- Mar 12, 2019
- 4
- 20
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One of my Silkie pullets has stopped eating/drinking and I'm not sure why. Princess Dandelion is approximately 5 months old and is kept in a dedicated Silkie coop/run with the rest of my Silkies, all of whom are fine. I first noticed Sunday night that her crop was empty, and again on Monday night. When her crop was empty for the third night in a row last night, I brought her into the house to separate her from the flock and figure out what the problem could be. She is somewhat lethargic and at first was breathing a bit heavily, but her breathing has normalized as she's settled into the house.
I was able to force some water mixed with vitamins/electrolyes, but have not been able to get her to eat. Her poop seems normal, just watery (which is understandable given she's had water but no food), and other than the lethargy and not eating she seems normal. The only other issue I noticed is that she had a white dandruff-like substance at the base of some of the feathers around her neck, which I thought could be mite eggs. In case they were, I also gave her some dewormer (since my Silkies were too young to deworm when I last dewormed my main flock) and sprayed her for mites. I should note that I did have a mite issue over the summer, but I bathed all of my Silkies before moving them into their own coop, which is a brand-new structure that I treat regularly with First Saturday Lime. Any thoughts what could be wrong with her and how to treat it?
I was able to force some water mixed with vitamins/electrolyes, but have not been able to get her to eat. Her poop seems normal, just watery (which is understandable given she's had water but no food), and other than the lethargy and not eating she seems normal. The only other issue I noticed is that she had a white dandruff-like substance at the base of some of the feathers around her neck, which I thought could be mite eggs. In case they were, I also gave her some dewormer (since my Silkies were too young to deworm when I last dewormed my main flock) and sprayed her for mites. I should note that I did have a mite issue over the summer, but I bathed all of my Silkies before moving them into their own coop, which is a brand-new structure that I treat regularly with First Saturday Lime. Any thoughts what could be wrong with her and how to treat it?
