Nutri drench but she spit it out. Her crop seems to have emptied overnight. I checked her abdomen but I have to go compare it to the other chickens since I don’t know what to look for. Her poops have looked like this for a couple of days. They have a yellow color to them…

 

[Tookie]

Thank you. I will check those things this morning. It’s just hard because I don’t really know what an empty crop feels like. They always feel the same to us when we check them… Will the abdomen be hard if it’s bloated?

An empty crop will feel almost like nothing, and it may be hard to find while empty.
I wouldn't say the abdomen would be hard, but I wouldn't say its really soft.

 

[Tookie]

The weather is starting to get colder but we are still at 70F in the day and in the high 40’s at night. I tried to give her some Nutri drench but she spit it out. Her crop seems to have emptied overnight. I checked her abdomen but I have to go compare it to the other chickens since I don’t know what to look for. Her poops have looked like this for a couple of days. They have a yellow color to them…

How were you administering the Nutri-Drench?
Glad to hear her crop was empty.
The yellow droppings are of concern, it can mean she has a reproductive disorder or liver problems.