Sickly since September - Don't know what to do now

[ifurniturelady]

I have a 1.5 year old Golden Comet. Back in late September she had a limp, not bumble foot. I thought she had hurt herself jumping off the roost. We brought her inside until the limp was better. While inside she laid 5 shell-less brown hard eggs at once and ate them. She has never laid another egg after this.
She was pretty lethargic and did a "twitching" thing with her head.
We treated her with Nutri-Ved and Tetracylcine for about a week. She perked back up, gained weight and was re-introduced to the flock.
After about 6 weeks she started to look tired, loosing weight again, lethargic. We quarantined her again, and did another course of the tetracycline. After 2 weeks she had gained weight and perked back up and we put her back out with the flock.
Now she is back to the same condition she was in before the last 2 week round of antibiotics.

Our vet won't see her and the only other vet in town that would has closed down.
I am at a loss for what to do. I have scoured these forums for a similar situation and haven't found anything.

Notables - her comb and waddles seem to be withered. They are kind of pale. They have been that way since September.
She is getting Nuti-ved in her water, Purina Layena feed. She is free ranging during the day and has a brooder light in the barn with them at night. She's lost all the weight she gained in her last quarantine and her breastbone is very pronounced.
Her tail is seldom up high any more.

Any help you can give would be very much appreciated.
Thank you in advance for your time and advice

 

[gander007]

Alright

gander007

 

[ifurniturelady]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that her poop had been green and runny before the last round of antibiotics. It has firmed up a lot and is brown again but is sticking to her vent.

 

[gander007]

Alright I see what is going on now but I have some statements and
questions so first I am not going to tell you how to feed or care for
your flock but I will put down what I do here ok so the droopy cone
I have dealt with this before and I used Turkey Grow 20% at least
and the laying mash is good but not as a sole source of food I found
so I very and get an egg about every day ..... I give rice from time to
time or oatmeal and any table veggies or left overs that are not
meat and they will eat meat as one of my grandkids thinks it is funny
to give them hotdogs a little at a time but some cracked corn and
three way which is oats barley and corn or any grain and maybe
crush the egg shells up real fine I use a Ninja food chopper for this
and put it in with the food for the lady's only and do you put out
oyster shells all chopped up to help them out ......
The brooder light at night ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, Chickens need to sleep also.
14 hours of light per day unless you are going for production
chickens and your lady sounds more like a pet ....
So what are all the different foods you give the flock ????????
And why the light ?????


gander007

 

[gander007]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that her poop had been green and runny before the last round of antibiotics. It has firmed up a lot and is brown again but is sticking to her vent.

You are going to want to wash that off and that is happening most likely do to
the antibiotics but good show on taking care of her .......

gander007

 

[ifurniturelady]

You're right about the pet part. Flock was the wrong word to use. There are 3 total backyard hens in the "flock".
We inherited them from a friend who could no longer care for them back in the spring. The other two are healthy and big. So was this one when we got her. Please feel free to give guidance. I'm a newbie and could use all the help I can get.

They get the Layena feed, fresh scraps like carrot peels, kale stems, cabbage - no meat. I give them crushed egg shells once a week or so but not Oyster shell. I give them oatmeal as a treat some times. We spread "scratch" from the Tractor Supply around about once a week. Looks like it is corn, millet and sunflower seeds.

Before I knew better (after reading today) I thought they would freeze when the weather got below freezing. So for only the past week I have had the brooder in with them. Not sure what to do to undo the situation now.

 

[ifurniturelady]

Thank you. She came off the antibiotics December 2nd. She had been on for a full two weeks.

 

[gander007]

Sounds to me like you are trying to do the correct thing by feeding
them properly and the cone will give you the first indication of their
health if it droops I change the diet a little and the Turkey Grow is
the first thing I give them ......
Cold

a chicken hatches their chicks with the tem of
102 F so they put out a lot of heat and this is what the corn in
the winter is for to help keep them warm, if you think about it
my Grandmother was born in 1902 and did nit have electricity
till the 1920's so how did the pioneers keep their chickens
nice and warm other then in a Dutch Oven these birds have
been around for a long time and all you need to do is keep
them dry and out of the wind ..... Oh and provide them with
plenty of feed or a place to forage and here where I live I need
to provide everything for them as only Stage Brush is growing
and them chickens will eat the seeds from the plant as it
produces plenty of that ........


gander007

 

[gander007]

I really want to address this issue about her egg laying alright ,,,,, How do you know if she is not laying eggs ??? Have you locked her
up on the side and watched her for at least two weeks at any time to see if she is not putting them in another hens nest or hiding them
under the house or a bush I really find this odd not that I haven't heard of a hen that is laying at all it happens even to humans as well ..

With all the meds you are giving her it would be natural for her to have a messy bottom and this needs to be addressed as in it needs
to be cleaned off and dried as this could lead to other problems for her health ,,,,,,, If a baby had a dirty bottom wouldn't you clean it ...
I hope some of this is going to help you and your chickens ,,,,, Stay steady ........

gander007

 

[pwand]

I have a 1.5 year old Golden Comet.  Back in late September she had a limp, not bumble foot.  I thought she had hurt herself jumping off the roost.  We brought her inside until the limp was better.  While inside she laid 5 shell-less brown hard eggs at once and ate them.  She has never laid another egg after this.
She was pretty lethargic and did a "twitching" thing with her head.
We treated her with Nutri-Ved and Tetracylcine for about a week.  She perked back up, gained weight and was re-introduced to the flock.
After about 6 weeks she started to look tired, loosing weight again, lethargic.  We quarantined her again, and did another course of the tetracycline.  After 2 weeks she had gained weight and perked back up and we put her back out with the flock.
Now she is back to the same condition she was in before the last 2 week round of antibiotics.

Our vet won't see her and the only other vet in town that would has closed down.
I am at a loss for what to do.  I have scoured these forums for a similar situation and haven't found anything.

Notables - her comb and waddles seem to be withered.  They are kind of pale.  They have been that way since September.
She is getting Nuti-ved in her water, Purina Layena feed.  She is free ranging during the day and has a brooder light in the barn with them at night.  She's lost all the weight she gained in her last quarantine and her breastbone is very pronounced.
Her tail is seldom up high any more. 

Any help you can give would be very much appreciated.
Thank you in advance for your time and advice

When you said the egg was hard, was it like a cooked egg or a sold mass?

Here is a link about internal lay, another name is egg yolk peritonitis. See if that seems to fit what your hen is going through.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/639749/timeline-of-internal-laying-update

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/565084/egg-yolk-peritonitis-prevention-or-management