Rooster puffed up

[Wyorp Rock]

It appears he may have injured his foot or leg. He doesn't care for walking on it. I didn't see anything obvious with the foot and leg. He also shakes his head a little like he might have an ear infection or something.

He is 31 weeks old.

The droppings appear normal but they have a slightly green tint to them, which he has been eating grass from free ranging. It seems like there is alot less poop than what I figured would be in the cage. He also eats a starter grower feed.

He still hasn't pooped much at all. I'm talking like almost nothing. Would that be because he hasn't been eating? I haven't seen him eat anything yet. Maybe a crop problem?

Tail is down. He is a little better at standing and walking.

Please post some photos of the cockerel and his poop. If you feel his leg is injured then post some photos of that too.

Check his crop first thing in the morning before he's had anything to eat/drink, it should be empty/flat.

Shaking of the head - look in his ears for infection and check him really well for lice/mites.

Was he vaccinated for Marek's? It's a possibility this could be his issue, but check him out really well.

 

[JDGreene]

I think I was feeling a bone in his chest instead of the crop so the crop must be empty. He is eating a little and drinking and there is very little poo. I guess he is just not eating much instead of having an impacted crop as I thought. Here is his poo.

Here he is in the cage and you can see how little he has pooed since yesterday. I cleaned up the floor yesterday and there was about the same amount of poo from the day before.

 

[JDGreene]

He seems to be a bit better than before and he holds his tail up a bit higher. He was sorta holding his tail way down almost hunched over like a dog with its tail between its legs.

I cannot see any mites, lice, or any bugs on him or his ears. I've looked several times. The ears are very hard to look into, maybe I'm missing them. Here are some pics of various places.

 

[JDGreene]

Ears

 

[JDGreene]

I think I may have found why his foot bothers him. Is this scaley leg mites?
His left leg is on the left side of the pics.

 

[JDGreene]

He was not vacinated for Mareks nor any of my other chickens. He doesn't shake his head constantly. He started out doing that but now the head shaking has slacked off. Also I don't think his leg or foot is a neurological problem but I really don't know. All of my other chickens are fine and dandy. I have 7 other hens and 12 pullets.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Can you take a sample of his poop for testing of Coccidiosis and worms?

If not, then I would consider treating for both. Corid and Safeguard can both be found at Tractor Supply.

Dose for Liquid Corid is 2 teaspoons per gallon of water or Powdered Corid is 1 1/2 teaspoon per gallon of water. Give for 5-7 days as the only source of drinking water.
Don't add anything else to the water except for Corid.

Safeguard dose is 0.23ml per pound of weight given orally once a day for 5 days in a row.

I would make sure he's drinking the Corid water really well and eating his normal feed. You can give him some extra protein like egg, meat or fish to give him a boost as well.

I don't really see anything wrong with the scales of his legs/feet except they are dry. You can apply a little vaseline to his legs to help condition them. If there are SLM, the vaseline will smother them.

Looks like he still has some pin feathers coming in around his head, so that may be why he's shaking his head every once in a while.

For easier cleanup in the cage, I like to line the bottom with puppy pads or you can put a little straw or shavings to help absorb his droppings.

 

[JDGreene]

I actually was treating for coccidiosis when he starting acting sick. I almost think he had a thiamine deficiency from it, but none of my other hens were affected. Maybe he drank more or something.

I do have reoccuring problems with worms and it hasn't really been that long since I dewormed my flock. Maybe 2 months ago.

I have also looked in the coop at night for mites and I've never seen any.

I am still wandering about that small lump that I feel in the center of his breast about where the crop should be. I picked up one of my hens in midday and found the same lump and she didn't have a crop that I could feel. What else is in that area? It is a hard lump that I can move left and right a little but not up and down.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I actually was treating for coccidiosis when he starting acting sick. I almost think he had a thiamine deficiency from it, but none of my other hens were affected. Maybe he drank more or something.

I do have reoccuring problems with worms and it hasn't really been that long since I dewormed my flock. Maybe 2 months ago.

I have also looked in the coop at night for mites and I've never seen any.

I am still wandering about that small lump that I feel in the center of his breast about where the crop should be. I picked up one of my hens in midday and found the same lump and she didn't have a crop that I could feel. What else is in that area? It is a hard lump that I can move left and right a little but not up and down.

If you were giving the correct dose of Corid and only treating for 5-7 days it's very doubtful that he has a Thiamine deficiency unless his diet was poor before that.

The crop is on the right side of the breast. Are you feeling the crop or his Clavicle?

What did you de-worm him with and the dosage?

It would be worth checking his crop to make sure it's emptying overnight. Even when empty/flat you should be able to feel the "pouch".

 

[JDGreene]

Ha. I really don't know what I'm feeling but it seems to be about half the size of a golf ball and roundish, may be the pouch. I've never really squeezed a crop before. He pecks a little at some food but not like he normally would eat so I don't know if his crop is going to be noticeable. I check for the crop a few times per day and all I can find is that small lump. I may grab a hen tomorrow night and practice my crop grabbing.

I dewormed the whole flock with 0.23ml of Safeguard per lb, then repeated in 10 days. He does seem to be getting better. He is walking around pretty good now and If I let him out of the cage for a minute, he wants to explore and fly up on stuff. Still not much poop at this point.