NewAtThis8
Songster
- Apr 9, 2023
- 218
- 198
- 128
I need help with a diagnosis based off of some vague symptoms. Yesterday I lost my favorite chicken but I think it was unrelated- she’s battled impacted and sour crop for the better part of a year and has had crop surgery once but never was able to fully be 100% normal for too long. Eventually she succumbed to it.
However, I have a other older hen that is showing some issues and has for the past couple of weeks I just didn’t notice it because it’s been subtle.
Started with white poo stuck to her bottom feathers. I took her inside, ran her under warm water (where she totally relaxed and closed her eyes, opened her mouth and I honestly thought she was dying but I think maybe she just liked it?) and inspected her vent which was 100% normal.
But the poo persisted- a couple days ago her comb got a bit smaller and flopped over. Today she seems a little hunched and her tail is down but it’s also been up and down in temperature and today we were back to freezing temps for half the day. I’ve seen my other hens do this and then were normal later so I’m not sure if it’s that or she’s not feeling well. I picked her up today to check out her feathers and there is some small amount of poo stick to her bottom feathers but not much, she felt nice and healthy weight-wise but she kind of smelled like ammonia.
Some other facts-
They’ve been eating Kalmbach feather fixer (20% protein) for the entire winter because of a particularly hard molt for all of them except her. She didn’t really have too bad of a time.
She’s 3. She was the only one who laid eggs all winter last year then quit in the summer and never started again except one tiny little fairy egg in October-ish and that’s it. She isn’t trying to lay or acting egg bound, I think she just got old and stopped.
Everyone else except my hen that died yesterday, and I’m 90% sure I know the cause, is fine.
I think, based on the high protein diet, white/runny poop and ammonia smell this is kidney related. But I can do all the things to rule anything else out that won’t harm them to do like deworm them- unless the treatment would stress her out further.
What do you all think? If it is kidney related and a failure due to the long term high protein diet, without laying eggs, is she doomed or can I still do something to slow the progression of failure?
Thanks in advance for your insight!
However, I have a other older hen that is showing some issues and has for the past couple of weeks I just didn’t notice it because it’s been subtle.
Started with white poo stuck to her bottom feathers. I took her inside, ran her under warm water (where she totally relaxed and closed her eyes, opened her mouth and I honestly thought she was dying but I think maybe she just liked it?) and inspected her vent which was 100% normal.
But the poo persisted- a couple days ago her comb got a bit smaller and flopped over. Today she seems a little hunched and her tail is down but it’s also been up and down in temperature and today we were back to freezing temps for half the day. I’ve seen my other hens do this and then were normal later so I’m not sure if it’s that or she’s not feeling well. I picked her up today to check out her feathers and there is some small amount of poo stick to her bottom feathers but not much, she felt nice and healthy weight-wise but she kind of smelled like ammonia.
Some other facts-
They’ve been eating Kalmbach feather fixer (20% protein) for the entire winter because of a particularly hard molt for all of them except her. She didn’t really have too bad of a time.
She’s 3. She was the only one who laid eggs all winter last year then quit in the summer and never started again except one tiny little fairy egg in October-ish and that’s it. She isn’t trying to lay or acting egg bound, I think she just got old and stopped.
Everyone else except my hen that died yesterday, and I’m 90% sure I know the cause, is fine.
I think, based on the high protein diet, white/runny poop and ammonia smell this is kidney related. But I can do all the things to rule anything else out that won’t harm them to do like deworm them- unless the treatment would stress her out further.
What do you all think? If it is kidney related and a failure due to the long term high protein diet, without laying eggs, is she doomed or can I still do something to slow the progression of failure?
Thanks in advance for your insight!
