Paranoid after losing a hen to sudden sickness.

[hen-rietta101]

Hi everyone,

I lost my first hen (she was two years), and the terrible sadness of that loss has left me paranoid. I keep checking on the rest of the flock, and have been afraid to feed them scraps or even let them out to forage.

My hen took sick on Tuesday evening. I let her out of the coop with the others for the evening run and she remained behind. I didn't realize until I let them out again the next morning that she wasn't doing her own thing--she was really, really sick. She could barely walk, was hunched over, her eyes were only half open like she was falling asleep, and she was standing really oddly with her feet turned inward. I immediately quarantined her and called our local Tractor Supply, and the helpful employee told me it sounded like an egg bound hen. I had never heard of it until then, and though I wasn't sure it was the case, I treated her accordingly, though it was unsuccessful. I'll say a few things that seemed to confirm this: she didn't lay for the next one to two days of her life, her stool was extremely watery, her belly was swollen nearly half her size, and she was breathing heavy and seemed to be contracting her vent. However, I've seen so many posts here saying that an egg bound hen is extremely, extremely rare. Because of that, I've been concerned that it was something else, and whatever else that is, it could happen to the others.

I wanted to ask the community a few questions:

1) I had a farmer friend (I'm just a backyard chicken gal) tell me that the layer feed "forces" them to lay, and that could have caused it. However, from what I read, layer feed has the high calcium that would ostensibly prevent issues like egg binding. Should I brush this comment off?
2) I have been letting them forage from our compost pile---they make a b-line because they like the bugs. However, I know that the compost has quite a few resident mice. Could she have picked an infection or disease up from foraging the pile, in which case I should try and build a barrier?
3) Do you have any other advice?

I'm sorry for the long backstory. I am devastated, and appreciate this community of fellow "chicken people."

 

[Kiki]

I am sorry for your loss. It doesn't sound life she was egg bound to me. It sounds more like ascites. Did you feed her scraps and treats regularly?

 

[RiDaGeckoGuy]

I am sorry for your loss. It doesn't sound life she was egg bound to me. It sounds more like ascites. Did you feed her scraps and treats regularly?

X2 it was most likely waterbelly (ascites)

 

[FrostRanger]

I third the ascites. Layer feed doesn't force them to lay, it just provides extra calcium to support laying hens. If a hen won't lay, there's nothing you can do to make them provided everything is in order
It can be managed with antibiotics and draining the fluid but unfortunately water belly is a symptom of something else going on and usually it's not treatable so there really wasn't anything you could have done

 

[Susan Skylark]

Fluid in the abdomen can have a variety of causes (cancer, peritonitis, heart failure…) most are not contagious or the result of management or nutrition, you did nothing and couldn’t have prevented or cured it and your flock should be fine too. Get back to normal and enjoy your life/birds. Layer feed nutritionally supports hens that are bred to lay eggs daily, just like Holsteins are bred to make lots of milk or thoroughbreds to run or labs to hunt, it is called selective breeding and you are merely feeding your birds appropriately for their genetic potential. If their nutritional needs are met layers will lay, inducing malnutrition in your hens to make your ignorant neighbor happy would be rather silly! You don’t feed broilers layer feed or layers a meat bird ration or you have big issues. Enjoy your birds and ignore unhelpful comments from the peanut gallery

 

[ChicNmom]

It wasn't the feed. These chickens are bred to be heavy egg layers and they are prone to reproductive issues. Some breeds more than others.

If her belly felt watery then the ascites as mentioned. Or if it was a firmer feeling more between the legs and towards the chest it could have been another reproductive problem.

Nothing in the compost pile caused that.

If you feed too much scratch and carbs the extra weight can cause problems. Fatty liver/liver hemorrhage. And can take up space they need to easily lay their eggs, especially if a reproductive infection is brewing and they also have inflammation.

Most of the older hens I've lost have been due to reproductive problems as they age. I frequently feel their abdomen for swelling when I tuck them in for the night and keep an eye on any soft shell eggs or vent discharge.

Many times if you catch it early you can treat it.

 

[Kiki]

If you feed too much scratch and carbs the extra weight can cause problems.

^^^ Is so true.

Almost all of these type illnesses can be caused by overweightness.
Notice how weight...and diet are mentioned in almost all of these topics:

https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/disorders-of-the-reproductive-system-in-poultry