Yellow Poop & Lethargy (pictures included)

[Honeysuckle x]

• Blue Copper Marans hen
• 6 months old (roughly)
• Started laying about 3 weeks ago and has been laying 6 days/week since. Did not lay yesterday and has not today.
• Was acting completely normal yesterday afternoon aside from poking around the nest box pretty late (around 5pm). This morning she was in the nest box when I opened the coop and came out to join the others by the door to the run. She was already acting very lethargic at this point but still alert, so I assumed she was simply out of it due to an impending egg. Checked on her again an hour later and she was in the same place in the door to the run, looking uncomfortable, barely moving.
• No others in the flock have been acting abnormally.
• Since separating her and bringing her inside (4 hours ago) she has passed 4 very liquid yellow poops (pictured below). When she needs to poop her breathing becomes more laboured. She is standing with her wings loose and her eyes closed.
• No signs of injury.
• She has no interest in food or water, though I have been able to get her some fluids by dipping her beak.
• They're in a prefab metal shed converted into a coop with straw bedding that gets completely replaced once a week.
• Eating 18% layer pellets with occasional free range. Free choice oyster shells and grit. Free ranged them yesterday if she might have picked something up outside.

 

[Sally PB]

I'm going to tag a few people who know more than I do.
@azygous
@Eggcessive
@Wyorp Rock
Can you tell what's going on with this pullet?

 

[Eggcessive]

I would give some human calcium citrate 600 mg with D3. You can get tablets at Walmart under the Equate brand. Tums or other calcium may help until you can get the other tomorrow. I would suspect a reproductive disorder where she has had egg break inside, or having trouble laying. If they lay shell-less eggs, those can break inside or become egg bound easily. If she is still acting like this repeat the calcium until she lays or is feeling better.

 

[azygous]

I would say she's having a problem passing an egg. The poop points to it, the posture points to it, the closed eyes point to distress, and her recent laying history points to it. Give her a calcium tablet immediately. Do not crush it or dilute it. Give whole. Ideally, give her calcium citrate, around 320mg, but if Tums is all you have on hand and can't go buy the citrate, give the Tums by breaking it into two pieces and stuffing one piece at a time into her beak. She will swallow easily.

It usually takes about an hour for it to work. Monitor her poop for signs of broken egg. In case you see that, she will then need an antibiotic to head off infection from the broken yolk.

By the way, a hen that is feeling the urge to lay an impending egg will not be lethargic. She will act restless and will often be repetitively vocal until she decides to head for a nest to settle in to lay her egg.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Looks like there's egg yolk and albumen along with a bit of poop.

I agree, I'd get Calcium into her asap. I suspect that she's had a membrane rupture and is having a hard time expelling it. She may also have a soft shelled egg on the way too.

If she were mine and I saw just yolk and albumen expelled (no signs of membrane/shell, etc.) then I'd start an antibiotic. Amoxicillin would be choice, but it's hard to get anymore, so if you have something on hand let us know.

But do get the Calcium into her, it's extremely important.

 

[BARobbins]

We had our hen do this as well after free ranging in the garden. She was hiding al puffed and out so I took her and gave the epsom salt bath massaged her underside checking for egg bound, crop massage etc. gave her a full spa treatment and in isolation for 24 hrs. since then she has came right back to her normal self again for the past several weeks. good luck!