Sick Chick New chicken owner .. any advice? Sunday: still with us!

[Elven Dreams]

Looking for advice:

Tonight when I went to put the chicks up one of them was huddled in the corner and quite listless.
I picked her up and her wings were pretty limp like they get when they over heat but it wasn't very hot out.. it had just rained a bit and was pretty cool. The others were fine.
It's a Silver Lace pullet and is almost 2 mos old. She is in a tractor with 12 other chicks the same age during the day and then in a brooder at night til I get my coop finished. They are on Southern States starter and have plenty of water.
I have her quarantined for now until I figure out what the issue is even though she's been with them all day.
I just went out to check her and she seems a little more alert. I noticed an icky looking discharge... maybe diarrhea but looked more like a light yellow puss?
Should I get some antibiotics for her? It will be in the morning until I can get to the store ... can I get anything at a feed store that will work or do I need to find a vet that will see her? (most likely NOT an option around here)

Thanks for any advice to this newbie chicken addict!

 

[DuckLady]

Is it possible an egg broke inside her or she had a soft shell egg inside and it broke? and that is the yellow pus?
Keep her separated and if you can , look aclosely at her vent to see if you see any egg membrane there. If you do, pull it out. Make sure she has planty of clean bedding and fresh water and food.

 

[threehorses]

Well it's doubtful that at 2 months she'll be laying yet.

The pus looking discharge, could that be her regular urine and urates - white and clear mixed? If you look at it, was it quite yellow? Yellow in the urates and urine can indicate a liver involvement and while you're trying to solve the mystery details such as that can be quite important. Make a note of everything going on with her.

First, I'd examine her carefully first thing in the morning. Make sure to feel her crop, if possible before she eats, and see if it emptied almost completely over night. It should have. Check her carefully all over, every literal inch of her, for any signs of lice or mites. They're nearly microscopic so check twice and for the nits (louse eggs) at the bases of the feathers as well. Then look at her vent; is there any evidence of any more discharge? Listen to her breathing at her throat/head and her chest for any wheezing. You can also use your hand to feel vibrations of any congestion or rattling. Look carefully at her nares (nostrils) and eyes. Both should be clean and free of discharge. The eye's third eyelid should be carefully tucked away so that you can't really see it.

Feel her weight; does she feel thin to you? Is her breast bone (keel bone) protruding sharply, or does it have good meat to either side? Feel her abdomen delicately for any excess mushiness or fluids.

Are they showing any signs of heat? Is the tractor in a nice cool place? do you move it around so that it's on clean ground, or is the ground they're on one that they or other chickens have spent time on? Does she seem as developed as the other birds?

If you go to the feedstore, and they give you a -mycin drug, and if you decide to use it PLEASE get the correct dosage here first rather than just hear-say. I'm not at all certain yet that this is something that an antibiotic can treat. It's nearly impossible to correctly diagnose online but we can try our best to help if you can't find a vet. If you consider an antibiotic, look at something like Tylan50 injectable (3 cc syringes (four of them) w/25 gauge needles are the appropriate tools for its usage). Or LS200, LS50. It's also good to have Sulmet or Corid around for two different purposes. Corid for coccidiosis, Sulmet for coccidiosis (8/9 species) and some respiratory illnesses. Or if you get Duramycin, get Aureomycin as well.

Don't use them yet, though.

For this hen, I would do this:
- Separate her so that you can observe her droppings specifically, so that she can eat and drink without any competition, and so if she displays contagious illness symptoms she'll already be separate.
- Make sure that she's eating and drinking. A vitamin/mineral powder in the water until you see more from her can help.. Alternately, using polyvisol baby vitamins by Enfamil (2 drops in the beak daily for a couple of days til further symptoms) might help and will help her immunity. Buy the non-iron formula - I got mine at the vitamin section in Walmart.
- Give her a teaspoon of yogurt daily until something further developes or until the end of the week. All of your other babies can get the vitamins/minerals and yogurt and it might help them fight something if they, too, are exposed to some illness.
- Make sure she is in a dry environment with lots of air ventilation.
- Check the tractor to make sure that no feed got wet and that the bedding is dry and clean. Wet conditions can trigger things like coccidiosis, bacterial problems (combined with a chill), and fungi if there's a threat of them unseen.

Let us know what you find, please, and we'll go from there. You haven't introduced any new birds lately have you? Or do you have a flock there?

 

[Elven Dreams]

Thank you!

Went out to check her this morning and she was more alert, standing and looking around. I didn't see any poops at first but she did have a runny looking one stuck to her feathers. It was normal color of green and white (normal for my chicks) She was drinking water when I went in but didn't look like she had eaten, crop felt smaller than usual.
She was more alert and didnt really want me to pick her up, which is normal... these haven't been handled as much as my other batch.

