Very sick Brahma Rooster-Please help

[SkyeBleu]

I have an 8-9 year old Brahma rooster. His comb is pale, and he is very, very thin now. I have done the Wazine wormer, a gentle flush with the molasses, egg, yogurt, honey water, etc. He ate some yesterday and the day before but today he looks weaker and feels thinner. I also put some vitamins and electrolytes on his food.

He is a large bird looks wise but there isn't much to him. He's eaten some grass, some grain. I don't know what to do.... I'm afraid to put the pour on Ivermectin on him since he's so weak and thin and it hasn't been a week yet. Poops are small but somewhat green and normal looking. I floated some in water but saw no worms... don't know if that's a test or not.

Symptoms:
Pale comb
Thin and getting thinner
Weak
Sleeps alot, holds head down but can lift it so is that botulissum?
No blood or wounds I can see on him or in his stools.



All my chickens get Purnia Sunfresh, Purina Scratch, and DE.

He's in his own cage that's large and has fresh air. Clean chips on his dirt floor.

 

[dawg53]

Did you visually inspect him for lice or mites? Check him out real well if you would, use a magnifying glass to help you spot mites if you've got one.

 

[SkyeBleu]

I've checked him out and he appears clear. I've also dusted his bedding with DE and him. I've dealt with bugs on him before so I know what to look for.

 

[SkyeBleu]

1) What type of bird , age and weight.
Light Brahma, 8-9 years old. Weight, don't know but keel is thin. He looks large but isn't.

2) What is the behavior, exactly.
Sitting in cage alot to start, then sleepy acting. Perks up now and then and was walking somewhat. He is now very quiet, not moving much, and isn't eating today.

3) Is there any bleeding, injury, broken bones or other sign of trauma.
Pale comb and wattles, lays around with eyes closed. Feathers look good. Legs, vent etc. look good. No sign of bugs.

4) What happened, if anything that you know of, that may have caused the situation.
None that I know of. I live in So. Oregon but it's been very dreary and raining here for a month. He's in an enclosed coop without any standing water or rain on him though. He stopped roosting about quite awhile ago, and acted like it was hard for him to roost. He's a large bird, almost the size of a turkey. My husband even built him a special lower roost but he keeps roosting on the ground. We put down a plastic covered piece of cardboard and then a layer of pine shavings for him. He has both to choose from. We do have a problem with voles getting into their hanging food buckets. My husband's been dumping it out all the time though.

5) What has the bird been eating and drinking, if at all.
Purina Sunfresh Pellets and same brand scratch. Some grass, fresh water.

6) How does the poop look? Normal? Bloody? Runny? etc.
Very small stools now due to not eating. It's firm and somewhat greenish.

7) What has been the treatment you have administered so far?
He's had Piperzine treatment four days ago. A slight molasses flush after that with eggs, oatmeal mush, and yogurt.

Today I did an epsom salt flush in desperation. I've also done Vitamins and Electrolyte in water and dripped into his mouth. His crop is full now of water. I also dropped some water down yogurt. He's been dusted for mites with DE and Sevin.

I've also done VetRx on his comb, wattles, nostril, and under his wings in case it's resp. but he doesn't look like he has a cold.

8 ) What is your intent as far as treatment? For example, do you want to treat completely yourself, or do you need help in stabilizing the bird til you can get to a vet?
No vets around here will do chickens....Will treat myself.

9) If you have a picture of the wound or condition, please post it. It may help.
No wound, he looks healthy except for pale comb and wattles.

10) Describe the housing/bedding in use
He's in a enclosed coop of his own, it's large and spacious with good air flow. Dirt floor but we have pine shaving for him with DE on it and it's covered with a roof, chicken wire, and gets light and fresh air. We clean his coop frequently and his bedding.

 

[Knittycat]

If he's 9 years old, hey *may* just be reaching the end of his lifespan. That's about the average lifespan of a chicken, although they can live longer. Treat any illness, keep him comfy, but it may just be old age.

 

[SkyeBleu]

That's what we are thinking.... He was my very first chicken and I've brought him back from grave illness before. I won't go into details, it was creepy and crawling from a bb shot it looked like. Anyway, he's a very gentle giant. My husband and I can both go in and handle him without any problems. He's so sweet and this is killing me.

I got some NurtiDrench for Poultry today, gave him 6 ml. straight into the mouth and 3 more cc's of water. His crop was full, he passed some water late tonight and some slight poo. It was smelly, couldn't see the color really. He didn't touch any food or water except for what I gave him. He's laying with his head and beak down. I've built up his clean litter, protected him from drafts, and placed a rolled up cloth to hold his head up. I hate this......

 

[allieloveschickens]

Poor guy, sounds like you are taking good care of him. I agree that it is likely just old age.

 

[yotetrapper]

Sorry for you, I lost both my first hen and first duck this past winter. It sucks, but, I guess that will always be part of keeping critters around.