Hi BYC peeps! Need your advice.
We have a 2yo RIR hen, who upon return from a 2 week vacation is now looking very sick. Droopy comb, sleepy eyes, lethargic, still eating, swollen vent is whitish/pink in color. Infrequent pooping, is coming out in little balls, she seems to be struggling with the pooping and she seems like she has not been laying for awhile. We are not sure how long she has been like this, perhaps a week (our friend only came to take care of water and feed).
They did not get a lot of grass because they did not free range during this period. It has also been raining almost everyday.
This hen has previously had a scary bout with coccidosis which we treated with Sulmet. While some of her symptoms seem similar to cocci, it seems she is either eggbound or constipated, and the swollen vent is a new thing for us.
We did a warm bath, massage of the vent. Did not feel an egg but I could have missed it. She had some matted poop/featers are her vent which she hasn't had before.
I'm figuring they didnt' get much dirt bathing in because their favorite spot is outside of their run, in the flower bed. All of our 3 hens have a bit of matting going on which is unusual. They also do not like to roost much, preferring to sleep on the coop floor - they have done this for almost 2 years without incident.
Thank you for any help you can provide, Eleanor will appreciate it!
Best,
Steve
We have a 2yo RIR hen, who upon return from a 2 week vacation is now looking very sick. Droopy comb, sleepy eyes, lethargic, still eating, swollen vent is whitish/pink in color. Infrequent pooping, is coming out in little balls, she seems to be struggling with the pooping and she seems like she has not been laying for awhile. We are not sure how long she has been like this, perhaps a week (our friend only came to take care of water and feed).
They did not get a lot of grass because they did not free range during this period. It has also been raining almost everyday.
This hen has previously had a scary bout with coccidosis which we treated with Sulmet. While some of her symptoms seem similar to cocci, it seems she is either eggbound or constipated, and the swollen vent is a new thing for us.
We did a warm bath, massage of the vent. Did not feel an egg but I could have missed it. She had some matted poop/featers are her vent which she hasn't had before.
I'm figuring they didnt' get much dirt bathing in because their favorite spot is outside of their run, in the flower bed. All of our 3 hens have a bit of matting going on which is unusual. They also do not like to roost much, preferring to sleep on the coop floor - they have done this for almost 2 years without incident.
Thank you for any help you can provide, Eleanor will appreciate it!
Best,
Steve
Last edited: