Sick 5 week old Barred Rock

[lbrochu]

5 week old Barred Rock. Its been 4 days since she was at the bottom of the coop not responding or moving. I picked her up and she was very cold to touch, lethargic looking and having a difficult time standing, holding up her head. I immediately got a heating pad on her and noticed that she was producing very thick amounts of saliva in her mouth, drooling. I helped remove what I could in hopes it would help however it has not. We've looked in her throat to rule out obstructions and saw nothing. We've done the tip upside down method to help see if crop is impacted.. nothing. We've noticed she is very hunched together? She looks kinked? Kind of leaning to the side? Her neck doesn't extend all the way up and stays very close to her body and her tail is also down and to the side. Tonight I found a lump at the beginning of her throat? She hasn't eaten and swallowing water is very difficult for her as you can see her chest working to get it down. I asked about Gape Worm told she was to young for it and was treated at the hatchery. TSC suggested VetRx and digestive and vitamin supplements in her water. Done both. Its been touch and go. She doesn't appear to be passing anything. No one else has any of her symptoms. I haven't a clue what this could be. She also doesn't appear to be getting any bigger ? Her sisters are double her size. I'm wondering if maybe she was sick prior and we weren't aware? I've googled so many possibilities and I'm just puzzled. What does this sound like?

 

[lbrochu]

I also want to add to this. She smells awful, yeasty. I've noticed under her wings have a very pungent smell. Her skin is red and she's pulled out feathers along the top of her wings. Again, she is the only one presenting symptoms. All my other girls are very healthy and don't appear to have any issues.

 

[ChickyCh00k]

I also want to add to this. She smells awful, yeasty. I've noticed under her wings have a very pungent smell. Her skin is red and she's pulled out feathers along the top of her wings. Again, she is the only one presenting symptoms. All my other girls are very healthy and don't appear to have any issues.

Sounds like it could be a pretty bad case of sour crop. How does her crop feel? Is it squishy? Hopefully someone more experienced will chime in, but you could take a look at this article about crop issues and treatment (scroll down about until you see "Treatment for Sour Crop in Adult Birds"):

https://the-chicken-chick.com/chicken-anatomy-crop-impacted-crop-sour/

ETA: I just re-read that this is a 5-week old, so the above treatment option may not be the right way to go as it specifies it's for adults Birds.

I'll tag some ppl that might be able to help @Wyorp Rock @azygous @Eggcessive

 

[gtaus]

She also doesn't appear to be getting any bigger ? Her sisters are double her size. I'm wondering if maybe she was sick prior and we weren't aware?

Yeah, something does not sound right there. She must have been sick for some time and/or not a healthy chicken from the start to be so much smaller than her sisters.

I would immediately remove her from the flock and put her into a chicken hospital pen by herself. At some point, the other chickens will turn on her and kill her if they sense there is something wrong with her. I use a dog crate as my chicken hospital. Sometimes, just a few days away from the flock and some extra TLC with home treatments is enough for a chicken to recover.

I hope she gets better, but I hope you are able to cull her if she is suffering needlessly. I try to treat my small animals the best I can, but over the years, I have often had to take the life of an animal to end its suffering. It's part of the responsibility I assume when I decide to raise small animals. If you can't save her, I hope you can save her from suffering. Sometimes that's the best I can do for an animal in my care. Don't feel bad or guilty if that is what you decide is the best option to do. None of us are able to save all our animals.

Again, hope someone can offer better advice on treatments. I don't know what I would do for your chicken in this situation.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

@lbrochu this thread is from September, do you have any updates about your hen?

 

[gtaus]

@lbrochu this thread is from September, do you have any updates about your hen?

Right. I did not see that. This thread somehow popped up on my notifications as a new thread. I imagine the problem was solved, one way or another, a long time ago.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Right. I did not see that. This thread somehow popped up on my notifications as a new thread. I imagine the problem was solved, one way or another, a long time ago.

This happens to me all the time it seems.

Either way, it would be nice to get an update from the OP to see how this turned out