Sick pullet

[Geranium]

She's taken a few sips of the Gatorade but hasn't eaten any of the food/ garlic/ DE mash. Still won't stand.

 

[azygous]

If this illness came on suddenly, then you might suspect something she was into yesterday may have made her sick.

Does she free range? What does she eat when outside? Or is she confined to the run or coop?

If she free ranges, is there a compost pile? How about insecticide use in the garden? Are there standing puddles that could be contaminated with insecticide runoff? Has it been wet and muddy? How many other chickens do you have? Are any others slow today? Any red matter in the poop?

What about grit? If she's confined, does she have access to grit? If free ranging, are there machinery leaking fluids onto the soil where she could have picked up oily grit?

Have you felt her crop? Full and hard, full and squishy, or empty?

Balance - can she stand? Is she off balance when she tries? Can she curl her toes?

There's got to be a clue in there somewhere.

 

[Eggcessive]

I might have bought some Poultry Cell or NutriDrench at the feed store, and given her a few drops. The Gatorade can be used for electrolytes, but it has no vitamins or minerals. Offer some bites of chopped scrambled egg, and a little wet chicken feed.

DE has no purpose in a weak lame chicken, or for anything else. It is useless when wet. It is supposed to destroy insects, but it can irritate the eyes of both you and your chickens.

Has your pullet ever laid eggs, or laid recently? Is she moving either leg if you stand her up? I would have to say that Mareks could be a possibility even though she was vaccinated. I would try to rule out an injury or some type of toxin. Giving vitamins that include riboflavin would be good to try as well. Sorry about your hen.

 

[Eggcessive]

Here is some reading about Mareks, but I would keep trying to find another answer:
https://extension.umd.edu/sites/ext...Preventing Mareks Disease in Small Flocks.pdf

https://extension.psu.edu/mareks-disease-in-chickens

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq.66077/

 

[Geranium]

If this illness came on suddenly, then you might suspect something she was into yesterday may have made her sick.

Does she free range? What does she eat when outside? Or is she confined to the run or coop?

If she free ranges, is there a compost pile? How about insecticide use in the garden? Are there standing puddles that could be contaminated with insecticide runoff? Has it been wet and muddy? How many other chickens do you have? Are any others slow today? Any red matter in the poop?

What about grit? If she's confined, does she have access to grit? If free ranging, are there machinery leaking fluids onto the soil where she could have picked up oily grit?

Have you felt her crop? Full and hard, full and squishy, or empty?

Balance - can she stand? Is she off balance when she tries? Can she curl her toes?

There's got to be a clue in there somewhere.

She is mostly in a coop and run, but is allowed out into the backyard once or twice a day. We don't use pesticides in the back yard and there aren't any vehicles or oil. It's a suburban neighborhood - no farm runoff or anything. No recent rain. They have free choice grit, and our soil is sandy with lots of little gravel, so no shortage of grit. No blood or parasites in the stool that I could see, but it's runny. We do have oleander that falls into the yard from the neighbor's yard. I know it's poisonous, but they've been around it since day one without a problem. I have seven other pullets the same age and everyone seems fine. Her crop is soft. She is standing now, and eating and drinking (she liked the red Gatorade). Her feet were initially both curled under her so she can curl her toes. She seems a little wobbly but balance is ok. She keeps her tail tucked down but her vent isn't obstructed. There's occasionally trash debris in the yard that they'll find, so it's possible she swallowed something. She isn't vocalizing which makes me wonder if she's got something stuck in her throat? She was in her run when I found her and it's a pretty safe spot.

 

[azygous]

Thanks. You've helped rule out several things. The tail held down and the non vocalizing indicates she is not feeling well. But she could have swallowed something that is now impacting her crop. Last week, there was a thread where a hen had similar symptoms. The OP had their vet x-ray the hen. The hen had a crop and gizzard full of metal objects such as screws and a spring from a wooden clothes pin.

Check her crop in the morning before she has food and water to see if her crop is full. If it's hard, then it's impacted and food isn't being processed.

 

[Geranium]

I have some Sav-A-Chick electrolytes I can give her if that might help. She does lay, and as far as i know she's laid recently, but we have three Australorps and their eggs look similar. She was normal yesterday. Seems to have normal control of her wings and head this whole time, even when she wouldn't stand. and she's moving both legs now. Her abdomen feels soft so I don't think she's egg bound.

 

[azygous]

Give her the electrolytes. It's possible she had a heat issue and was dehydrated. If she's back to normal in the morning, then this might be her issue.

 

[Geranium]

I'll give her the electrolytes in her water in the morning. She laid an egg, so apparently i'm a bad judge of whether or not she's got an egg in her oviduct! It's normal sized and there aren't any blood streaks or anything to make me think it was difficult for her to lay. I marked it with her name in case she's really sick, so we can toss it. She's staying in the shower for the night. She's laying on a towel and peeping at me a little when I check on her. Poor girl.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Is her foot a little swollen? It's hard to tell in photos, but I see a leg band? Is that too tight?
Did she perk up more after she laid the egg?
I would re-check the crop first thing in the morning before she's had anything to eat/drink.
I agree getting her hydrated is a good idea. Check her for lice/mites while you are at it.