Please help!!

[Steph D]

I have healthy chickens but I have one who has gone down. They are my pets. I know there are threads abt this and I've looked some but I am in panic now.
She started off pale. so I started feeding oatmeal in the mornings again with DE in it. She then started laying down and not moving much. I take her water and fruit and she nibles but she now has explosive diarrhea and green flies on her. I've been using citronelle diluted on her to help but now they are laying eggs on her. She's not giving up. Please help me, she is a pet!! Whats the best wormer (I always use Wazine)? What do you use for cocci?

 

[Eggcessive]

Welcome to BYC. Can you feel her crop in her right upper chest to see if it is empty, full, hard, or puffy? Then check it first thing in the morning before she eats or drinks.
Is she alert or lethargic? Has she lost weight if you pick her up and feel of her keel (breast bone?) Is her lower belly enlarged or normal? Can you look her skin over around her vent and under her wings and neck for mites or lice?

How old is she? Do you normally feed her layer feed? Does she lay eggs? I would only feed her a balanced chicken feed and some chopped egg. You can can wet the feed with some water to get her eating. If she is not drinking well, then add some electrolytes to her water, or give her 2- drops of Poultry NutriDrench daily.

DE is pretty useless in feed, since it won’t treat anything if it is wet inside the body. I don’t use it at all, since it can also cause breathing problems in you or the chickens.

 

[Steph D]

THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP! Her crop is empty and has been for a week. She loves mealworms and peaches and oatmeal but just looks at it right now. She's lethargic but is aware of everything around her. Yes, you can totally feel a lot of her breast bone. She's always been a little skinny but she's lost a lot of weight. Lower belly seems fine. No mites or lice but flies have started laying eggs on her even though I have been using natural citronelle on her.
She is 4. I feed organic layer feed. She was laying but has stopped. She and her sister are Buffs. They are the only two I have. Sunny and Hunny. I have tried boiled and scrambled eggs but she will only eat the raw fresh eggs. She grabs the cat food some too but I try not to let her. I added the rest of the electrolytes that I had to her water and now I'm out and our Tractor Supply doesn't have any so I am about to order some after you advise me of what kind. I live in a small town that has nothing for support of chickens. The vet won't even see her.
I will stop the DE now.
Last thing, she stands up and her feathers right before her tail feathers stay fluffed and her tail points down then she drops back to the ground. I have checked to make sure she's not egg bound and I keep rinsing the poop off her below her vent bc its been sticking.
She really wants to live, you can tell so I want to help her.
Again, thank you so much!!!

 

[Steph D]

Still seeking help for my chicken. I started her on SILVER and LOMATIUM ROOT and she sprung back to life but has crashed again. She's been wormed and wormed again. Electrolytes are being served fresh every day and she's on SILVER and LOMATIUM ROOT again. Its helps her but she is so weak and if she falls, she has a hard time getting up. She's nothing but skin and bones now but is eating layer pellets and mealworms. She's alert and follows her sister around when free ranging then has to sit. Could it be internal? She doesn't seem to be in any pain or to be suffering. She welcomes me to hold her and love on her.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry she is not doing well.

What did you worm her with?
Does this girl still lay eggs?
Any history of laying odd eggs?
Is her crop emptying completely overnight?

Feel the abdomen for bloat, swelling or a feeling of fluid. With her age and some of the symptoms you describe, she may have a reproductive disorder. Internal laying, Egg Yolk Peritonitis, Ascites, cancer, tumors and Salpingitis are common in laying hens.
http://www.chickenvet.co.uk/health-and-common-diseases/egg-laying-issues/index.aspx

 

[Steph D]

Thank you so much.
Pig Swig (Piperazine) is the wormer.
She did lay a couple of soft eggs before she stopped laying. Silver and Lomatium are going to kill bacteria and virus'.
No bloat anymore. For a while, her feathers just above her tail stayed puffed up. She's nothing but bones now but she does eat. It seems that her crop stays full to the right side abt the size of a golf ball. Her vent looks clean BUT a few weeks ago when this started, green flies had started laying eggs around her vent and wouldn't leave her alone. Her sister seemed to be preening the sick ones backside a lot and we bathed her to keep the eggs off.
I don't want her to suffer and will humanly euthanize her like the attachment you sent advised if I HAVE to. No animal should EVER suffer.
Thank you for the article, I'm going to research it further. Any little bit of advise helps. Seriously, thank you! <><

 

[Eggcessive]

I would keep her vent area clean with a soapy water bath and trimming any feathers that catch th droppings. Flystrike from maggot infestation is a real killer if it happens in hot weather. It does sound like she may have a reproductive problem with her age and history. Most of us who have had chickens for some time see a lot of internal lying, egg yolk peritonitis, salpingitis, oviduct cancer, and ascites in hens over 2. I usually leave them with their flock as long as they are eating and drinking, and when they seem to be suffering or other chickens start pecking them, I put them down. Here is some reading about various disorders and symptoms:
http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/egg-peritonitis

 

[Steph D]

Thank ya'll so much! It means a lot to get help!
One last question. If she dies, it will only leave Sunny. Will she be ok alone of should I find her a friend and/or get some chicks? This is the first time I have had so few chickens.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would probably look around for someone locally who may want to sell or give away extra hens this fall. Many breeders and others will try to get their numbers down heading toward winter. Get a couple if possible. What state are you in? There are multiple state threads on BYC where people can help your with that.

 

[Steph D]

South Alabama! Super small town but would travel for decent birds! I love chickens, they are huge stress relievers!!