Sick Chicken...don't think she's egg bound

[ctorps]

Hi Everyone,

We've had our orps for 3 years now and about to lose our second one. : (

Yesterday I noticed her comb was droopy and very pale. She also wasn't moving much at all. Here's a list of symptoms/what I have done so far...anything I am missing?

1. Got her water
2. Plenty of food with extra oyster shell
3. Treats with oyster shell
4. Separated her from our 5 other birds
5. Felt her abdomen. It feels bloated but I can't be sure. I compared her to another similar chicken and it wasn't too different.
6. She stays in a standing/crouched position. Even when she's sleeping she doesn't lay down and rest.
7. Examined her vent. I followed instructions online, went straight back 1 inch at most. Did not feel anything hard but she pooped afterwards.
8. After noticing her looking like she was going to die (she laid next to a wall and had her head under a board), I gave her an epsom salt bath.
9. Checked abdomen/vent again. She pooped again and I have noticed poop in her cage (temp to separate her from others). Still don't feel anything hard like an egg stuck inside.
10. Gave her a second epsom salt bath (on second day).
11. Poops are greenish/white/dark.

Am I missing something? Any other ideas? Her feathers look beautiful (she isn't scraggily/sick looking).

Thanks in advance!

P.s. We have never done any preventative treatment for our chickens (for eggs only, we don't eat them) for any diseases...should we?

 

[biophiliac]

What is her body condition - is she too thin? Does her keel stick out more than it should? Is her crop functioning properly? Full at nite and empty first thing in the am? Suggest a fecal exam for worms and cocci levels. and best wishes...

Does she move about at all or just 'stays in a standing/crouched position'?

 

[rebrascora]

Hi and welcome

I'm sorry that you have needed to join our community because you have a poorly chicken.
Do you know when she last laid an egg?
Can you post a photo of her?
Have you checked her crop to see if it is emptying?.....if she is eating it should be full at night and empty on a morning before she has access to food. If she is not eating then it should feel empty.

Common problems which might cause these symptoms are....

a soft shelled or shell less egg.... these sometimes occur as the hen gets towards the end of her cycle as moult approaches and take a lot of effort to expel putting pressure on the heart and other organs..... regular warm Epsom salts baths and abdominal massage in the water and lubricating the cloaca with an oiled finger may help together with calcium supplement.

Internal laying and ascites..... usually abdominal swelling will be pretty obvious and the bird will walk with an upright stance and wide gait and feel heavier than usual when you pick her up. Poop will often be more liquid and soil the feathers below the vent because of the swelling preventing the excrement from dropping clear. Respiratory distress (panting) and comb discolouration occur as pressure on the internal organs increases due to the swelling. Drainage of the excess fluid in the abdomen is sometimes possible and will give some short term relief, but long term prognosis is not good.

Crop issue.... impacted or sour crop.... prevents food from passing through the bird which effectively then starves. The bird will often be much lighter than expected and feel like skin bone and feathers, although the crop is large or full. Sometimes it is soft but still impacted.

At 3 years old it is unlikely to be coccidiosis unless you have recently moved to a new location where they are encountering a different strain of coccidia than they are used to.

Tumours are unfortunately quite common in chickens. Sometimes with cancer the chicken will suffer muscle wastage, so may feel light weight and emaciated but visceral tumours can cause lethargy and drooping comb or even sudden death without any other symptoms.

Worms are a definite possibility. They could cause a pale droopy comb and lethargy and perhaps a little abdominal swelling. It would certainly be worth having a vet check her poop for worm eggs and coccidia and perhaps bacteria
like E coli.

A bad mite infestation in the coop could also cause her to be anaemic and lethargic.

Those are probably the commonest possibilities. If you can post a photo or her or perhaps a video showing how she stands and walks, that might help pin it down. Video needs to be uploaded to the likes of You tube and then a link posted.

Best of luck to you and get back to us with any further info or updates.

Regards

Barbara

 

[ctorps]

Hello - Thank you both for your help.

I checked her crop this morning. She has had access to food but she really isn't moving much (although admittedly I haven't been with her for a while because it was night and she's outside). Her crop does feel big and bulging. My husband compared it to another chicken that is seemingly normal and he said it isn't as large. I've only seen her eat when I've placed food directly in front of her.

I will call my vet tomorrow to see if he can test (he's a cat/dog vet) and if not I'll look around for other options. Do you know if the poop has to be fresh? I've not seen much fresh poop except for when doing the vent examine and truth be told I don't think I can stomach that again (not to mention I wonder if it is dangerous for me to do so since I'm 5 months pregnant).

She isn't skinny or scraggily by any means, her feathers are beautiful (she is a buff orpington). Her comb is still pale and droopy. There is a tiny bit of dried blood on the comb (it wasn't there when I first started noticing the problem) but I'm assuming another chicken pecked her while she was down and still with the other girls (that was two days ago).

I'm off to read about crop problems. Our local farm store is also closed today but will go on Monday to look for worm treatments for her and the other girls we have.

Edited to add: I have no idea when her last egg was as I can't tell which one of my girls lays day to day (they are not heavy egg layers). I do know she hasn't laid an egg since at least Friday.

 

[Kiki]

\

Hello - Thank you both for your help.

I checked her crop this morning. She has had access to food but she really isn't moving much (although admittedly I haven't been with her for a while because it was night and she's outside). Her crop does feel big and bulging. My husband compared it to another chicken that is seemingly normal and he said it isn't as large. I've only seen her eat when I've placed food directly in front of her.

I will call my vet tomorrow to see if he can test (he's a cat/dog vet) and if not I'll look around for other options. Do you know if the poop has to be fresh? I've not seen much fresh poop except for when doing the vent examine and truth be told I don't think I can stomach that again (not to mention I wonder if it is dangerous for me to do so since I'm 5 months pregnant).

She isn't skinny or scraggily by any means, her feathers are beautiful (she is a buff orpington). Her comb is still pale and droopy. There is a tiny bit of dried blood on the comb (it wasn't there when I first started noticing the problem) but I'm assuming another chicken pecked her while she was down and still with the other girls (that was two days ago).

I'm off to read about crop problems. Our local farm store is also closed today but will go on Monday to look for worm treatments for her and the other girls we have.

Edited to add: I have no idea when her last egg was as I can't tell which one of my girls lays day to day (they are not heavy egg layers). I do know she hasn't laid an egg since at least Friday.

You might want to start reading about them here:
Impacted, Slow and Sour Crops - Prevention and Treatments

 

[ctorps]

Update:

She is very sleepy and just wants to close her eyes and tuck her head in her wing.

My husband and I have massaged the crop, given her drops of water (maybe only a teaspoon - should we give more?) and given her a bit of oil. Massaged crop again.

We offered her water and granite but she is taking neither on her own.

I'm thinking we repeat the process in an hour or so or should we give it more time?

We also tried to smell her breath but there's nothing especially rank and there is also no fluid coming from her beak.

 

[Kiki]

One spoon of water is not enough.
If you want to get a good amount into her you will need to tube feed her.

 

[Kiki]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...ures-updated-9-15-2016.1064392/#post-16201671