Regurgitating fluids

[RBering]

I've recently noticed my 18 month old Wyandotte regurgitates fluid when she bends down to eat. I've only noticed this in the morning (I usually give them scraps when I let them out in the morning to free range--grains, vegetables, stuff like that). She will bend over to peck at the food, but fluid will flow out. She seems to do this a few times, then the fluid stops (maybe she has drained it all?) and can start pecking.

She seems okay otherwise. And, I say "seems ok" because she is quite plump, but she always seems a bit more sluggish than my others, eyes seem to be a bit droopy and not wide open, doesn't forage as much. BUT, her sister also seems to be the same way, so I've always assumed that was breed characteristic and not sickness (my other chickens are a Barred Rock, a White Rock and three sex-link's although I don't know what their mix is).

Is this something I should be worried about?

 

[TwoCrows]

I have an IDENTICAL hen from what you described, down to the personality and actions. She too will have fluids come up when she leans over for eating and even after drinking water.

Just as your girl, she otherwise looks fine, a bit sluggish, doesn't forage as much as the others and looks a bit sleepy all the time. But she lays well, looks good and goes about her day in the normal fashion. My girl is a Black Australorp.

My girl has been doing this since she was 8 months old. She is 15 months old.

I am going to say that while it is not completely normal, I don't think it is anything to worry about. She has never shown any signs of illness related to this regurgitation thing.

Maybe someone else will chime in with more info. I have seen several other threads with the exact same question as to why they do this and is it something to worry over. So I believe this is quite a common thing.

 

[terryg]

Chickens can live with very severe ailments and look seemingly normal. I had a hen that had brown fluid come up, and weeks later, after death, I did a necropsy and discovered that she was an internal layer and that the infected fluid built up and finally came up and out. Some hens have perpetual crop problems, whether yeast infections or other issues like sour crop, and you'll have foul smelling fluid. Regurgitating is not normal. In fact, hens can't vomit. So, when stuff comes out the beak, you know there's an illness. I know that this doesn't help fix the problem (there's rarely a fix) but it might help to further figure out what is going on.