Didn't notice any breathing issues. She doesn't feel any thinner than she normally is. I think she may be my little runt chick ... I've had one that is always smaller than the rest of the SLWs but lately has been catching up in size and is harder to tell apart.. but this may be the runt.

I shook her food dish and spilled a little bit and she looked interested in that but didn't peck it.


I'm getting ready to go to the feed store & get some yogurt & vitamins too.

She is in a tractor with 12 other chicks. They get moved around daily, sometimes twice daily since its not the biggest tractor and I hate seeing them in dirty grass! They were in the shade most of the day and the tractor has boards on the top for extra shade also.

There are other chickens but they have been here since March when I first got chickens on the property.

Make sure she is in a dry environment with lots of air ventilation.
- Check the tractor to make sure that no feed got wet and that the bedding is dry and clean. Wet conditions can trigger things like coccidiosis, bacterial problems (combined with a chill), and fungi if there's a threat of them unseen.

My tractor is really just a big pen straight on the grass..no bedding... Its been pretty dry here but this past week we have been getting some rain in the afternoons. But like I said, there are boards on the top and the chicks and their area stay nearly completely dry. Just damp around the edges if the wind blows the rain in.

Gonna run and get supplies but will be back to check in. Thank you for your input!!​

 

[Elven Dreams]

The only thing the feed store had was Duramycin in a powder form. So I got some to keep on hand.
Will have to go to TSC later to see about the stuff for cocci.

Checked her a bit ago and gave her some of the vitamin drops. She seems more alert and has eaten some and is drinking water. Has some more poops that are less runny. I moved her small brooder out of the tack room under a shady tree with a nice cross breeze.

Can I trim the feathers under her vent to keep the gooey poos off? I think I read that some where as a good thing to do.

Gonna go offer her some yogurt and see how she likes it.

 

[Elven Dreams]

Just went out to check her again... she looks about the same.. not really interested in the yogurt...
I picked her up and sort of tipped her over while I was checking her vent and water? drained out of her mouth!?! She seemed a bit wheezy after that but then stopped wheezing. Is this bad??

I put her on the ground and she walked around and scratched a bit but then just sat down.

 

[JennsPeeps]

Elven Dreams, I'm so sorry to hear about your sick pullet. It sounds very dire. Good luck with her & keep us posted.

 

[Elven Dreams]

Thanks JennPeeps.. cute name by the way..

She is eating the yogurt a bit but I don't think she's doing any better... she sounds a bit wheezy now.

Should I try the antibiotics? I think I might give some in her water and see if makes a difference or not.. at this point I'm thinking it probably won't hurt to at least try them....

Can someone help me out with the dosage on this stuff? I was only able to get Duramycin in a powder form and the packet is a 10g packet.
It says for chickens 400-800mg in gallon of water daily.. how does that work out for ONE chick?

I have to make it fresh daily so don't want to waste this stuff, lol.....


Thanks again.

 

[threehorses]

She could have just had a drink and tipping her over emptied her crop. I'd just watch her crop in case it's not emptying, but it wouldn't be unusual for her to have contents in it on a hot day mid-day.

I'm glad you move the tractor around to fresh ground - that's good. The wheezy - did it just start when you tipped her? And has started again now? If you give antibiotics, it CAN hurt if it's not what they need but won't hurt immediately. Well other than diarrhea. Where it hurts is that using an antibiotic incorrectly is how resistances happen to them.

But if you try it, at least try it full strength, and you must do it for 14 straight days and keep her isolated in her own cage, preferably inside. You cannot use the yogurt and the antibiotics; you'd have to use acidophilis capsules/tablets, or Probios or something live culture (CFU on the label) for livestock from the feedstore. Yogurt and any -mycin or -cycline product don't work together as it'll make the meds not work.

Do you have VetRx? If you do, you can use that on her nares, roof of mouth, eyes to help her breathe better. If you go to TSC, and if you get antibiotics there, get Tylan50 injectable.

I'm glad to hear that she ate, though!

 

[Elven Dreams]

Thanks threehorses, that's what I was a bit worried about with the antibiotics.. I haven't given any yet since I'm still reading up on them online.

I can go to TSC in the morning, they close at 7 here.

I first noticed the wheezing after I tipped her and then when I went out to check her again she was a bit wheezy but I had moved her around a bit to trim the feathers on her bottom. She has some almost normal looking poops (normal for her) just small amounts.

She pecked at the yogurt some more and I moved her again into a more shaded area to keep her as cool as possible.

If I can get the Tylan50 where/how do you inject a chicken!?!? I can do cats dogs horses etc but wouldn't have the first clue on where to stick a chicken!

I think I'm just going to keep up with the yogurt tonight and may give her a few more drops of the vitamins tonight before bed. I'll go to TSC in the morning and see what I can find.

Thanks again guys.