Sick 1.5 year old hen help—what to do next?

[SrirachaSpice]

My lead hen who was sick a few months ago is acting odd again; I treated the flock with corid and VetRx back in September but for the past few weeks Salt has been slower, eating less, and while she can walk normally has lost her balance and fallen when we put her down from being held and when she tries to jump up on their perch at night. She still pecks the chickens who bother her and has most of her personality still but it quieter and makes a chirping sound when she’s trying to sleep and other chickens touch her. Her comb is darker than normal (maroon as opposed to bright red). I isolated her in September for treatment but being back with the flock seems to make her happier and none of the other chickens have shown any symptoms so she is currently with everyone else.

She seems much sleepier and lost a lot of weight but recently has been more willing to eat whereas before she wasn’t. Her crop is smaller but feels normal/not squishy though not as hard as before she got sick. I just started the flock on a dewormer mixed in with their layer feed but I’m unsure if it will help as I could not see worms in their poop. Any advice is much appreciated! I am in New England in the USA.

 

[nuthatched]

What is there diet?
Vetrx is just a placebo, it won't treat anything.
What wormer and how much?

 

[SrirachaSpice]

What is there diet?
Vetrx is just a placebo, it won't treat anything.
What wormer and how much?

They eat layer feed supplemented with mealworms, cracked corn, mixed vegetable scraps and occasional leftover meat. I’m using the SafeGuard 0.5 Fenbendazole sold at Tractor Supply, it’s in pellet form and I crushed it up to mix with their layer feed in an approximate 0.25g for 5lbs of feed.

 

[2iceblest]

My lead hen who was sick a few months ago is acting odd again; I treated the flock with corid and VetRx back in September but for the past few weeks Salt has been slower, eating less, and while she can walk normally has lost her balance and fallen when we put her down from being held and when she tries to jump up on their perch at night. She still pecks the chickens who bother her and has most of her personality still but it quieter and makes a chirping sound when she’s trying to sleep and other chickens touch her. Her comb is darker than normal (maroon as opposed to bright red). I isolated her in September for treatment but being back with the flock seems to make her happier and none of the other chickens have shown any symptoms so she is currently with everyone else.

She seems much sleepier and lost a lot of weight but recently has been more willing to eat whereas before she wasn’t. Her crop is smaller but feels normal/not squishy though not as hard as before she got sick. I just started the flock on a dewormer mixed in with their layer feed but I’m unsure if it will help as I could not see worms in their poop. Any advice is much appreciated! I am in New England in the USA. View attachment 3714705

Have you looked into Chickenlandia’s suggestions?
Dalia says to use the REST method. Remove her and bring her inside. Feed raw egg yolk via a syringe, and she suggests different natural remedies for different issues.
Well worth your time.

 

[lagrange chicks]

Her crop looks really large.

 

[SrirachaSpice]

Her crop looks really large.

She’s just puffed up in those pictures, she also normally doesn’t puff up much outside of sleep.

 

[SrirachaSpice]

Have you looked into Chickenlandia’s suggestions?
Dalia says to use the REST method. Remove her and bring her inside. Feed raw egg yolk via a syringe, and she suggests different natural remedies for different issues.
Well worth your time.

Thank you, I’ll take a look! I’ve avoided syringe feeding because I’ve heard it can be dangerous. Is Chickenlandia a person on BYC or a separate website?

 

[nuthatched]

They eat layer feed supplemented with mealworms, cracked corn, mixed vegetable scraps and occasional leftover meat. I’m using the SafeGuard 0.5 Fenbendazole sold at Tractor Supply, it’s in pellet form and I crushed it up to mix with their layer feed in an approximate 0.25g for 5lbs of feed.

You're actually not Supplementing the feed with all those extras, you're taking proper nutrition away from the feed. Since they fill up on the treats first and don't eat the nutritious feed.
Dosage is important with medicine, the pelleted version will not give your birds the proper dose, you need to get the liquid formulation and dose accordingly directly with syringe or bread ball

 

[Tonyroo]

You should check your feed and surrounding area for mold growth. Chickens that accidentally ingest mold exhibit similar symptoms.

 

[Debbie292d]

Thank you, I’ll take a look! I’ve avoided syringe feeding because I’ve heard it can be dangerous. Is Chickenlandia a person on BYC or a separate website?

I have no idea who or what that is and in all of this time, I've never even heard of it. I wouldn't listen to third-party advice without a link to back it up. You're here getting help from members that are from BYC.