Please help me with my sick girl

[Wyorp Rock]

That was very interesting. So much to know, it’s nice to have those resources to reference. I am really going to study those pictures. We actually both thought the liver was the lungs, so I misspoke earlier.

So, should the gizzard have been that compacted? My husband said he did not see any grit in the contents.

Also, would the yeasty smell from the crop and gizzard indicate sour crop, or is that normal? I’m also very curious about the odd mustard yellow colored fluid that was showing when cutting into the crop and on the vent. Thank you

Oh, I can see where you might think the liver was the lungs, but chickens have very small lungs which are attached to the ribcage along the spine. Chickens have 9 air sacs which, if you will, act like bellows to pump in air which is circulated through the lungs. There's a video of that too, if you're interested.

I've always found some food/material in the gizzard, so it's hard to know whether it was compacted or in the normal stage of having food in it for processing. Since you detected a sour odor from the crop and gizzard, yes, I would assume sour crop.

Still don't know what the mustard colored fluid is, hopefully others will chime in.

 

[Tumbleweedlynn]

Oh, I can see where you might think the liver was the lungs, but chickens have very small lungs which are attached to the ribcage along the spine. Chickens have 9 air sacs which, if you will, act like bellows to pump in air which is circulated through the lungs. There's a video of that too, if you're interested.

I've always found some food/material in the gizzard, so it's hard to know whether it was compacted or in the normal stage of having food in it for processing. Since you detected a sour odor from the crop and gizzard, yes, I would assume sour crop.

Still don't know what the mustard colored fluid is, hopefully others will chime in.

I’ll have to spend some time on YouTube, those videos are really cool and very informative. I never spent much time researching the inside of the chicken . Thank you for responding

 

[Tumbleweedlynn]

@azygous @Eggcessive @coach723 your thoughts please on the necropsy pics, I would appreciate it greatly

 

[Eggcessive]

I thought the gizzard looked rather impacted. The yellow stuff reminded me of droppings I have seen here of chickens with egg yolk peritonitis, E.coli, or ascites. Did the yellow come out of the crop? Do your chickens have granite poultry grit available? The liver looks a bit discolored, and as Wyorp Rock said, that can be from fatty liver, liver disease, or aflatoxin poisoning. Did the intestines all look healthy? I am not the best at necropsies, but I do them when I lose a chicken. Sometimes I am unable to know what was wrong.

 

[Tumbleweedlynn]

I thought the gizzard looked rather impacted. The yellow stuff reminded me of droppings I have seen here of chickens with egg yolk peritonitis, E.coli, or ascites. Did the yellow come out of the crop? Do your chickens have granite poultry grit available? The liver looks a bit discolored, and as Wyorp Rock said, that can be from fatty liver, liver disease, or aflatoxin poisoning. Did the intestines all look healthy? I am not the best at necropsies, but I do them when I lose a chicken. Sometimes I am unable to know what was wrong.

Thank you. The yellow came out of the crop when it was cut open, it was also on the vent, after it was skinned. They basically live in grit, as dirt is their floor in the run and outside, but I also do provide oyster shell and ground up eggshells. I’ve seen them eating little pebbles in the dirt. My husband said the intestines were empty. I appreciate your input, and I’m sorry to have bothered you so hard I’m hoping someone could see something here and know definitively what did her in. Maybe I’ll just be happy to have had her and be glad she’s not suffering . Spent all day with my flock watching every one of them, but they all look good. Thanks again!

