Watery poop

[Wyorp Rock]

That article states: "Chickens older than 4 months develop resistance to roundworms; the mature chicken’s immune system kicks out most of the bums." I've read similar sentiments elsewhere. So I started treatment today on all the whole flock and will do the 5-day course. In handling them all within a short time tonight, I noticed that a few felt skinny to me. I think worming was overdue. Fingers crossed.

But now I have a new problem -- baldness on my Australorp this evening. See attached pic. She was absolutely positively NOT bald this morning. I checked her all over for mites, etc. and see nothing. Her skin is not irritated at all. Despite being the biggest chicken, she is very low in the order.

I think I have a very big bully. And I suspect it is my BO.

You are right. The article does say that! Chickens don't build resistance, but some do believe they can carry a load and not be effected. Worms are parasites, so controlling them is the best thing to do.

Do you happen to have a rooster?
If not, then likely a dominant hen is pulling feathers. I would just keep watch on it. Do they have plenty of space?

 

[HeyHo]

Yes, hopefully treating them all for worms will improve the SS's health. I should have done it long ago.

And I don't have a rooster. The head hen is a BO who has become very aggressive lately. We have had some predator issues (fox that's been lurking, a nearby hawk's nest and a neighborhood dog that has been "visiting"), which have made the hens very anxious. They now do predator calls for passing bunnies, chipmunks and turkeys. Because of this, they are spending less time outside the secure run/coop. I think the stress level, the worm issue and less outside time has made them all jumpy, including the BO.

I will get them more supervised free time and increase the "activities" in the run. Hopefully, that will settle things down.

Thanks for all of your help and support!

 

[HeyHo]

Wyorp Rock

I finished the 5-day worm treatment yesterday and all seemed well. Girls were active and peppy, eating great, laying eggs. This afternoon Alice was standing around with her eyes closed and her bum feathers were wet and poopy. I cleaned her up, gave her a scrambled egg and brought her into a quiet warm room. I checked to see if she's egg bound (she seems to be pulsing her vent), but I couldn't feel anything. The skin below her vent is red and irritated, which is to be expected from the state of her feathers. She has pooped in the crate, I will include a pic below in case it is helpful.

Thoughts on anything else I should be doing?

And do you think this indicates that her underlying problem was not worms?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Has she been laying eggs?

 

[HeyHo]

Yes, I believe she laid an egg yesterday. She was in and out of the nesting box today. She and one of my others lay the same size/color, so I can't be sure that she laid today.

In case it is relevant, one of my others had a shell less egg yesterday (a production breed that sometimes has two eggs in one day). So I gave them all wet feed today with yogurt and extra calcium. They have oyster shell on the side and I feed layer feed.

 

[HeyHo]

And she just had a completely normal-looking poop, but she's still pulsing her vent and closing her eyes.

 

[HeyHo]

And just as I was getting ready to soak her in a warm bath, convinced that she was egg bound, she laid a shell less egg in the crate.

This is all very very odd. Two hens laying shell less eggs in a 24-hour period? Even with layer feed and after an extra calcium boost today?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

And just as I was getting ready to soak her in a warm bath, convinced that she was egg bound, she laid a shell less egg in the crate.

This is all very very odd. Two hens laying shell less eggs in a 24-hour period? Even with layer feed and after an extra calcium boost today?

Glad she was able to expel the egg.

Are your hens stressed? Anything different - new birds introduced, change in feed/housing, etc.? Any lice/mites? Predator lurking about?
These things can also contribute to reproductive "hiccups".

I would keep watch on them, see if they lay any more. If they do, then think back what may be stressing them (chickens are affected by many things that we may not notice). If they continue, then I would give them 1/2 tablet Caltrate for 3-4 days, no more than that since excess calcium can affect their health as well.

 

[HeyHo]

Alice spent the night in the bathroom, ate a little, but is puffed up and lethargic today. She is pulsing her vent, with white liquid coming out. I soaked her in a warm bath and she is resting now, but clearly uncomfortable. On the positive side, when she poops it looks normal.

As for stresses, we have been having predator issues that make all the hens anxious. My head hen has become a bully and the whole flock squawks at every little thing. They have started pushing each other out of the nesting boxes, so I have had some broken eggs. There was also another shell less egg this morning from someone in the flock.

Nothing else has changed. No new additions, feed is the same, run and coop are the same. This same group of chickens has been together -- without issue -- for over a year.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Can you feel inside her vent about 1-2" for an egg?

Sounds like she's working on another one - if it's a soft shelled egg those are hard to expel.
I would go ahead and give her 1/2 tablet of Caltrate or 1 TUMS for quick uptake of Calcium.
If you have it, I would also direct dose her with poultry vitamins like Poultry Nutri-Drench or Poultry Cell.

The white liquid coming out - that's a bit concerning too. Can you tell if it's urates or possibly egg material?

If your girls are anxious/stressed due to predator pressure, this would be a contributing factor in the egg quality problems.

What's going on - what type of predator? You may need to trap and dispatch some predators to get your flock back into good health.