Sick hen. I think shes dying

[Squawkers]

@Eggcessive She isn't laying eggs. She is barely breathing so I'm not surprised. She absolutely won't eat. I've even put a bit of wet food in her beak and she just closed her eyes and went back to sleep without swallowing. She has pooped exactly twice today - and it's been almost 100 percent liquid. I gave her some more vitamins diluted in warm water. Then she sometimes chews and swallows. She has not moved in two days now. She is sleeping with her beak on the floor.

We have amox 50 mg tablets that was for our cat. They are tablets not capsules. Should we give that to her?

She looks really bad

 

[Eggcessive]

She looks like she may not make, and I’m sorry. She could have cancer, or something else. Tube feeding is something some do to get more fluids and food into them if you want to learn. Amoxicillin dosage for chickens is around 50 mg per pound once or twice a day. It won’t hurt her. Let us know how she gets along.

 

[ChicNmom]

Is her crop empty? It should be if she's not eating but if it's watery and full she may have a blockage.

If her crop isn't full of water I would try to give her the electrolyte mixture directly in her beak.

I would try the antibiotic even though she looks like she is in bad shape.

 

[TaylorGlade]

She looks really bad

I've never seen sit like this, so I agree.

Is her crop empty? It should be if she's not eating but if it's watery and full she may have a blockage.

If her crop isn't full of water I would try to give her the electrolyte mixture directly in her beak.

I would try the antibiotic even though she looks like she is in bad shape.

Thank you. We have been giving her an electrolyte mixture and Calcium as @Eggcessive suggested. Her crop seems fine. It's not squishy like sour crop. We think it's a reproductive issue.

 

[Eggcessive]

The best time to check the crop is in early morning before she eats or drinks anything. Then it should be empty and flat. Have you checked her for any lice or mites? The mites can cause anemia.

 

[TaylorGlade]

The best time to check the crop is in early morning before she eats or drinks anything. Then it should be empty and flat. Have you checked her for any lice or mites? The mites can cause anemia.

I'm not seeing any sign of mites or lice. I checked her over really well including her vent and crown. I checked her crop this morning and it felt ok. I will check her again in the morning. Will that also cause this? And David just found a shellless egg in the run (with a long tail), so that previous egg probably wasn't her, but I have no idea which one did that and they all seem fine. I'm hoping we aren't starting to see the beginning of a larger problem

 

[Squawkers]

Tube feeding is a good idea. She’ll at least have more of a chance of recovering if she is getting food and water. Unless somebody thinks it would be too stressful for her??

 

[Eggcessive]

Well a shell-less egg and an abnormal one with a tail could be more of a sign of a reproductive infection. Keep trying to get fluids into her, and sugar water or electrolytes are best. Once 24 hours has passed, give another calcium citrate with d tablet 300-600mg orally.

 

[TaylorGlade]

Well a shell-less egg and an abnormal one with a tail could be more of a sign of a reproductive infection. Keep trying to get fluids into her, and sugar water or electrolytes are best. Once 24 hours has passed, give another calcium citrate with d tablet 300-600mg orally.

This shellless egg didn't come from her. She is in the house in a cat carrier. This one was in the coop. I don't know which hen laid it. It's possible she didn't lay the other shellless given this. She was trying to sleep in the nest box a few days before she got really sick. I thought she may have been going broody until she got sick. So, she has probably been sick without seriously showing signs for a week. Now, I'm thinking we have another sick chicken too

 

[TaylorGlade]

Well a shell-less egg and an abnormal one with a tail could be more of a sign of a reproductive infection. Keep trying to get fluids into her, and sugar water or electrolytes are best. Once 24 hours has passed, give another calcium citrate with d tablet 300-600mg orally.

Sadly, she just died. She was from our first chickens and we drove all the way to Mississippi to get her and her flock mates so they wouldn't have to mail them. We raised them from babies. I know she's just a chicken, but she was a sweet girl. Thanks for the advice. I just wish we had known that her sitting in the nesting box was a warning sign and not that she was going broody. Now, I have to figure out which girl is laying Shelless eggs before it's too late for her.