Sick chicken - advice please

[CandJ]

Maudey, our Gingernut, isn;t well at all. Any advice would be most welcome.

Symptoms -
She's stopped laying totally. They went soft shelled for a while and now there are no more.
Hunched appearance - she just sits in a corner in the garden with a hunched look.
Skinny ribs. She is still eating a bit - it's hard to monitor as ours are completely free range so just because the food tray is empty doesn;t mean that they've eaten it. She used to eat voraciously though, and she's totally gone off sweetcorn, their evening treat. She seems to be drinking more than usual.
Very unsteady/wobbly - she can't really jump up steps like she used to.
Messy bum. It seems to be congealed egg rather than poo all over her feathers around her bits - her vent itself looks fine.
Moulting.

We've given her worming pellets, and the house is regularly mite dusted. It shouldn;t be old age - she's only 1.

Any advice very very welcomed - this is all quite distressing.
Thanks, James

[Tracey]

Hi James

Sorry about your poorly chicken. You may find some help from here Omlet UK | Forum | View Forum - ...about Poultry Health. Hope she recovers soon.

Tracey

[TPeers]

Sound like some form of infection - I'd think about taking her to the vet if you have a good one near you.

[vicky]

How is she today?

I'd second the vet. Mine charges less for chickens, but I had to phone around to find one.

If it's egg round her vent then it could be a broken egg inside her? That would be very serious. Have you looked at her vent?

Let us know how she is and best of luck
Vicky

[Birdie Wife]

I agree with vicky, it sounds like a soft egg has broken inside her. You could have a go at trying to remove the mess with warm water, then don some surgical gloves and very gently feel inside the vent and remove any egg and shell you find. Egg binding can be very serious and hens can die quite quickly from it. It's important to get her cleaned up asap and the vet may well prescribe antibiotics if the mess inside her has got infected, which is quite likely. Good luck at the vets.

[CandJ]

Thankyou for your suggestions - I tried checking for a bound egg last night and suspect that was the case. i did as suggested and we were planning to go to the vets today but sadly when i went to her house this morning she was lying dead in the doorway. I buried her this morning behing our cherry tree, and planted a sorrel plant, which she had a particualr fondness for eating, on top.

We're both distraught but I genuinely feel I tried my best and i know for sure that while she was alive, she had a jolly nice life. We're wondering how the two bantams we have react to this. One of them was seemingly really looking after her last night when she was ill. They're rootling in the hedge at the moment, apparently unfazed, but we'll keep an eye on them.

Other freinds have said that keeping chickens is a learning experience, which it certainly has been, and we'll recognise this next time. We do want to get more - prehaps two ex-battery hens (we've emailed the trust) if the waiting list isn;t too long.

Thanks again for your help
James and Caro

[vicky]

Sorry to hear that, glad that she had a nice life.
We have some ex batts and they are lovely, would recommend them and you feel that you are doing a good deed too.
Vicky

[francesbean]

So sorry to hear about maudie - Ive just got 3 hens, one agingernut called maisie,and Im so new to chicken keeping I worry at every turn. Youre right to remember her lovely life with you and the bantams- if shes anything like mine it was chook paradise every day for her.

take care and dont be too sad.

francesbean

[sunflower]

So sorry to hear about your little hen. We become sooo close to our flock and care about them greatly. You gave her a lovely life and your memories of her will all be good.x