Sick Chicken? Please help

Noah2o1

Hatching
Sep 27, 2024
6
2
6
I found my hen isolated from the rest of the group today confused, she had shown no signs untill today. she was acting normal but then it was like a crash or something. When i picked her up she was extremely light and seems she has not been eating, she has been drinking though. I have attached some photos. Would love any help as I love this hen so much

She appears to have some odd stuff on her feathers under her wing in the second photo and her beak looks flat and off and the crown is fallen over. it has been fallen over for a bit but she showed no signs and the other have this issue looks like they have some cold going around but they have been getting over it with no issues

Update: I checked her underbelly and she seems very bloated and I checked her rear and didn't see any form of blockage but then i saw these little mites and looked around and saw them around her and in that odd spot on her feathers under her wings, and the top of her anus seemed to be big but I have no idea if this is normal or not.
 

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What is under her wings looks like lice nits, you need to treat those asap. The lice can really weaken a bird and make them anemic. See this link for information and treatment instructions:
https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/
Has her beak always looked like that, it appears she may have been mechanically debeaked. How long have you had her and where did she come from.
There may be more going on, sometimes lice will find a bird that is sick or weakened by something else, but treating and getting rid of those is a priority. I would do that, get a weight on her and monitor that and her eating, see if you can put some weight on her. Scrambled eggs are a good choice to get them eating if they are not, you can also try making a mash by mixing the regular pellets or crumbles with water, they usually like it that way. I would also put her on a B complex tablet or capsule once a day, if she's not been eating she could be deficient. Human ones from any pharmacy are fine, just put in her beak and push it back til she swallows it, they can swallow them easily.
 
What is under her wings looks like lice nits, you need to treat those asap. The lice can really weaken a bird and make them anemic. See this link for information and treatment instructions:
https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/
Has her beak always looked like that, it appears she may have been mechanically debeaked. How long have you had her and where did she come from.
There may be more going on, sometimes lice will find a bird that is sick or weakened by something else, but treating and getting rid of those is a priority. I would do that, get a weight on her and monitor that and her eating, see if you can put some weight on her. Scrambled eggs are a good choice to get them eating if they are not, you can also try making a mash by mixing the regular pellets or crumbles with water, they usually like it that way. I would also put her on a B complex tablet or capsule once a day, if she's not been eating she could be deficient. Human ones from any pharmacy are fine, just put in her beak and push it back til she swallows it, they can swallow them easily.
Thank you I will check it out, I think it might be lice nits as there are alot of them on her, in regards to her break I'm not sure I think she was like that when I got her about a year ago. They guy I got it from said she was about a year old and i got her from some guy at his like house, she was previously free range. I'll start with some scrambled eggs now and update. I looked at the link you sent and it seems to be those bugs. She also seems to be pooping herself in some way as he rear is dirty, i've cleaned it abit and such. what would suggest to treat them exactly?
 
Most commonly people use a product containing permethrin. You can get sprays or powders, I will link a couple of brands below, there are others. If you get a concentrate for spray, make sure to follow the directions for diluting it for use on poultry. You can also remove large nit clusters by hand, but the chemicals are needed to rid them of them all. You also should clean out and spray the coop, discard all bedding and nesting material, and replace with fresh after the spray is dry. Get in all the nooks and crannies. If the beak was damaged or injured it may grow back with time, if it was mechanically debeaked it will not. If it was severely damaged by injury at some point and the quick was damaged, it might not grow back either. They can adapt with a little help. Deeper open dishes can make it easier for her to eat and drink. I would weigh her regularly to make sure she's taking enough in. Have you ever wormed her or had a fecal test done to check for worms? Internal parasites can sometimes be the cause of runny droppings or poop sticking around the vent feathers. Do you know when she last laid? In a couple of pictures she looks like she's standing with a wide legged stance. Does she waddle when she walks? Does her abdomen, below the vent between the legs feel bloated at all, either water balloon like or very firm? Reproductive problems are not uncommon in hens over the age of two.
41xLaP0vFqL._SL500_AC_SS350_.jpg

