Red Star Problem!

[tedln]

We bought six Red Star hybrids at eighteen weeks of age as reliable egg producers. All six chickens were very different from each other in size and color. I suspect all six came from different broods and may be a couple of weeks different in age. After having them for two weeks separated from our other chickens, they have all begun to fill out nicely and most have developed a standard red color. Two have started laying eggs. One of the six has seemed puny and off breed from the first day. She was considerably smaller but has gained weight. Her color was a very light orange, but has begun developing a slightly darker color. Her comb is more like the Wyandotte rose comb instead of the full, red comb of the other Red Stars. She is very lethargic and can often be found lying in a corner of the coop with her head under her wings. If she is standing, she usually has her eyes closed and her beak is open. Her beak is double the normal length of the other Red Stars. She will sometimes be standing and suddenly emit a single loud cluck or chirp as if responding to a sudden pain. We haven't been able to see any single symptom of a problem like worms in her poop or mites on her feathers. We have never observed any of the other chickens paying any attention to her at all much less harming her in any way, We will probably separate her from the other chickens to a single pet carrier and see if she improves alone. I have no idea what her problem is and no idea what to do for her. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

She looks so miserable most days, I've thought of putting her out of her misery; but would prefer to help her have a decent chicken life.

Thanks

Ted

 

[Chick Charm]

Give her some yogurt along with her normal feed. Give her some vitamin water and see what happens. Keep her separate for a day or two to see how she comes along. I had this in a chicken that last a couple of months. After babying her for a while she recovered quite nicely.

Wish ya the best.

 

[tedln]

Give her some yogurt along with her normal feed. Give her some vitamin water and see what happens. Keep her separate for a day or two to see how she comes along. I had this in a chicken that last a couple of months. After babying her for a while she recovered quite nicely.

Wish ya the best.

Thank you! We give our chickens yogurt once a week but I don't know if she has ever pushed her way through to the dish and eaten any. Maybe she will if she is alone. I don't know what "vitamin water" is. Is there a recipe for it? We will be adding wormer medication to her water on Saturday. We usually worm our chickens on the first day of each month. I am feeding them the wild game pellets right now with 20% protein to kinda jump start their growth and strength. They get some grass and garden greens on a regular basis. Oyster shell and grit is available when needed. I can't think of anything else I can do for them.

Ted

 

[Puddin Fluff]

Thank you! We give our chickens yogurt once a week but I don't know if she has ever pushed her way through to the dish and eaten any. Maybe she will if she is alone. I don't know what "vitamin water" is. Is there a recipe for it? We will be adding wormer medication to her water on Saturday. We usually worm our chickens on the first day of each month. I am feeding them the wild game pellets right now with 20% protein to kinda jump start their growth and strength. They get some grass and garden greens on a regular basis. Oyster shell and grit is available when needed. I can't think of anything else I can do for them.

Ted

You can buy Poly-vita-sol liquid vitamens at any pharmacy, wal-mart etc. It is an over the counter childrens liquid vitamen.

Good luck.

 

[redrstr29]

hmmmm have you looked up gape worm, sometimes they make that noise with out doing a funny neck twist, also you mentioned her beak is longer the the others,,,, do you mean the top beak is longmaybe she cant eat because of it, if thats the case it can be trimmed, I have 30 red stars I bough this spring at POL pullets, someof mine came debeaked

, hope she gets better, but I would def, worm her, usually worms are not present in the stool until they are completely infested and by then it might be too late!!

Aldo

 

[Chick Charm]

Tedln I'm sure everything will work out well. I would like to recommend that you take them off the game bird feed asap and put them on a layer pellet. Layer pellets give the chickens what the need for the most part. You are wise to make sure they are getting grass and greens as this can add UP-TO 40% of their diet. In the spring especially the growth of green plants has more protein than at other times. And I would not personally ever worm once a month. Once or twice a year if you need to. That is just my viewpoint. But remember worming is not just like taking a tylenol. It kills the worms and then that toxicity has to be expelled. Perhaps a good healthy regime of DE mixed in with their feed. DE is used by most commercial growers just for this reason. DE is preventative so don't think that I am suggesting it take the place of a wormer but it WILL help and that is why it is used in chicken factories.

Wish ya the best.

 

[Chick Charm]

Valbezan is a wormer that will kill them all if you are unsure. It is available online and at some feed stores.

 

[tedln]

hmmmm have you looked up gape worm, sometimes they make that noise with out doing a funny neck twist, also you mentioned her beak is longer the the others,,,, do you mean the top beak is longmaybe she cant eat because of it, if thats the case it can be trimmed, I have 30 red stars I bough this spring at POL pullets, someof mine came debeaked

, hope she gets better, but I would def, worm her, usually worms are not present in the stool until they are completely infested and by then it might be too late!!

Aldo

I'm considering the possibility of gapeworm and I have been studying the wormers available for gapeworm. Her beak doesn't look deformed in any way, only very large when compared to the other red star chickens. She simply looks like she somehow became genetically mixed up when the parent birds were bred to create the hybrid red star. Her head is on a shorter neck, closer to her body than the others. Her color is closer to the buff color in the Buff Orpington chickens than Red Star chickens. Her tail feathers are a little longer than the other chickens and she carries them pointed down rather than up like the other Red Stars. I'm hoping when and if we are able to fix her health problems, her oddities in comparison with the other chickens will disappear.

Thanks

Ted

 

[tedln]

Chickcharm,

Thank you for your reply. I don't intend keeping the chickens on the game bird feed and will revert to layer pellets ASAP. I just wanted them to have some extra protein in their feed. The layer pellets around here are 16% while the game bird pellets are 20%. My garden is going gang busters and our chickens will soon have a varied diet of healthy garden vegetables ranging from swiss chard to tomatoes and cucumbers with a few others thrown in for good measure. We eat or give away the prettiest veggies and the chickens get the ones that are not so pretty. I don't give them anything rotten or spoiled.

The grower we acquired our original Silver laced Wyandottes from suggested worming them monthly with Wazine 17. After doing some research, I've decided monthly is way to much. I want to use something on a regular basis as a preventative. It doesn't make sense to me to wait until they are excreting worms to address the potential problem.

I will research the Valbezan and see if it can be obtained locally.

Thanks again.

Ted

 

[tedln]

Okay,, Blondie (her name because she is so light colored) was put into a large pet carrier yesterday after dusting her lightly with sevin. She got fresh water, crumbles, yogurt, a soft straw bed and a cover, She looked very cozy. I also used a broad spectrum wormer named Ivermectin which kills internal and external parasites. I used it because my local feed store carries it and I like the fact that four drops administered on her bare skin between her shoulders is the treatment method. I wasn't sure she would make it through the night, but by this afternoon she seems to have recovered some strength and vigor. She is eating well and I haven't noticed the sound of pain or choking she was making. In a week, if all goes well; she will rejoin the flock. I used some drastic measures with the sevin and wormer to save her and hope in the future good food, fresh veggies, yogurt, clean, dry quarters, good ventilation, DE and TLC will keep her and the flock healthy.

Thanks

Ted