very sick hen and tons of guilt

[trafficgal]

so I'm feeling extremely guilty right now. I have an austroloup whip I think got frostbite on her comb about a month ago (turned brownish on the top) other then that and a bit of feather puffing she seemed fine. our hens are nit big on being handled so I checked her once quickly and she seemed ok (good weight feisty ie put me the he'll down) so I figured she was ok!

well over the past month I've had moments of concern but she seemed to be doing ok not thriving but ok. this afternoon when I went in the coop she was in a corner not moving at all. I left her there thinking she was dead and that I'd have hubby take care ofburying her later but looked in again she was in a different corner (probably should have gotten her out of the coop at that point but I was running out with my kids to the car dealership and had to be there by 2:30. I was happy to see she was alive although she did not look good and I know hiding in a corners not a good thing. when I got back I went strait to the coop she had moved again was New corner and was not moving at all I went about coop chores and noticed slight head lifting. so I got a box put hay in it and put her in it to keep her in a quiet and dark space so she could at least be semi comfy. when I picked her up she was all skin and bones also her comb was wheeling a bit and looked pecked. she can hardly move. I don't have it in me to cull her. my husband will if we are told how (he says he can't handle twisting her neck)

sorry for this looong post. I guess I have a question and that is do I cull her and if so how (is a bullet painful to the bird?)

secondly can someone help me with the guilt? I'm wondering now what more I should have done. I feel horrible!

third do I need to be worried about the rest of My flock?

 

[trafficgal]

I do need to cull her right?

 

[cairns3chooks]

Hi trafficgal, sorry to hear about your girl

I have no experience with frost bite (we live in the tropics), but it seems unlikely to me that a touch of frostbite could cause your chook to get so sick.. Unless perhaps it became infected? How does the comb look now?

Only you can know if she needs to be euthanized or not.. Ours have been very ill and underweight before, but made a full recovery given time and lots of tasty snacks.

If it was me, I think I would try her on some broad spec antibiotic as you never know. But its hard to say without knowing any of her other symptoms!

Do you worm them? And treat for cocci? When we first got ours they were riddled with both, and after 2 days of baycox (anti bio) and wormer, they hugely picked up and put on heaps of weight within a few weeks - just a thought.

Good luck

 

[ernie85017]

Cairns3chooks has given you good advice. Always worm and treat lice and mites.

In the future, be certain to know your birds. Take time to observe their behavior so you can detect a problem early. I have started going out after they have gone to roost and checking their crops to make sure they are eating enough. Feel their keel to make certain they are not losing weight. At the same time you can look for labored breathing, etc. Examine the vent fluff at the skin for lice and mites.

I am NOT telling you to euthanize your birdie, but you should know a gentle way to do it should the need arise.

Get a can of carburetor spray from an auto supply store. Check the label to make sure it says it contains ether.

I just put Big Mama down this way 3 days ago. Get a washcloth and hold your birdie on your lap. Spray the wash cloth with the nozzle close to the cloth and soak it well. Hold it over her face firmly. She will have a reflexive struggle at the end. Big Mama did very little struggling and went to sleep and to chicken heaven.

This is the only way I know how to do it. I know people wring necks, etc, but I just can't do that.

Gail Damerow's book, The Chicken Health Handbook is a good reference.

 

[enola]

Number one rule in chicken keeping - if a chicken just doesn't look "right" it is more than likely already sick. Check the chicken and ask for help.

Number two rule in chicken keeping - we have ALL made mistakes, that is how we learned what we know! Do not feel guilty, ask advice.

.

If you want to try to save her try worming her with Safeguard and treating her with Corid for coccidia. Put her somewhere so you can check her poop. We need to know ehat it looks like. She needs to be warm. We need to know if her crop empties overnight. Is she eating & drinking? How much? Did you look for lice? Wounds?

Chickens can recover from a lot sicker than she sounds.

 

[chickenpatch]

Frost bite wouldn't kill your bird unless it is extremely bad.

It is likely that your hen is sick with something else, but do not cull her without trying to help her!

Worm her as soon as possible, and try making her eat a little bit of yoghurt and fruits, it is a good idea to isolate her from the other hens, to keep her from getting picked on.

 

[trafficgal]

that hen did not make it, another hen showed up sick today (just made a new post about here) how do I go about worming? what is the withdrawl period from Safeguard and how do you get the hen to eat it? what about Corid? withdrawl period?@enola

 

[casportpony]

Safeguard liquid for goats from Tractor Supply. Give 0.23ml per pound orally for five consecutive days.
Corid powder also at Tractor Supply.

Pictures from:http://www.hopkinslivestock.com/oral_dosing_article.htm
The hole at the back of the tongue is the trachea - Nothing should ever go in there!



-Kathy

 

[casportpony]

@trafficgal , when you go to buy your wormer do_not_let the sales people sell you Wazine, make sure you get either the Safeguard liquid for goats or Safeguard paste for horses. Wazine only treats roundworms, Safeguard 5 days in a row will treat roundworms, cecal worms, capillary worms, gape worms and possibly some species of tapeworms.

-Kathy

 

[trafficgal]

How do you check their weight to know the dose? should I also give corid?