Sick hen

[Swbertrand1]

Ah, great advice! Thank you,! I'll look into crop issues. I hadn't considered that. With previous episodes, I though of heat or treats, but this time neither were a factor. We live in Vancouver WA and have had some significant heat spells, but they didn't coincide with her diarrhea.

This is a good resource on BYC and is often pointed to by some of the most experienced and trusted folks on the site:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

 

[Silkie fluff butts]

Thank you so much! Tonight, after roosting, I checked my girl, Apple . Her crop was full and squishy like fluid was in there. She did not like me messing with it and "burped". I didn't smell anything, but that may just have been my awkward position, reaching into our small coop. She was facing away and I only had a minute to check before returning to the house. I'm going to try the sour crop treatment and I'll let you know how it goes!

 

[Swbertrand1]

There is no need to treat for Sour Crop if she doesn't have it, though the treatment won't hurt her at all...
In short, the Crop should be Full at nighttime roost (when they go up for the night), Empty or close to it in the morning. Check her first thing in the morning. If it's emptied, it's unlikely she would have Sour Crop.

 

[Katanahamon]

She is doing well! She ended up bouncing back and by the next morning, looked totally fine. She does still have some diarrhea, but she seems to feel great and is eating and drinking well. I didn't use the Corid yet because it's our scheduled time to treat everyone for worms. I use Valbezen. So we're doing that first and then I'll do the Corid for her. I was afraid to use them both at the same time. What do you think?

Hmm..treating for worms without knowing you have them can make for resistant worms. Can you either do your own testing or get a vet to do a fecal float test? Besides, which worms do you treat for? Different worms have different treatments..

 

[casportpony]

If possible, always best to have a fecal test done before deworming, but if that's not an option, deworm them, especially if you have one that is sickly

This is what a vet wrote:
"Prophylactic Deworming
I have been saying this for years (because I have been seeing this for years!) and here it is: Many young and adult birds can be harboring ascarids (especially if they were parent-raised for any length of time) and you can run fecals all day, and guess what? The fecals will almost always be negative. A paper out of the Univ. of Georgia a few years back confirmed this. Many a time I have been a hero when I have dewormed a bird during a second or third opinion, when it passes a pile of ascarids and shocks the owner after being repeatedly told by other vets that "the fecal was negative." Well, deworm it anyway, with something safe. I routinely use pyrantel pamoate, since you can't hurt a bird with it, unless you aspirate it!"
Source:
http://www.exoticpetvet.net/avian/challenges.html

Valbazen is and excellent choice. If mine, I would give 0.08 ml per pound of bodyweight once and repeat in 10 days.

 

[LaFleche]

Your descriptions make me think that the liquid oozing from her vent might have been albumen, her sick appearance probably caused by shell-less eggs and that she might be in need of some additional calcium, best given as a combination with vitamin D3+K1. People tablets would do just fine.

 

[Silkie fluff butts]

We already did the first dose of Valbazen 10 days ago, so we dosed again today. I don't know her history, so I wanted to be sure that area was covered. She has diarrhea again today although this time she is eating, drinking and acting just fine. Her butt feathers are wet with stuck-on poop. Her vent is red and puffy just at the opening. No yellow or blood.
* I forgot to mention before that she is usually the biggest eater of my hens and when full, her crop bulges and is clearly positioned on the right side. If she has just eaten, I can tell from across the yard.

 

[LaFleche]

How is she today?