Lame right leg, runny poo

[kathyd]

Hi. One of my birds, a hybrid of unknown age but at least 3, and with a history of slightly odd shaped eggs at times, started limping about a week ago, I thought with a problem in her right hip or a sore foot. Checked her foot and it looks fine. She's stopped moving around during the day, and spends her time resting in the shade, so I've left her to it. I realised the other day she wasn't getting up even to drink in the heat, so started giving her water and food close by, which she's been happy to take. She can still plod around, but very slowly. I noticed a couple of days ago one of the birds was producing yellowy-green runny poo - not watery, but very loose. I now know it's this bird, so assume it's not just a hip problem. Her tail is up, she's still coming outside in the daytime and will come for treats at lunchtime, but still sitting all day under a bush and has a very messy bottom today. Any ideas please?

[RichmondHens]

What is her weight like? Have you noticed any significant loss since last week when she started to be lame? My feeling is there is "something" going on inside which is affecting both leg and gut, although the two may be unrelated. However if she has been lame for a week with no improvement and is now having intestinal issues too then the outcome doesn't look good tbh. I think there is probably not a lot you can do except make her comfortable and keep offering water and food. If she is not too fussed about being with the other hens then isolate her in something like a cardboard box filled with straw where she can just rest quietly.

[kathyd]

Hi RH. I've not noticed a visible weight change, but she's always been one of the leaner builds and I don't want to pick her up again because she hates it and struggles, which I'm worried will damage her leg more. I can't believe she won't have lost weight though, because she's not been eating very much. I'm expecting the worst, but hoping for the best, like you do...

She seemed a bit better on Saturday, off again yesterday, but has been out with the others today as far as the house, where she settled herself in the porch on the doormat and held court. She was making happy gurgly noises when I let them out this morning because she'd found some kind of bug for herself in the grass - a definite improvement. However, she's back under a bush again now - the others have all been put away over lunch time but I didn't have the heart to make her walk that far unnecessarily. So I think you're right - make sure she's got somewhere quiet to rest, keep offering food and water and see what happens.. hard isn't it?

[Nicos]

Hard?- yes- very much.

Sounds like you are doing the right thing.

Just a thought- maybe a bit of live yoghurt might help her tummy?

[kathyd]

I'll give that a try Nicos, thanks .

[Nicos]

...and just another thought....

worming wise....
did you buy new worming powder or are you using the stuff I sent you?
If so, it's out of date and may not be as effective???

[kathyd]

I've got new stuff Nicos, don't panic . They were all done not long ago, and I'm just waiting for my daughter's next visit in October to bring a new Flubenvet with her - she forgot last month!

[shirlthegirl43]

How is your chook doing kathyd?

[kathyd]

Hard to say really Shirley - she still has her tail up, still eating and drinking a bit, and walking around slowly with the others, resting a lot, talks back to me if I talk to her... but still obviously struggling with her leg/hip, and another messy bum today. I don't know what to make of it... While she appears to be 'happy' enough, I'm just going to leave her be I think, because I don't know what else to do . thank you for asking though

[Nicos]

Well- it does takes several days/weeks for a torn muscle/sprained joint to heal in humans , so I imagine it'd take a while with a chook too?

Maybe the runny poo is just something she ate and that too will clear up?

It's so hard to tell isn't it kathy?
Maybe you could rinse her bum under a tap just so there is less stuck to it?
I have about 5 chooks which permanently have dirty bums. I wash them and they come straight back. Clearly something they eat cos it's still like that after worming. Mine free range, have spare greens form the veg/fruit potager and have pellets ad lib. They all do , but the other 13 have bums which are OK.
With Bok bok her bum got very messy cos she was pooing in a sitting position- so it had nowhere else to go. Now she's up and about she's nice and clean again there.

fingers crossed for your gal- they can be such a worry can't they? x

[kathyd]

Thanks Nicos . I hope it's just something she ate, but it's been going on for a few days now and I think it would normally have cleared up faster than this. Hadn't thought about pooing in the sitting position though, that certainly wouldn't help! I don't want to pick her up to wash her because she hates being picked up, and she'll struggle and it might make things worse. The last pooey bum she had disappeared by magic, so I'm hoping this will do the same.. I'll be able to worm them all again in a couple of weeks anyway, maybe that'll help. They were done in the middle of July, but we got the 2 newbs after that and I'd run out by then, so those 2 have never been done. Be weird if only one of the existing birds had caught worms from them though, even if they have them... Anyway, I'm just having to learn a bit of patience, not really my strong point .

[Nicos]

Ah...that's one thing living over here will do for you...help you learn patience- or drive you utterly bananas!

...and so ......"Patience little grasshopper" as David Carradine was often told!

[Nicos]

Actually _ I've just thought- keep your eye on that mucky bum...I think hens can get flystrike????
With the warm weather we're having , we're still getting a lot of flies around

I'd risk washing it in the morning so she has time to dry during the day.

[frias]

One of my girls has a regular mucky bum. She's quite a handful to bath.I've bathed others due to soft eggs or an egg stuck and they have been really good, perhaps because it helped them. I'm hoping for a sunny day tomorrow so I can get on with it.