Watery poop and gurgling breathing

[Ibabz2]

I was just delivered a 15 week old Easter Egger from dare2dream farms. Unfortunately they're closed on weekends but I need help identifying if my new chicken is sick. She is in a dog crate but hasn't moved, eaten, or drank. I assume a lot of that is stress related given the car ride and looks like she was pecked a lot as she has missing feathers on her back side.

I cant tell if she is stressed or sick given she makes a gurgling sound when she breaths almost like a snoring person. Is this the sign of an infection? Also, her only poop was really watery. Any thoughts on if she is sick?

 

[Brookethechickenwhisperer]

Since she is weak, I would probably give her some electrolytes.

 

[micstrachan]

Since you ordered from Dare2Dream, that places you in California, correct? I think your chicken (age?) is sick, or at a minimum, stressed. Is that egg yolk in the poop?

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

Greetings Ibabz2,

The chicken is most likely stressed, as well, however, her poop is high in urates, and no significant food. She is very ill. The yellow is telling me she has liver stress, perhaps due to infection. The dark brown/reddish colored part can be some cecal poop, blood, stomach lining or just brown feces. Whatever it is, it is very concerning. Gurgling is probably respiratory infection.

You can take her temperature to see if she has a fever. Normal temperature range for a hen is 105 to 107.

Keep her isolated in quarantine. She should be in a temp. of 75-80 degrees F. No drafts, and a quiet place.

I agree with Brookethechickenwhisperer, you should administer an oral dose of full strength electrolytes, also put some in the water. She also needs an oral dose of vitamin supplement, with B12, for three days, to stimulate appetite.

If you are going to keep her she'll need medical intervention. I would start her on a broad spectrum antibiotic. If you want to keep her organic, that may not be possible due to the severity of her illness.

She also needs a fecal float test for internal parasites, coccidia is a consideration.

Offer her some diced watermelon to get her eating and hydrate her. If she eats, you can offer other things, egg, cooked brown rice, meat protein, cooked frozen mixed vegies, etc. Hopefully she will start drinking as well. If not...you'll have to hydrate her manually.

Her missing feathers will grow back, if you can get back to good health.

Yup, she's going to need some special care.

These are my thoughts on your hen's issue. I hope they are helpful.

God Bless.

 

[Ibabz2]

Since you ordered from Dare2Dream, that places you in California, correct? I think your chicken (age?) is sick, or at a minimum, stressed. Is that egg yolk in the poop?

Yes - California and she went from near Santa Barbara to 4 or more hours north to me. They told me she is about 12-15 weeks old and was stressed due to the car ride.

 

[Ibabz2]

Greetings Ibabz2,

The chicken is most likely stressed, as well, however, her poop is high in urates, and no significant food. She is very ill. The yellow is telling me she has liver stress, perhaps due to infection. The dark brown/reddish colored part can be some cecal poop, blood, stomach lining or just brown feces. Whatever it is, it is very concerning. Gurgling is probably respiratory infection.

You can take her temperature to see if she has a fever. Normal temperature range for a hen is 105 to 107.

Keep her isolated in quarantine. She should be in a temp. of 75-80 degrees F. No drafts, and a quiet place.

I agree with Brookethechickenwhisperer, you should administer an oral dose of full strength electrolytes, also put some in the water. She also needs an oral dose of vitamin supplement, with B12, for three days, to stimulate appetite.

If you are going to keep her she'll need medical intervention. I would start her on a broad spectrum antibiotic. If you want to keep her organic, that may not be possible due to the severity of her illness.

She also needs a fecal float test for internal parasites, coccidia is a consideration.

Offer her some diced watermelon to get her eating and hydrate her. If she eats, you can offer other things, egg, cooked brown rice, meat protein, cooked frozen mixed vegies, etc. Hopefully she will start drinking as well. If not...you'll have to hydrate her manually.

Her missing feathers will grow back, if you can get back to good health.

Yup, she's going to need some special care.

These are my thoughts on your hen's issue. I hope they are helpful.

God Bless.

Thank you for the help!! She is doing a bit better now, eats regularly (medicated starter feed) but still wont drink water which I'm not sure why. I manually feed her water in the morning and evenings. I've mixed a small amount of ACV in her water which seems to have decreased the gurgling sound significantly. She doesn't seem interested in any other foods like corn, tomato, strawberry, or grapes just her feed. She is still in quarantine and I am thinking of still taking her to the vet. Her poop looks back to normal but every now and again it looks like she drooled - clear, sticky liquid from her mouth to the food bowl. I am not sure what it is but it looks like drool. If she isn't better my Monday which would be a week I'll be taking her to the vet to see if they can run any tests.

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

It's been three days since your original post.

Is she still pooping the same, or has it gotten better? Is she eating and drinking water?

Is she active, or just sitting and sleepy?

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

Hm-m-m, guess there was a delay in the arrival of your response.
You just answered all my questions.

But, I am glad to hear she is doing a bit better. If she is eating her feed and poop is more solid that is good.

Check her crop in the mornings to make sure it is emptying properly. Even though her poop is better, a slow crop can quickly cause health problems.

As for the drooling, I would check the hen's mouth.

You should restrain the hen by wrapping her in a bath towel. Then, quietly talk to the hen, while stroking her wattles, to calm her.

Gently, but firmly, open her beak and look inside her mouth. Are there any white, grey or yellowish growths? Try to also look into her throat. Growths may be causing excessive saliva.

It's possible for her to have either Thrush or Canker. Thrush can cause drooling, which looks mucousy.

Copper sulfate in the water will treat both conditions, and Nystatin oral suspension, or Miconazole Nitrate if it is Thrush/yeast infection (candidiasis), or, Metronidazole if it is Canker (trichomonosis).

Both conditions are similar in symptoms.

I hope she gets better, poor baby.

God Bless

 

[Ibabz2]

It's been three days since your original post.

Is she still pooping the same, or has it gotten better? Is she eating and drinking water?

Is she active, or just sitting and sleepy?

She's more active now, drinks water, and eats but I found blood in her poop today and she still sounds like she has a stuffy nose and sneezes from time to time.

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

That looks more like stomach lining which sheds from time to time. Normal.

The poop has improved from what it was previously.

Sneezing? Is the gurgling gone? Yes, she is prime for an upper respiratory infection due to the stress. Stay on top of it. You can treat the symptoms for now. A dab of VetRx oil on the nostrils, under the eyes, and under the wing pits, will soothe her symptoms.

If she starts to have discharge from the nostrils, you'll have to treat with a broad spectrum antibiotic, or you can us some Denagard liquid in the water. You can order some online.

Good that she is eating, a well fed bird has a better chance of healing.