"UPDATE page 2" Sleepy Chicken...Is this Normal?

[Biddieacres]

Hi Lurky, I hope she is OK. I am worried about her. I know in my case now I am reading the posts about the antibiotic. That is the only thing I didn't do and I am so sorry I didn't try it. Maybe you should try antibiotic. Or have you already?

 

[lurky]

Quote:
I sure did

After i read the posts from today i went right to it. I noticed her comb is not so red anymore either. If my girl makes it through this, it will be thanks to everyone who shared their experiences.
I still dont see any other symptoms. She does have one eye that seems to want to sleep even when the other is open, but not all the time and its not showing anything is wrong.....not dirty, crusty, foamy, puffy.....nothing

I gave the entire coop sulmet but i also have tylan injectable if i need to try something else if i see things change

 

[Biddieacres]

I am so happy you have the anitbiotic. I will sleep better tonight knowing you have that. I wanted to let you know my chicks eyes were fine as well. They were perfect. Also, no wheezing, sneezing - nothing. Keep up the good work and keep me posted.

 

[chickenzoo]

I am so sorry you lost her.

It is so hard with birds to know what they have or what to treat it with. We all here, have learned from our own or others losses and still are. It SUCKS and hurts but we grow more knowledgeable and share what we've learned with others. Tylan injectable is not too pricy -$9.00 but the powder form is -$35. I would recommend keeping a bottle aswell as poly vi sol vitamins and some Ivomec on hand. I hope you will never need them again but if you keep chickens then more than likely you will one day. It is better to be prepared then to worry. Again so sorry for your son and Family, you did what you could do and you loved her.


Another bit of wisdom, if you think your chicken is feeling off, take a listen to it's chest, right under wing. If you hear weezing/crackling you know a respitory illness is setting in.

 

[lurky]

Quote:
I learned alot since i joined on here at BYC. I write alot in a notebook to remember what is most recommended to use. I also made up a first aid box. I used to have to give my dog antibiotic shots when he was sick, so i know if needed, i can do it. Even though she is lathargic, she perks up too. I let her out in the grass tonight and she acts fine eating grass and walking around, but every now and then she just slows down and seems like she if tired.

 

[hoosier]

I am really sorry for your loss, but at least you know that you did everything you could for her.

 

[MoodyBroody622]

I've had a few chickens with this "sleepy" behavior too. I discovered my problem. I have a roost for them and occassionally a chicken will fall off and sit at the bottom of the roost all night. Chickens have a difficult time seeing so when this happens they stay there until morning. When I open my chicken house door and find them down there I'll help them out and watch them for a while. I'll see them standing around closing their eyes as if they are really tired, which I'm sure they are!

All of my chickens seem sleepy during hot summer days though and will lay around during the hottest part of the day.

I have a sleepy cockerel. I dont think he got much sleep last night as yesterday he was moved into a new home. He has chickens that he is friends and is familiar with but there are also ones that are not. Do you think he could be just tired? I hope so. I am buying antibiotics, wormer, and mite "repellant" tomorrow...

 

[MoodyBroody622]

Oh, I'm so sorry for your loss! That's just heartbreaking!!

I had what sounds like the exact same issue with one of my EE chicks. Long story short, after tons of research & talking with some extremely seasons chicken folks on BYC, I decided to treat him with Sulmet (it seemed like he must have Cocci). That seemed to perk him up a bit for a few days, then he went right back to being extremely lethargic. I then treated with Terramycin, and there was no change whatsoever. I took these pictures while he was at the height of his illness - you can see how he just stood there with his eyes closed:

Then, more research and more e-mail exchanges with experienced chicken folks, and I decided to put him through a round of Tylan. It's a very strong antibiotic. It cured him! In the pics, he's 5-6 weeks old; he is now 13 weeks, and I haven't had any further issues with him. He's turning out to be quite a handsome young fellow, too!

I'm NOT a big believer in treating with antibiotics unless absolutely necessary, but I did find that Tylan really did the trick for me.

I am going to buy some tomorrow! My young cockerel is having this same problem.

 

[Mandaleeee]

I lost a chicken about a month ago to similar symptoms, but the other girls were fine. Well now one of my Ameraucanas is exhibiting similar behavior, but also looks like she is having trouble breathing. She stands with her eyes closed a fair amount during the day, and tonight she was laying on the ground instead of the roost so I had my hubby bring her inside. We gave her some Tylan tonight and have her isolated inside in a dog kennel. How long should I treat her with Tylan? We went with .5cc orally of the injectible stuff. I also ordered some Safeguard (Fenbendazole) so I'll try that if the antibiotics don't help.

We added apple cider vinegar to the general water, DE to the feed, and I'm giving the sick girl electrolytes in her water as well. She seems to be eating well, but so was the other one.