Sick Leghorn

[Elvissmom]

She eats Purina Layena Plus Omega-3 poultry feed, and we give her cracked corn and mealy worms as treats. We have cut back her treats the last weeks because she has gotten a little fat. We do limit her mealy worms to 2 table spoons per day. She stays in a 4 story coop, no free range. There are too many preditators around. There is a bald eagle that has been hanging around the back yard. I want to make her a chicken tractor, so she can free range safely, but I haven't gotten to it yet. I do grow her wheatgrass sprout, that she loves. She also loves watermelon, oregano, apples and frozen corn. She doesn't like cabbage, cantaloupe or basil.

I will check her crop first thing tomorrow morning. She is already in bed, so I will take her food away now.

Thanks for all your help!

 

[rebrascora]

It is all too easy to give them too many treats.... I think they train us far better than we train them.... so it is good that you are cutting back. I would be as concerned, if not more so about the cracked corn and frozen corn than the meal worms. Corn is high in carbohydrates and low in other more beneficial nutrients and the carbs are as likely to cause them to get fat as anything else... just like carbs cause us to get fat unless we get lots of exercise and if she is not able to free range then she will not be able to burn the calories. Leghorns are naturally very active birds and do best in an environment where they can scratch for bugs and fly and run around. The fatter they get the greater the risk of getting egg bound and prolapsing and reproductive issues as well as fatty liver disease. Leghorns should be lean, mean, egg laying machines!

 

[Elvissmom]

ok, thanks for your input. We will cut back drastically on her corn. I only gave Lucy the frozen corn when the heat index was over 100. Since she is walking normally, I thought she wasn't egg bound. But since Lucy is my first chicken, I know I have a lot to learn!! She has been laying almost everyday since we got her, but nothing for 2 days. I thought that might be because it has been cooler at night, but I could be wrong.

 

[jolenesdad]

I’ve got a chicken that acts this way for the first week of her molt. Do you know her age?

 

[Elvissmom]

We think she is approx. 2 yrs.

 

[Elvissmom]

I really hope that's all it is....

 

[Elvissmom]

If she is egg bound, do I need to take her to the vet?

 

[rebrascora]

I don't particularly think she is egg bound either from what you have described so far, but it is a risk when they put on too much weight and lay large eggs. If you are not seeing any feathers in her nest box or the run then she is not moulting yet but it will happen soon at her age.

 

[Elvissmom]

She does lay large eggs, usually 60-70 grams. and she did have an 80 gram egg last week. She's not really fat, just plumper that when we rescued her. I took this picture of her yesterday. Does she look fat to you? Thanks again for all your help and advice.

 

[rebrascora]

Can you post a photo of her from the side and another of her back end ideally from below as that is where she will carry fat between her legs and below her vent. A photo of her poop would be helpful too?

She does have access to grit, doesn't she?

Also, I thought I read that you said there were no feathers in her nest but now I can't find that..... are there any loose feathers appearing in her coop? It is hard to miss all the feathers when they start moulting, especially if they are confined to a limited space.

Drinking lots can be a sign of internal haemorrhaging and if she was carrying a lot of fat, she might have fatty liver haemorrhagic syndrome. Her comb looks pretty good though. If she was haemorrhaging I would expect her comb to start to flop and go pale.

It is really difficult to know what is going on from a few words typed on a screen of someone else's perception of the situation.
Trying to diagnose a bird without being able to see and feel or even hear and smell it, it very limiting and somewhat frustrating sometimes!