Sick hen...please help!

[happylittlehens]

When I let the girls out of the coop this morning I noticed one of the Buff Orps didn't look well. She is very pale (comb, wattles and face). She keeps shaking her head like a dog after a bath. My first instinct was to check to see if she was eggbound. I can't feel an egg inside her. She is very skinny under her fluffy feathers. Seems to have lost some weight. Her crop was empty (no impaction or sour smell). She also lost a handful of feathers while I was checking her for an internal egg. I separated her and offered her some wet mash. All she cared about was getting back in the run with the other girls. So I fed her a little scratch and put her back in. Any ideas what the problem could be? Please help!

Thanks so much

 

[Eggcessive]

How old is she? Could she be starting her molt? How are her poops--any diarrhea? Is she eating okay? I would check her all over, but especially around the vent for mites or lice. Has she been wormed lately? Hens will lose weight during molting, and look anemic and sick with worms or mites. Internal egg laying can lead to egg yolk peritonitis, so that could also be a problem. I would worm her her with Safeguard Paste or Liquid wormer, and put vitamins and electrolytes in her water, and give her probiotics twice a week.

 

[Eggcessive]

Head shaking can be a sign of ear infection, respiratory infection, growing in itchy feathers, or nothing serious at all.

 

[happylittlehens]

She is about 8 months old. She seems to be eating ok . I haven't seen her poop yet to see if she has diarrhea. I'll go watch her some more this afternoon. She hasn't been wormed so I guess I will do that now. She won't let me near her now so I will have to check her for mites/ lice a little closer after she goes to roost tonight. I'm pretty sure she is at the bottom of the pecking order. Pretty much all 3 buffs are toward the lower end of the pecking order. And she may also be the one that won't roost but chooses to sleep on the floor instead. I'll know that when they go in the coop tonight.

 

[Nosaj]

She is about 8 months old. She seems to be eating ok . I haven't seen her poop yet to see if she has diarrhea. I'll go watch her some more this afternoon. She hasn't been wormed so I guess I will do that now. She won't let me near her now so I will have to check her for mites/ lice a little closer after she goes to roost tonight. I'm pretty sure she is at the bottom of the pecking order. Pretty much all 3 buffs are toward the lower end of the pecking order. And she may also be the one that won't roost but chooses to sleep on the floor instead. I'll know that when they go in the coop tonight.

We have a 2 yr old silver laced wyndott exhibiting the identical symptoms. She does not seem to want to eat or drink, shakes her head back and forth stays on the floor unless you put her on the roost and often keeps one or both eyes closed. She is also at the bottom of the pecking order but does not show signs of abuse from the others and I have not seen the others attacking her. Please post if she responds to some treatment. I will do the same.

 

[dan buss]

hello im thinking that she my have worms there are ways to see if she does. look at gape worms on you computer if it makes sence that is what it is then I have the stuff it took me 3 years of looking around to find the right stuff. so go to this site Entirelypets.com. then look at the search bar and type in swine wormer there will be a 10 pound pail it's a 141.00 bucks but if you have friends you can make you money back. I took two scoops in one cake pan add grain/and turkey grower put oil on the grain and mix in the powder so it all sticks together. look for my coments in there form below the pale it's a 10 lb pale

 

[Eggcessive]

She is about 8 months old. She seems to be eating ok . I haven't seen her poop yet to see if she has diarrhea. I'll go watch her some more this afternoon. She hasn't been wormed so I guess I will do that now. She won't let me near her now so I will have to check her for mites/ lice a little closer after she goes to roost tonight. I'm pretty sure she is at the bottom of the pecking order. Pretty much all 3 buffs are toward the lower end of the pecking order. And she may also be the one that won't roost but chooses to sleep on the floor instead. I'll know that when they go in the coop tonight.

They can get mites in the ears as well as an ear infection. Most people don't realize that chickens have ear canals, but you can check them carefully with a Q-Tip. Sometimes the ear will swell. Gapeworm is very rare, and your symptoms don't sound like it at all. Gapeworm is treated with Valbazen, SafeGuard, and Thiobendazol wormers.

 

[Nosaj]

We have a 2 yr old silver laced wyndott exhibiting the identical symptoms. She does not seem to want to eat or drink, shakes her head back and forth stays on the floor unless you put her on the roost and often keeps one or both eyes closed. She is also at the bottom of the pecking order but does not show signs of abuse from the others and I have not seen the others attacking her. Please post if she responds to some treatment. I will do the same.

When I got home last night she would not stand at all. We are wondering if it might be Mereks. We isolated her and gave her water with electrolytes with a dropper and some mash which brought her around a little however she still does not want to stand and is doing the head shaking. Is there anything else that would make them not want stand? She has not showed signs of wing drop, splayed or spread out legs, she just does not want to stand.

 

[Eggcessive]

Are her feathers still coming out easily? If she is not molting, Botulism could possibly be a problem if she could have eaten something that was bad. Ear infection could also cause problems with balance, so an antibiotic would treat that. Mareks symptoms differ in every case. Read this link on Botulism, and see if it fits: http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/19/botulism

 

[happylittlehens]

So I am pretty sure my Buff is molting. I thought they weren't suppose to molt their first year?? She doesn't have mites or lice. I can't see anything wrong with her ears. But she does have new pin feather growth on her neck and patches on her body as well.