- Jul 26, 2013
- 8
- 0
- 7
Hi. I'm hoping to get some new ideas of things to try for my sick hen. I'll give you a little history first. She is 1 year, 7 months old. This past summer, she was in good health and laying regularly. She became broody in July and was very stubborn about it. I tried everything to get her to stop but she persisted for 6-7 weeks. When she finally stopped, she was thin and weak from sitting even though I had been feeding her extras 3-4 times a day. She became more active, but went straight into molting. She was active during the molt..(my hens free range everyday in our yard)..but not as active as she was before she became broody and molted. She also seemed to get tired easily. I started feather fixer when she started molting and gave free choice oyster shell. She has now finished molting and for the last 3 weeks she has been weak and sedentary. She sits with her feathers fluffed up and her eyes closed. She has no nasal drainage, cough or wheezing. Her comb and wattles are pale but her eyes are clear and bright with no swelling. She walks straight without a limp and gets up to eat and drink and takes dirt baths. She is mite free. She has watery poop with no obvious blood. Three weeks ago I started bringing her in at night so she wouldn't get chilled and so I could watch her for problems. When she really didn't perk up, I took her to a vet. He couldn't find any problems. Lungs were clear. Couldn't feel any eggs that may be bound. He gave her meloxicam for pain and an injectable (SQ) antibiotic for two days. When she still didn't improve, I started her on VetRx and Sulmet even though she had no obvious infection. Three weeks have past and she's not much better. I take her out after giving her several things to eat and drink like seedless watermelon, tomatoes, cheese, turkey, milk and water, bread and scrambled eggs. She usually eats pretty good. She walks around for a while with the others then heads to the coop to roost and sleep. I'm still bringing her in each night and giving her some extras from the list before she goes to sleep. She's still thin and weak. She's still not laying, but that's the least of my concerns. I just want her to feel better. Does anyone have any suggestions or ideas about what this could be? She's a Buff Orpington by the way. Thanks for the help!!!
