Sick bird

[ladyhawkjj]

My almost two year old RIR is very sick. Very pale comb, lethargic, still eats a little, not much. Haven't seen her drink. This morning very weak, fading fast. Turned her upside down to check for mites, none. But then she had a bunch of discharge from nose and eyes that we hadn't seen before. I really thought it was mites. Any help is appreciated .

 

[Eggcessive]

It could be a respiratory disease such as mycoplasma, coryza, ILT, infectious bronchitis, or aspergillosis. Secondary infections can also be common with all of those. Make sure that she drinks some water, and adding some SaveAChick electrolytes may help. Be sure and feel of her crop to make sure it is not sour or impacted, and check in the early morning to make sure it is empty. It should be partially full if she has eaten, and if a bird is turned upside down or leaned over, they can regurgitate crop contents. Some people cull birds with respiratory diseases, so they don't spread to the whole flock, but some will use an antibiotic such as Tylan 50 or oxytetracycline to treat bacterial diseases. Here is some reading about the various diseases, and and links in case she dies to obtain a necropsy to find out what disease she had:
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps044
http://www.metzerfarms.com/PoultryLabs.cfm
http://www.usaha.org/Portals/6/StateAnimalHealthOfficials.pdf

 

[ladyhawkjj]

Ok, I think you were spot on, that she was regurgitating. She has no discharge. I tried to give her cooked oatmeal, and tuna, no go. She did eat about 20 mealyworms. Won't drink. If her comb gets any paler it will be white. Will check the coop late tonight for red mites.

 

[Eggcessive]

Has she molted recently? Mites can leave brown specks at the base of feathers, and both permethrin or sevin dust can be applied at 7 day intervals to control them. If you find mites, the coop will need to be emptied and treated. She really need to start drinking some fluids, or she may need to be tube fed. Check out the "go team tube feeding" thread by googling or doing a search at the top of this page. Has she laid an egg recently? You can check for egg binding with a finger inserted an inch or two inside her vent. I hope you can check her out to find what is wrong. A vet familiar with chickens would be good to consult if possible.

 

[ladyhawkjj]

Ok, so no red mites, no signs of worms, not egg bound. But, while I was checking her for egg bound I realized she had a lot of pin feathers. So yes molt. However most of the 11 other girls molted, none like this. She did drink some before going in the coop last night. She's still on her feet. I just gave her a good handful of mealy worms, and she is eating them. Could molt be this bad?

 

[Eggcessive]

Are the pin feathers just in one area, like she has been pecked by the others? Hopefully, she is just completing her molt, but keep an eye out for others picking on her, which can happen to lower pecking order chickens. I have noticed occasionally, that a chicken that age can show symptoms of a reproductive disorder. They may stop laying, lay thin shelled eggs, eat very little and lose weight through the breastbone area, and be a bit lethargic. Some chickens with internal laying or egg yolk peritonitis can have a swollen lower belly, sometimes with fluid or egg masses inside. Many times, treating a hen like yours, has to be done by ruling out everything else. Lice, mites, worms, poor immunity to coccidia in the soil, crop problems, and reproductive disorders are many of the common things to look for or treat. You can sometimes talk your regular vet into checking a few droppings for cocci and worms. Vet care is good if available, but sometimes too expensive for many of us.

 

[ladyhawkjj]

Well my poor girl passed yesterday. That was a long battle of ups and downs, mostly downs. Never figured out what was the problem. The evening before she passed, I had put her in one of the laying boxes and the rooster came into the coop. Way before he normally does. The next morning when all the other girls went out, and he's usually the first, he stayed in the coop. I was scared he was starting to come down with whatever she had. Now I believe he knew she was going and just wanted to stay with her. He's fine now. Sad to see her go, but glad she's at peace.

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry about your hen passing. She is not suffering now. It is amazing to see other animals sense that a flockmate is ill, and want to spend time with them. I have seen it a few times as well.