PoultryDust-1LB-PS-low.png

2212611.jpg
 
Most commonly people use a product containing permethrin. You can get sprays or powders, I will link a couple of brands below, there are others. If you get a concentrate for spray, make sure to follow the directions for diluting it for use on poultry. You can also remove large nit clusters by hand, but the chemicals are needed to rid them of them all. You also should clean out and spray the coop, discard all bedding and nesting material, and replace with fresh after the spray is dry. Get in all the nooks and crannies. If the beak was damaged or injured it may grow back with time, if it was mechanically debeaked it will not. If it was severely damaged by injury at some point and the quick was damaged, it might not grow back either. They can adapt with a little help. Deeper open dishes can make it easier for her to eat and drink. I would weigh her regularly to make sure she's taking enough in. Have you ever wormed her or had a fecal test done to check for worms? Internal parasites can sometimes be the cause of runny droppings or poop sticking around the vent feathers. Do you know when she last laid? In a couple of pictures she looks like she's standing with a wide legged stance. Does she waddle when she walks? Does her abdomen, below the vent between the legs feel bloated at all, either water balloon like or very firm? Reproductive problems are not uncommon in hens over the age of two.
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I haven't done any test's on them at all before and I have no idea the last time she laid, it's been dropping for a while now and it seems to be with the issue of this worm, ill for sure do this now as it seems to be the issue. and she kind of waddles not fully but a little and she feels bloated at the bottom but not alot as its fairly firm. I gave her scrambled eggs and she ate quite a few. Also is there any options on amazon you'd reckon are good? I'm in Canada and there isnt many livestock stores around me to get items like the ones you sent.
 
I don't see poultry cell on amazon, you can use a human B complex tablet or capsule daily and feed some cooked liver, which would help.
A bloated abdomen is often a sign of a reproductive problem, like a cancer, an infection etc. I would keep an eye on her. If you worm, don't use an herbal wormer, get something with fenbendazole or albendazole, which will take care of everything except tapeworm.

https://www.amazon.com/CHEMTECH-BC6...7480712&sprefix=poultry+powder,aps,138&sr=8-5

https://www.amazon.com/DURVET-22535...=1727480760&sprefix=permethrin,aps,169&sr=8-5

https://www.amazon.com/Nutri-Drench...27480793&sprefix=poultry+nutri,aps,160&sr=8-1
 
I don't see poultry cell on amazon, you can use a human B complex tablet or capsule daily and feed some cooked liver, which would help.
A bloated abdomen is often a sign of a reproductive problem, like a cancer, an infection etc. I would keep an eye on her. If you worm, don't use an herbal wormer, get something with fenbendazole or albendazole, which will take care of everything except tapeworm.

https://www.amazon.com/CHEMTECH-BC698321-Prozap-Garden-Poultry/dp/B001BM4JLM/ref=sr_1_5?crid=19S6EZXWFSRTQ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.vzyoHuLFK5jxsmrOCf0cXmOq4Xzorxk0z6DAwJVDQJcukcAleaWQSjDz6kSSEa-c4xHjO-i_VPCTt04eLHx_y6Pdc6RX6F1sF2_Qqv1j1wPW3tjb7x-j5SwMRS3pYPSq873-InMam-Nk2QOTXM5AsR9KVhWBqIQLlN84glvuKQ_ymEL19JrYoGAPpXRsGHeaFq9Ru71WLuulGoutyb8ei02wih6btB-v14uzHTZpapcOnb298bH4qlVGiTb5nAJqH2DGto1oEalMBxn2Rg9jItZU9TaJ-NCyo8IKX6C7dT0.sBbRGkeWC_jDXKKraINPJozNEJKm6vzSZzYxPA3D_J8&dib_tag=se&keywords=poultry+powder&qid=1727480712&sprefix=poultry+powder,aps,138&sr=8-5

https://www.amazon.com/DURVET-2253554-Permethrin-EC-10-Percent/dp/B078YFH1GV/ref=sr_1_5?crid=QHQB9LHX8XIN&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ajR3SYJpTJRWfpuMvtzBGAT9wqYIZVuYPnkawf6SX6hPaXVhKEMH4SFmA7Y1vZrl6CfX67nYZOAur7aaFJjnp7AUFlwOCG5Md4ljzg_ggZucS7DHPYXcPdvlaf-Nc5Sedmeqn_M63fN5fxUTC3SIdQHeFUgqm9PaxWf6NxzSSNDGXrP8hjQcUDiKXnjQPQ3_8xb-8jSbQKh3GfRzoMesYsnYsmk7NRV43gcY7qiszuaqJSc4BpYKHMLaG67PpcfDZTkQ8EpP836TiBgkEe5Hhl3kBxcs7i5LIg7fBiHsAic.2Yvqhyvyq4NAZTatwEDkgDKaW6ARiA4c-n0-5RICrm8&dib_tag=se&keywords=permethrin+concentrate&qid=1727480760&sprefix=permethrin,aps,169&sr=8-5

