Young hen sick with possibly bumblefoot??

[whitewood]

Dear All Chicken Rearing Veterans out there,
Please help! Our 9-month-old California Gray hen has been looking sick for a while. At first, we thought it is possibly from some internal laying.... she pooped an egg (literally see egg yolk and white) out maybe 2 weeks ago. She didn't look so well so we kept her in a cage and fed her medicated feed for chicks and gave her probiotic drink. She was rather lethargic and didn't eat much ... she drank a lot though. We managed to feed her some food but not a lot. She seemed to have gotten better after about 3 days so we send her back to the flock.

But after a few days, we find she is not as active as before, mostly quiet, looking sleepy, cold, and eating not that much so we kept her in again, esp. to keep her from the cold wind. Her poop has been very watery and we fed her as best as we can shoving the food into her mouth. When we did that, she ate. Then she seemed to get better and we let her back to the flock again.

However, we see that her situation is not getting better, and now as we observe and check her, she looks like she may be having bumblefoot. We are not sure as we are relatively new to chicken rearing. I just compare her foot condition to pictures on the web. She seems to have some dark patches on her legs (not sure if this was how she has been). She has now lost a lot of weight, thin to her bones.

Can anyone help take a look at the pictures to help identify if she is indeed having bumblefoot or any other illnesses? And any suggestions of cure would also be most appreciated. Thank you!

 

[cherrynberry]

Is her poop healthy?
Do you provide grit?
And do you feed layer feed or extra calcium?

 

[whitewood]

Is her poop healthy?
Do you provide grit?
And do you feed layer feed or extra calcium?

Her poop has been rather watery since her pooping out the egg. At first it was less watery with little bits of green ... now it's more watery and with mustardy color. Sometimes her poop is quite forceful (splashing out). She pooped as I was typing so I took a picture of it (see below).

We provide grit now and then, not all the time but they are able to free range in a large area and they have dustbath with mixture of sand and peat moss.

Yes, we provide layer feed mixed with oyster shell free flow in their protected run. We also supplement with dried meal worms, veggies scraps, tofu, etc. For her, I have been offering her all of the above plus medicated chick feed. We see that she's more willing to eat some than the others (she's probably picky) but she's not eating a lot.

 

[Eggcessive]

She does have bumblefoot, but that is not the cause of her problems. That can be treated at some other time. It sounds like she is experiencing reproductive problems and possibly infection or sepsis. Is her crop empty, full, hard, or puffy? Can you see a vet familiar with chickens to see her? She may need antibiotics. The black spots on her legs are puzzling. The might be bruises from pecking, but I really don’t know.

 

[whitewood]

She does have bumblefoot, but that is not the cause of her problems. That can be treated at some other time. It sounds like she is experiencing reproductive problems and possibly infection or sepsis. Is her crop empty, full, hard, or puffy? Can you see a vet familiar with chickens to see her? She may need antibiotics. The black spots on her legs are puzzling. The might be bruises from pecking, but I really don’t know.

Her crop feels fine. Somehow today she is eating quite well. Maybe it's because we gave her other more delicious food (tofu, egg yolk, worms, kale) than the regular chicken feed. I am keeping her separate from the other chickens during the night and when she is with them sometimes during the day, she usually stays by herself and the others are not pecking her. I will try to call the vet tomorrow.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would just check her crop in the morning to make sure that it is emptying overnight. If you cannot get a vet, I would look for antibiotics. If it is a reproductive infection, amoxicillin could help. Fish Mox. Is sold in some feed stores and online. Baytril is also good, but it is banned in chickens even though some vets use it to treat reproductive infections.

 

[Birdie mom]

The black spots on her legs are puzzling. The might be bruises from pecking, but I really don’t know.

Lots of my chickens have the leg spot things. They change over time, either by spreading or disappearing. I don't know what they are, but it doesn't seem to hurt them

 

[Birdie mom]

@whitewood, bumblefoot is definitely not your problem. The watery poop is because she isn't eating and is only drinking. I had a chicken experience similar symptoms which I believed to be caused by poisoning (but IDK). My chicken died eventually but hopefully yours won't . First things first, you need to get the hen to eat. She can't recover if her body doesn't have fuel. Try mixing some water into her normal feed, then try to shove some into her beak. She might like that taste and want to eat more. You could also bring her another chicken to show her that the food is good to eat.

Like I said, my chicken died but yours might have a different condition. Here is what my hen had:
1.started waddling around like she was egg bound
2, wouldn't move unless necessary
3. musky smell
4. Loss of appetite
5. discoordination (couldn't see her food)
6. unable to move legs
7. Mine pooped out shelless eggs a few times
8. gradual loss of movement (legs, then wings, then neck)
9. Death

I have had two cases like this. If this is what your hen seems to be doing, then-
I will pray for you little hen

 

[whitewood]

I would just check her crop in the morning to make sure that it is emptying overnight. If you cannot get a vet, I would look for antibiotics. If it is a reproductive infection, amoxicillin could help. Fish Mox. Is sold in some feed stores and online. Baytril is also good, but it is banned in chickens even though some vets use it to treat reproductive infections.

@Eggcessive, thank you for the tips.

 

[whitewood]

@whitewood, bumblefoot is definitely not your problem. The watery poop is because she isn't eating and is only drinking. I had a chicken experience similar symptoms which I believed to be caused by poisoning (but IDK). My chicken died eventually but hopefully yours won't . First things first, you need to get the hen to eat. She can't recover if her body doesn't have fuel. Try mixing some water into her normal feed, then try to shove some into her beak. She might like that taste and want to eat more. You could also bring her another chicken to show her that the food is good to eat.

Like I said, my chicken died but yours might have a different condition. Here is what my hen had:
1.started waddling around like she was egg bound
2, wouldn't move unless necessary
3. musky smell
4. Loss of appetite
5. discoordination (couldn't see her food)
6. unable to move legs
7. Mine pooped out shelless eggs a few times
8. gradual loss of movement (legs, then wings, then neck)
9. Death

I have had two cases like this. If this is what your hen seems to be doing, then-
I will pray for you little hen

@Birdie mom, I am sorry to hear that you lost 2 chickens from poisoning.
Yes, I am trying to get her to eat more. We have been shoving food (medicated feed) into her beak and she will eat but she doesn't quite like us doing that. Other times, when we offer food that she likes - tofu, egg yolk, worms, etc. she will eat them, just not a lot. Maybe it's because she is of a smaller breed (she's the smallest in my flock).

With regards to the symptoms you mentioned ....here's how my hen is doing:
1.started waddling around like she was egg bound - doesn't seem like it
2, wouldn't move unless necessary - she moves but not a lot and quite slowly
3. musky smell - nope
4. Loss of appetite - yes, compare to before but she's still willing/wanting to eat, just not a lot and picking up she wants.
5. discoordination (couldn't see her food) - nope, she's quite alert on where the food is esp. if that's what she likes.
6. unable to move legs - she can move her legs
7. Mine pooped out shell-less eggs a few times - I have seen her done it at least once
8. gradual loss of movement (legs, then wings, then neck) - nope
9. Death

Thank you @Birdie mom, for your message. We are into our 9th month of having chickens and we had already dealt with chicken lice, broken beaks, injured leg, egg-bound, shell-less eggs, chicken with loss of appetite and looked sick but came around, and now this poor young hen ... it's really quite stressful. I am thankful for the chicken community.

Please pray that my little hen (her name is Angel) will recover quickly. Thank you!