Starving chicken: a true mystery

[staceyj]

Is there any puffiness or swelling in her rear? I had a hen that had a lot of your hen's symptoms this past spring/summer. After reading here I assumed that it was due to the condition (can't remember the name) where eggs build up in the system (not egg binding). I assumed she was going to die, but once it got into fall and flock egg laying diminished, she got back to normal.

Perhaps you are referring to internal laying or acites?

 

[staceyj]

Hi all - thank you so much for your insight. Exactly what I was hoping to get from this group! More info and answers to questions below:

• I haven't seen a solid looking poop out of her since September and was taking her in to clean her sludgy butt fluff in the sink once a week. The diarrhea got worse about a month ago - no more brown stuff and it shoots out super clear liquid (sorry for the imagery but I'm sure you're all used to it) and clears the fluff by nearly a foot! More like a squirt from a high pressure hose This is what makes me think it's not just the molt but I could be wrong.
• I haven't checked for mites specifically - had her at two vets who I would hope have noticed, but I'll look into that!
• She seems to see just fine. I can see here pupils changing in size to focus on what I'm putting in front of her and she finds mealworms on the ground no problem. Beak looks fine too, and she's not interested in soft foods either, so might rule that out.
• She goes back and forth between acting totally normal (85% of days) and being lethargic (25% of the time). She's generally pretty active but we've had a few bad days where she just wants to sleep a lot.
• No evidence of masses as "evident on palpation" - thanks for making me clarify, no radiographs done
  
• Her normal diet consists of Purina layer crumbles at 16% protein. Lately, I've been cooking more for her than for us! I made her scrambled eggs and she was interested for a while, then no longer wanted them, doesnt seem to like oatmeal warm or cold, despite exotic toppings like mealworms and cheese, cheese has been an overall favorite but I can't imagine that's too healthy in the long run and even so, she'll only eat it occasionally. Tried giving her some leftover rice yesterday and she turned her nose up. Will add canned fish and watermelon to the list.
• In all cases I end up giving her leftovers to the rest of the flock, and she's more interested in eating when they're around. She won't push into the bowl, but runs around eating the food they spray everywhere else...when 2 minutes prior she wouldn't touch the stuff on her own. When i throw food on the ground, she's right in there with them.
• She's in a good sized run with 5 other hens. They're a pretty docile group split into the three pushier ones (usually she's in that club) and the two younger scrubs. There's a single feeder in there but she's always fed with the pushy club, and no one would dare peck her or push her out. I'm watching closely for signs of ill will, dirty looks, etc, but she just seems disinterested in food. The single feeder theory wouldn't explain why she doesn't gobble up food when I put her by herself.
• We live in northern california, so no radical change to weather. Her symptoms started during the summer when it was marginally warmer. Their run is covered to keep it dry, but the roof is clear so they have sunshine all day.
• I haven't had a a bacterial culture or gram stain done - what might that show us?

I'll add some photos when I get home. Again, thank you all so much!

I agree with everything that @azygous said.
I switched to an feather fixer because a few of mine were taking a molt particularly hard.
Wow! They LOVE it.
I thought they had a pretty good appetite previously. It I was shocked with the enthusiasm with which they consume this stuff.
All but one are finished up and resumed laying this week. The last one got a very late start.
She looks godawful and has resigned her previous post as head hen without even being challenged.
Many of the behaviors you've described about yours are ringing the same bells with mine, excluding the diarrhea.
There IS a psychological component to this process, the hesitancy to "get in the game", eating just the cast offs, self-exile...
It's almost as if she's embarrassed, horrified even to be seen in her current state.

 

[HenOnAJuneBug]

Perhaps you are referring to internal laying or acites?

That's it - internal laying.

 

[lisasea]

You guys are geniuses and so helpful! Thank you!

The vet's going to call me back tomorrow and now I can sound super smart when I ask about bacterial cultures. Will also see if she wants to brunch with a friend tomorrow morning rather than eating with the whole flock. I'll ask the vet about internal laying as well, and it seems like the bacterial tests would help identify that too.

NEW DEVELOPMENT: she just went to town on some leftover shredded cabbage. I haven't seen her eat like that in months. It was mixed with little bits of carrots and cilantro but she only picked out the cabbage. She ate it in front of her friends, and alone in the house once they went to bed. Why cabbage??? I didn't think it had that much nutrition in it, so maybe it's the texture? Also, she seems most interested in binge eating at night, when we take her inside to monitor her overnight. But she won't eat by herself in the morning.

Here are a few photos of waddles, feet, general demeanor. She was mad that I interrupted her cabbage chow down and was getting sleepy, so she does look a bit more spritely in person. They aren't very flattering so I thought I'd do her justice by posting some pre-illness photos at the end. She's pretty vain...always has been, and I do my best to honor it.

 

[lissalischicks]

I don't know if this will help but have you tried NutriDrench to get her some appetite and some nutrients? I had to do that with my girl and it perked her up a lot! Also got some grower feed mixed with water and she started to eat

 

[Kathy Golla]

I hope the vet checked for this.
Is she running a fever?
Intestinal infection.

 

[Kathy Golla]

Have you checked the bottom of her feet? My buff is very prone to bruising her foot pads. It could be she's in pain and can't move around well?

 

[azygous]

She sure looks like a character to be reckoned with. Does she get along with that canine dude? What a pair!

I have been thinking about her all afternoon, and after you described some of her food preferences, I'm beginning to wonder if she has a condition called pendulous crop, especially after seeing photos of her in profile.

This is a condition where the crop isn't supported adequately by the chest muscles, and that causes it not to properly empty each night. In fact, it may not empty completely by morning, and this could cause her to feel "full" and not have an appetite.

Years ago, when I had only had chickens for just a few years, I had an EE who was getting skinnier and skinnier. This was in spite of her always seeming to have a full crop. In fact, it was often so full, it swung down low like heavy baggage.

I was clueless. That precious hen had pendulous crop and I had never even heard of it. She finally got so weak, she could barely walk. I had to euthanize her. If I had only known that I could make her a crop bra to support her heavy crop, it would have emptied as it should, and she could have led a normal life.

I realize your vet has ruled out crop issues, but please do a crop check tonight, and again in the morning before you offer her anything to eat. If her crop is still full, then we will know that this quite possibly could be the reason why she's losing weight. Her food simply isn't being digested and she isn't absorbing the amount of nutrients she needs to maintain weight.

 

[lisasea]

I don't know if this will help but have you tried NutriDrench to get her some appetite and some nutrients? I had to do that with my girl and it perked her up a lot! Also got some grower feed mixed with water and she started to eat

I've actually been reading your thread and have been following along since the symptoms seem so similar! I haven't tried NurtiDrench but I'm def grabbing some to have on hand. So glad to hear it's been working for Pepper (right?).

She's has probiotics in her water now, but she's been on antibiotics from the vet for a few weeks, and we were advised not to mix probiotics with antibiotics since they'd just negate each other. So we'll see if that helps too. I get my hands on some of that yummy feed everyone's talking about as well.

 

[staceyj]

Her comb color doesn’t indicate that she’s resumed laying... and isn’t alarmingly pale, considering it’s winter, she’s just come off a molt, as far as feathers are concerned they look lovely!
Here come the questions:Was it just this one moment when you took these pictures or is this her posture now... has her tail always been down like that since this all started?
THAT is a red flag for me.
The shoulders are up the tail is tucked.
What does her abdomen feel like?
Like a water balloon?
What does her stance look like from the front?
Are her legs wider spread that they used to be?