https://www.amazon.com/Nutri-Drench-Poultry-Solution-FL-OZ/dp/B00GSOD8KG/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1EPJR7X3G4IMH&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.2sBWO3Q-ysPP7_QiNBSJPHpldSqcXLUGMiCjs8bmnCs7o-EQQoT2ebH6U-E2pzbgo1HnwQcTGzR64dYi0eIJ0QNB3GoJ9rnFykwm4iuOfLke24Tzuh8JXOe4p4EpSjWFW0AJGPQwj89WMRKJO-zlPTwdspXPZ5UW7L2grhYWXt59OCYj19NJBMDqnPij4otcfvAqHfjzqhGonua9mZW2QEljcklcE5MAarIDWaRevVrvx0GQVuuEv-Kv0PgBVYgUcX080S_wzBlSuyP4Opgvc5IIBv501AgZk_zlSwxbYHY.WZfXcSrCVM21Y30UuNdRLzDEqWbsJHtAR0hqX2X1364&dib_tag=se&keywords=poultry+nutridrench&qid=1727480793&sprefix=poultry+nutri,aps,160&sr=8-1
Okay thank you, will keep you updated. I'll look at one local store see if they have something or not. But thank you so much for your help. She doesn't seem to waddle so she walks normally just does not walk alot but she ate most of the eggs I gave her.
 
What is under her wings looks like lice nits, you need to treat those asap. The lice can really weaken a bird and make them anemic. See this link for information and treatment instructions:
https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/
Has her beak always looked like that, it appears she may have been mechanically debeaked. How long have you had her and where did she come from.
There may be more going on, sometimes lice will find a bird that is sick or weakened by something else, but treating and getting rid of those is a priority. I would do that, get a weight on her and monitor that and her eating, see if you can put some weight on her. Scrambled eggs are a good choice to get them eating if they are not, you can also try making a mash by mixing the regular pellets or crumbles with water, they usually like it that way. I would also put her on a B complex tablet or capsule once a day, if she's not been eating she could be deficient. Human ones from any pharmacy are fine, just put in her beak and push it back til she swallows it, they can swallow them easily.
How much of the pill should she have? I'm going to get some tomorrow hopefuly and give it to her. is it easier if i give her it like in water or just straight pill in pieces? as well i will be getting something soon hopefully to treat the lice. If the lice is the sole issue is there a quick temp fix i can do to get her back to her normal state and energized?
 
For the lice you can use the permethrin products or you can use Elector PSP (much more expensive). Then it's just time, for her to heal and get healthy again. Assuming that there are no other health problems. For the B complex, you can just give one tablet or capsule daily. The B's are very safe, any extra will be excreted. No need to mix in water (might put her off water if she doesn't like the taste) and it would probably just settle out anyway. They can swallow a mouse, a lizard, a frog...a pill or capsule, no matter the size, is not a problem. It's easier to just give them the pill whole. Just pull down on her wattles, put the pill in her beak and push it back, she will swallow it. Easy peasy. If she doesn't like to be held and struggles, wrap her in a bath towel like a burrito with her head sticking out, to hold her wings. If you have help to hold her, even better.
 
For the lice you can use the permethrin products or you can use Elector PSP (much more expensive). Then it's just time, for her to heal and get healthy again. Assuming that there are no other health problems. For the B complex, you can just give one tablet or capsule daily. The B's are very safe, any extra will be excreted. No need to mix in water (might put her off water if she doesn't like the taste) and it would probably just settle out anyway. They can swallow a mouse, a lizard, a frog...a pill or capsule, no matter the size, is not a problem. It's easier to just give them the pill whole. Just pull down on her wattles, put the pill in her beak and push it back, she will swallow it. Easy peasy. If she doesn't like to be held and struggles, wrap her in a bath towel like a burrito with her head sticking out, to hold her wings. If you have help to hold her, even better.
Thank you, is there anything else I should be aware of when doing this? and what are some ways I can prevent this from happening? aswell from what I've read and watch Permethrin is used in like buckets of water and then the bird is dunked and rubbed in with the solution correct? and should I do this with all my other chickens aswell. and what should I use to cleanse the entire coop itself of the lice?
 

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