Rhodie is listless, tail feathers down

[fiddlebanshee]

Sounds to me as if she has some extra weight in her lower abdomen, like my pullet had. Feel her abdomen for a mass. She may be laying internally, which explains the tail down. Did you see her lay any eggs recently?

 

[Romanov]

Thanks. No she has not laid any eggs recently. What should I do? Wouldn't the vet have known that?

 

[fiddlebanshee]

I'm not sure. Is the vet an avian or poultry specialist or an all-round pet vet? If the latter, he/she may not be familiar with specific issues in egg-laying species.

Another tell tale sign of internal laying is a "penguin-like" stance, more upright than normal chickens because they have that extra weight at their bottom and it drags their behind down. My hen couldn't keep her balance in the end, and leaned on her tail to stay upright. She could not roost.

Eventually an internal layer will die because that egg-mass starts restricting other organs and bodily functions. My hen stopped eating, except when I forced her and when I did an autopsy she barely had any meat left on her. Internal laying is also irreversibly, there is no cure and if you suspect this is what she has, it might be a consideration to have her euthanized, and then do a necropsy to determine what she had.

 

[Romanov]

Thank you Fiddlebanshee. I just came back from the coop and you are correct. Your descriptive of a 'penguin-like' stance is a perfect fit. I can see the extra weight around her bottom.

I live in a rural area on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state. The vet here does treat all kinds of animals, horses, cattle, sheep, etc., but is not a chicken expert. Anyway he gave her a shot of penicillin last Tuesday, April 9, 2013. The penicillin is a 2 week long emitter.

She cannot get on the roost. She tried again last night and so I put up there.

We have had these 6 chickens for 3 years and have not had anything like this occur. I am not sure what could have caused it. I understand it is not reversible no matter what we do. Is that correct?
I guess we will have to make a decision. Fortunately the other chickens are not picking on or at her.

This is the first time we have had chickens. It has been a learning journey. I am grateful for this web site and thankful to all who have responded.

Thank you again Fiddlebanshee.

My best to all.
Romanov

 

[fiddlebanshee]

Yes, if that's what it is, it can take another several months for it to become so severe that she'll die, or you can euthanize her now. Penecillin will not do anything for it, unless she developed a co-infection - yolk perionitis (sp?), which is a possibility. But she would still have the internal laying issue which cannot be cured. You'll have to make the call when her quality of life is so dimished that it is not humane any more to keep her alive.

My other chickens started attacking my sick hen only towards the very end. She was very sick and listless by then, lost a ton of weight and would just sit in the nest box, and while she would eat when I offered she would not get up and go to the feeder herself. When I necropsied her she had only 1/8" of flesh on her breast.

Older hens are more likely to get this. Mine was an exception, she was only 9 months old.

 

[ronnee27]

Thanks for all your replies, I tried everything my rhode island red was ill for over three weeks i hand fed her and gave her water through a syringe, i did everything any one advised vets, books and this forum the last thing I tried was from a book (starting with chickens by Katie Thear) sour crop - epsom salts (diluted 1 teaspoon to a glass left overnight then one teaspoon to chicken for two days) and natural yogart mixed with food, within a few hours she was on her feet I couldnt believe it and by the afternoon she was feeding herself, she had sat with eye closed for three weeks and yesterday she was out scratching around and laying in the sun. Thank you again

 

[nestleaver1]

Yippeeee!
It's so great when they get better and you can see they are happy again. Just wish we could tell WHAT it was that worked or whether she would have got better all by herself. We end up trying everything so who knows what did the good?
You must be so relieved,
Nestleaver1 x

 

[Romanov]

Hi Ronnee27. I am so glad your chick is better.

Our Rhodie is better too. She was able to get on the roost Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday by herself. Last night she needed a little assistance. She is eating and scratching and drinking water. Her stance is not totally normal but better. We are taking one day at a time and watching her and hoping that she will get back to normal. She has not laid any eggs since this started.

We named her Sonja as in Sonja Henie, get it - HENie

Best regards,
Romanov

 

[QuistchaChicken]

Have you felt her crop in the morning before she eats anything? If it is impacted then you will feel a lump on the top left of her chest. Normally the flat in the morning is flat then fills up as they eat. This can be caused by tangled grass or by gluten gathering from their food. This is a major evolutionary flaw in birds: there are no digestive enzymes in the crop so if something backs up here, it's not going to move by itself.
IF there is a lump there in the morning, you will need to break it up. This can be done by physically squishing the lump with your fingers (the windpipe is in the same area so be careful not to squish that!). Adding some proteolytic enzymes helps to break down the gluten and these are naturally present in pineapple, papaya and (I found out yesterday) kiwi fruits. My chicken was listless, tail down and reluctant to eat but no chicken can resist a mealworm so I pulped up some pineapple and kiwi with some mealworms, barley grains (less gluten than wheat) and her favourite budgie seed mix. Leave it to absorb for a while so she cannot help eating some juice. She might take little bits of fruit anyway if she fancies it. I did this over 2 days with crop massage as well. Put olive oil in the mix too, if you want. Try to get her to eat some before she goes to sleep and mush up the crop lump as much as you can. It can feel pretty solid and takes a bit of effort to squeeze it.
IF your chicken has a gluten impaction, this should clear it without needing to make her sick or using surgery.
I hope this is useful,
A chicken with her tail down is a sad, sad thing.
Good luck,
Kate

Did you mean to say 'top left of her chest'? Because isn't the crop on the right? My girl does have a hard lump on the top left, but the bulging crop is on the right. Thanks.

 

[nestleaver1]

Sorry, you're right, top RIGHT is the crop side, lump on the left as well as the bulging crop could be something else.
Apologies, I was facing the chicken!
All the best, Kate