Suddenly strange-acting, cold, limp hen - please help!

[Viergacht]

It was emotionally rough, because Raquel was my favorite girl, but I did take her to the state vet for a necropsy. They're right down the road from us and it only cost $12, I did it for peace of mind worrying about the other hens.

Turns out she had a metabolic problem called visceral gout. Not sure what caused it, but dehydration and eating layer pellets instead of pullet growth pellets when she was younger might have been causes. Luckily it is nothing contagious; I'm keeping an eye on the other hens and added a booster to their water just in case of stress.

She was a good girl. I'll miss her a lot

 

[Eggcessive]

Thank you so much for reporting about the necropsy. Glad that you got a diagnosis. Visceral gout sometimes can be diagnosed by white deposits on organs throughout the body. There can be a number of different causes. Here is a good article to read about the 2 types of gout with pictures:
https://thepoultrysite.com/articles/gout-management-in-poultry

This picture shows the white urate deposits on the heart and liver of a chicken with visceral gout

 

[glassdragonfly]

Don't confuse weed killer with insecticides, although they are both consider "pesticides". Most weed killers, yeah, including the evil Roundup, will not kill chickens unless you use something that has a petroleum base. They work by speeding up the life process of the plant and it literally outgrows itself.

Insecticides are neuro toxins and that's why they kill insects. But they will also effectively kill chickens. They also cause nerve damage to people.

The safest herbicide to use is 2 -4D. It has a half life of just a few days, and chickens can safely be pastured on it just a couple days after application. It's most likely the one you will be using as it does not affect grasses.

Yes,We are planning on using 2-4D,looking for the safest option that will work. I just never thought about bug or weed killer getting reconstituted with rain. I don't even like using chemicals but we are going to have to.This weed is everywhere. Thank you for the heads up on this!

 

[ValerieJ]

It was emotionally rough, because Raquel was my favorite girl, but I did take her to the state vet for a necropsy. They're right down the road from us and it only cost $12, I did it for peace of mind worrying about the other hens.

Turns out she had a metabolic problem called visceral gout. Not sure what caused it, but dehydration and eating layer pellets instead of pullet growth pellets when she was younger might have been causes. Luckily it is nothing contagious; I'm keeping an eye on the other hens and added a booster to their water just in case of stress.

She was a good girl. I'll miss her a lot

 

[azygous]

Yes,We are planning on using 2-4D,looking for the safest option that will work. I just never thought about bug or weed killer getting reconstituted with rain. I don't even like using chemicals but we are going to have to.This weed is everywhere. Thank you for the heads up on this!

Pesticides have what is called a "half life". That means how long it remains active in the environment. 2-4D is an herbicide. It breaks down in just days and disappears. It will not reconstitute when it rains or if you irrigate. Even if it did, it wouldn't kill your chickens.

Insecticides can remain toxic for longer than herbicides, except for the herbicides that require a license to buy and apply. Those can keep killing plants for years, but while they are often carcinogenic, they won't kill your chickens. It is bug killers that you need to be aware that rain can leach them out of potted plants and deposit the chemical in lethal puddles that chickens might drink. This happened to a hen of mine after I sprayed some potting soil to get rid of cut worms. I wasn't thinking. If I had been, I would have used my eager chickens to get rid of the cut worms.