 

[leghornman1]

My cutie Wewe has been off to me for a couple months now, but has been eating, drinking, laying eggs and free ranging under supervision, all the normal behaviors. But I did post awhile back asking anyone if it’s normal for her eyes to always be half open, but never got a response. Her eyes look like cheech or Chong.
I went to get eggs this morning and she was in the coop on a perch. She never lets me hold her, she is usually pretty skittish, but I walked right up to her and picked her up. Now I know it’s serious. She’s lethargic, can’t keep her eyes open, and her breathing seems labored. She won’t stand up, I put her in a crate and she just layed how I set her. I gave her some nutridrench and water, and have offered eggs and treats, but she’s not interested. Everyone else seems active and fine, this one has seemed off for a couple months but was still active. She is now laying on my lap. I know this is all very vague, but any suggestions? I’ve checked her all over and felt nothing unusual. Thank you in advance.View attachment 3383821View attachment 3383822

Well I'm no expert but if you can keep her out of the cold give her a nice soak in Epsom salt and see if that perks her up then try to get some water in her with an eye dropper and give her some cat food brought my hen around good luck to you

 

[Tumbleweedlynn]

Well I'm no expert but if you can keep her out of the cold give her a nice soak in Epsom salt and see if that perks her up then try to get some water in her with an eye dropper and give her some cat food brought my hen around good luck to you

She passed.

 

[leghornman1]

She passed.

I'm sorry unfortunately you'll have that sometimes I'm sure you did the best you could for her if you live in a cold climate like I do and she was a pet and you want to give her a proper burial seal her in a garbage bag and keep her outside up off the ground till the ground thaws

 

[coach723]

I'm sorry, I'm very late here. Been off line for a week or so (?) due to technical issues and serious over scheduling (!!), so am very behind.

I'm very sorry you lost your hen. The liver was the thing that most leaped out at me as being abnormal, and all sorts of things can cause that. If you lose another one with similar symptoms I would recommend a professional necropsy so they can do labs to test for various virus's and bacteria, which can cause similar enough symptoms to be impossible to know for sure without the labs. Especially in such a young bird. Sometimes it's the only way to know for sure what you are dealing with. The gizzard does look very full, but hard to say if it was impacted or that whatever was going on caused her to just stop digesting, often a very sick birds digestive tract will sometimes just slow or stop, and that may be a symptom of something else rather than the main problem. It might be a good idea to provide some grit (crushed granite) as well, just to be safe. A small bag isn't expensive, see if it gets used over time. I buy large bags and they last me quite a long time. That would be a simple thing to be sure that they are getting enough, and ensure that is not any contributor to any issues.
Sometimes necropsy shows the issue very obviously, but sometimes it does not. With the liver looking like that, something definitely was wrong. It did not look like the fatty liver diseased birds I've had, but that's not a definitive answer.
I'm attaching another necropsy manual, with pictures, might be helpful in the future, at least with some idea where things are located and what normal generally looks like.

 

[Tumbleweedlynn]

I'm sorry, I'm very late here. Been off line for a week or so (?) due to technical issues and serious over scheduling (!!), so am very behind.

I'm very sorry you lost your hen. The liver was the thing that most leaped out at me as being abnormal, and all sorts of things can cause that. If you lose another one with similar symptoms I would recommend a professional necropsy so they can do labs to test for various virus's and bacteria, which can cause similar enough symptoms to be impossible to know for sure without the labs. Especially in such a young bird. Sometimes it's the only way to know for sure what you are dealing with. The gizzard does look very full, but hard to say if it was impacted or that whatever was going on caused her to just stop digesting, often a very sick birds digestive tract will sometimes just slow or stop, and that may be a symptom of something else rather than the main problem. It might be a good idea to provide some grit (crushed granite) as well, just to be safe. A small bag isn't expensive, see if it gets used over time. I buy large bags and they last me quite a long time. That would be a simple thing to be sure that they are getting enough, and ensure that is not any contributor to any issues.
Sometimes necropsy shows the issue very obviously, but sometimes it does not. With the liver looking like that, something definitely was wrong. It did not look like the fatty liver diseased birds I've had, but that's not a definitive answer.
I'm attaching another necropsy manual, with pictures, might be helpful in the future, at least with some idea where things are located and what normal generally looks like.

Thank you so much for your input. Thankfully, that has been the first pullet that we’ve lost. I will save the manual so we have something to reference in the future. Did the mustard yellow stuff stick out to you as unusual? Thanks so much !