Something Wrong with Chicken

[RBKB]

I have a chicken that is not well. There were two of them on the same day, but one of them was fine the next day. It is hard to keep track of all our chickens, for we have 75, so I didn't realize we still had one not well. I had one indoors for a leg injury. We put that one out and brought the sick one in today. I cleaned up the matted poop. Her lower belly seems hard compared to other chickens I have picked up. She is pooping. I don't really know much about chickens, since we are new to this. She is drinking vvery little so far. I haven't seen her eat yet. When I examined her behind, she has feathers missing, it looks irritated. All she does is stand with her head tucked down and her butt on the ground. She just stands there. Apparently she has been this way for about 4-5 days.
She does not have any signs of congestion, or any respiratory problems, but her breathing is slow, and could be labored. She makes no sounds, no cooing, nothing. When she was in the coop, she was lying down under the heat lamp where I found her.
Any suggestions? I'm thinking she probably won't make it. There is no vet where we live, so not sure what we can do for her.
Thanks.

 

[haileyeverhart]

Maybe an impacted crop? Or egg bound. Both have similar symptoms. Try giving a warm bath and massaging her crop and her bottom.

 

[Isaac 0]

Is there any mites/lice.Less intake of water would make her crop very dry as you mentioned.

All i can say for now is keep her isolated with poultry vitamins and your going to need to give her water there are two ways one way is to fill your hand with water hand dip her beak in it or you can get a small syringe and put drops of water in it.Water is very important keeping her hydrated is probably the only way she will get through this.


Give her time to drink chickens can easily be drowned.

 

[RBKB]

Update:
One chicken died - was fine in the morning, eating and drinking. Later that day, it just laid down and I brought it in. That evening it died. It wouldn't take anything to eat or drink by a dropper.
The chicken I originally brought in that was sick is still sick. She is has been waddling like a penguin. I gave her calcium because I thought she was egg bound. I thought when I examined her I felt an egg. So I put her in the warm water, massaged her, fed her calcium several times. I tried to get her to eat grit in case it was digestive, but she wouldn't have it. She has been treated for mites and lice, as when I went to soak her, they were crawling onto me. We treat all the chickens with wood ash and diatomaceous clay anyway, as well as spread it in their coop. I have no idea what is wrong, but now she is swollen like a balloon. I don't want to do it, but I think my husband will be putting her out of misery in the morning. I cannot see letting her suffer anymore. I am sure if I knew what to do and look for, I could have headed this thing off sooner.

 

[junebuggena]

Wood ash and DE are not going to treat an active lice/mite outbreak. You need a targeted pesticide for that. Pyrethrin works really well, and is safe to use. DE can actual damage chickens' respiratory systems, and isn't good for your lungs either.
Calcium will not help a hen pass a shell-less egg that is already past the shell gland. She may be laying internally.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Update:
One chicken died - was fine in the morning, eating and drinking. Later that day, it just laid down and I brought it in. That evening it died. It wouldn't take anything to eat or drink by a dropper.
The chicken I originally brought in that was sick is still sick. She is has been waddling like a penguin. I gave her calcium because I thought she was egg bound. I thought when I examined her I felt an egg. So I put her in the warm water, massaged her, fed her calcium several times. I tried to get her to eat grit in case it was digestive, but she wouldn't have it. She has been treated for mites and lice, as when I went to soak her, they were crawling onto me. We treat all the chickens with wood ash and diatomaceous clay anyway, as well as spread it in their coop. I have no idea what is wrong, but now she is swollen like a balloon. I don't want to do it, but I think my husband will be putting her out of misery in the morning. I cannot see letting her suffer anymore. I am sure if I knew what to do and look for, I could have headed this thing off sooner.

What type of food/treats do you feed?

Wood ash and DE are good for adding to dust bathing areas. But if you are seeing an infestation, it would be best to treat the flock and coop with Permethrin. This can be found in spray or dust form. Mite/lice infestations can cause problems if too heavy, so best to get them under control.

Your sick hen - her abdomen feels like a water balloon. This is most likely an internal laying/reproductive disorder like Egg Yolk Peritonitis or Ascites. Fluids can accumulate in the abdomen causing infection. If there is fluid, some people do drain it to give the hen some relief. This would need to be drained periodically, so your time and commitment to her would be needed. Antibiotic treatment is usually not that successful, but could give her some comfort for a short period of time.

If you do put this hen down, I suggest that you send her for necropsy. Testing is the only way to know for sure the cause of illness/death.

Clean and sanitize your water stations and make sure feed is fresh and not getting wet/moldy. If you have a vet, it wouldn't hurt to take some fecal samples for testing of internal parasites as well.

Here's more info on internal laying issues"
http://www.chickenvet.co.uk/health-and-common-diseases/egg-laying-issues/index.aspx
http://scoopfromthecoop.nutrenaworld.com/tag/laying-issues/
http://www.hobbyfarms.com/livestock-and-pets/6-causes-of-chicken-swollen-abdomen.aspx
http://www.theveterinaryexpert.com/backyard-poultry/egg-yolk-peritonitis/

Good article on mite/lice - prevention and treatment:
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/08/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification.html