Help........very ill chook

[janzbro]

Hi, went to collect eggs today and found one of the girls missing, check in coop and found her on the floor hunched over wings out slightly.

She has had runny green poo on her bum feathers for a couple of days ago and was keeping herself separate from the others. so treated the water with virkon S. Yesterday she perked up a bit but today I found her as described.

She is very weak and cant/wont move. Ive wrapped her in a towel, brought her inside and gave her 3 x 20ml syringes of water to drink as she cant drink it herself. Im at work at the mo but my wife is going to give her a warm epsom salt water bath to clean her up (should we do this ????????)

Tried to feed her some cat biscuits (high protein) soaked in water and then mashed up, she tried a nibble but that was it.

I presume water and warmth are the main things, would she be too weak for a dose of epsom salts in water to help clear her out - probabley not a clever thing to do if she is dehydrated.

any suggestions

[Scarlet]

There's not much info to go on. I would usually first ask when were they last wormed although if they have worms the poo is more often yellow so im not sure. Some dietary problem, maybe? What have you been feeding? You can clean her up but make sure she gets dried quickly, so just wash her bottom bits. It may be that her time had come how old is she ? What breed? If she's not eating you can offer so e lightly scrambled egg.
Sorry not much help

[fishpond]

Give her a bath by all means, but why the Epsom Salts.
I am also unsure about Virkon S--never used it , so unsure what it is supposed to do.
Once she has had her bath "they love a hairdryer on a low setting", keep her warm but not too warm and plenty of water, syringed if needed.
She sounds like she needs a once over from an avian vet(not any vet).
Putting it bluntly, if she is still alive in the morning and still unwell, book her in to an avian vet if possible.
It would be helpful to know:-
How many Chickens do you have?
How much room do they have?
Any of the others unwell?
How old is she?
What do you feed them, has anything been put down in the last few days which she may have been able to access. ie slug pellets?

[janzbro]

They were all rescue hen from a chicken/egg producer
All about 2 1/2 years old

I have never wormed, well not with a chemical, I use garlic and apple cider vin in the water for worms and never had a problem and have seen none in the poop

I did put my grass cuttings in the run last week but have had no weedkiller etc on it

Other chooks ok but I did have one die this week that always had a dirty bottom since I got them last year suspected vent gleet , hence the epsom salts (cure for vent gleet) The Epsom Salt Cure | HenCam

Fish pond - 6 other hens, run is 6m x6m and there coop is a converted shed why do you ask

[veggiechicken]

Other chooks ok but I did have one die this week that always had a dirty bottom since I got them last year suspected vent gleet , hence the epsom salts (cure for vent gleet) The Epsom Salt Cure | HenCam

Link to your other thread in case its connected with this ill chook http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...eet_84644.html

[fishpond]

I can't help wondering if it is the grass that has caused her problems as they do have problems digesting it in any quantity, she may also have picked something up from the grass.
I assume her crop is normal and not hard, also that her breath doesn't smell.

[fishpond]

They were all rescue hen from a chicken/egg producer
All about 2 1/2 years old

I have never wormed, well not with a chemical, I use garlic and apple cider vin in the water for worms and never had a problem and have seen none in the poop

I did put my grass cuttings in the run last week but have had no weedkiller etc on it

Other chooks ok but I did have one die this week that always had a dirty bottom since I got them last year suspected vent gleet , hence the epsom salts (cure for vent gleet) The Epsom Salt Cure | HenCam

Fish pond - 6 other hens, run is 6m x6m and there coop is a converted shed why do you ask

Trying to get an idea of the set up.
Do you let them out at all to free range?
How often do you feed them grass cuttings? & how much?

[janzbro]

Thats why I didnt worry to much about the green poo as they all have that when out few ranging in field or eating grass but with her bum getting messy,read "cheesey" but green I thought she may have gleet as well but apparently its not contagious but if its a yeast infection I would say surely it must be if they ingest some of the yeast

[janzbro]

Hi, they free range a couple of times a week at the moment, and that has just started in sring.

I have only cut grass x 2 so far this year , first time put a few arm fulls in, but 2nd week put a few barrowloads in, not for food but as a floor covering.

[Zelenina]

I have never wormed, well not with a chemical, I use garlic and apple cider vin in the water for worms and never had a problem and have seen none in the poop

Worms are the number one suspect if you have never wormed them. No you often won't actually see worms in the poop. They prefer to stay inside the hen where it's nice and cosy and there's lots of food for them. They just send their millions of eggs out in the poop for other hens to pick up.

You say you never had a problem and then a couple of sentences down you say

but I did have one die this week that always had a dirty bottom since I got them last year

So you actually did have a problem. A long term one. And that could have been due to worms as well.

All poultry, in fact any livestock you keep, needs to be wormed regularly with a proper wormer. Ideally you start on the day you get them, before they are let out to contaminate their run with worm eggs. And then do them at least twice a year. Garlic and apple cider might have some preventive benefits but are not strong enough to kill or expel worms. The chookie regulars on here recommend one called Flubenvet which is licensed for domestic poultry in the UK.

[janzbro]

Hi Zelenina,

To clarify I said I never had a problem with worms (as far as I could tell) and the poor girl that died had a suspected case of gleet judging by all the symptoms and discharge.
As far as I know having worms does not give a white/green cheesy discharge from the vent.

I did want to stay organic on the worming front but guess anything is worth a try for the sake of the girls

Forgot to mention also add DE to feed once a week as well

[Scarlet]

You can't keep chickens in a small enclosure without a worming program, worms kill. You don't necessarily see them. Diarohea, messy bums is the signs to look for. When you start seeing them it's usually too late. another grape had problems getting flubenvet so possibly the medicated feed is the way to go.
The green poo is most probably the cut grass. It's not healthy for chickens to have this. Has it been treated at all?
When chickens free range they peck at stuff and eat slowly. Treats should be kept to a minimum. They will eat it even if you don't want them too. Use wood chips for flooring if your run is getting messy. Worms multiply faster in wet, damp runs.
I'm sorry if you wanted to stay organic but a chickens health comes first. If you have had two die in one week I think you need to act fast or some of the others may follow.

[fishpond]

Hi
How is the patient this morning?

[janzbro]

HI fishpond, thanks for asking, unfortunately the patient has passed away.

Ive been out today and treated the coop, drinkers and feeders with poultry sheild.

Im on nights tonight but tomorrow Im going to empty the coop out and scrub down.

Is there anything I could treat the run with outside to decontaminate.

[fishpond]

I am very sorry she has gone, but keeping ex-batts for 18 months or so is no mean feat as most only seem to last a few weeks, months at best, so do not beat yourself up as you have done very well.
If you want to scrub inside and out then I would suggest *eyes fluid-but obviously let them out for a run around whilst you do it. (also goes without saying to give the food and water containers a very good rinse to remove any *eyes fluid before you let the chickens back in)
I wouldn't put grass in their run anymore as this can only cause them problems, also wild birds defecate on grass, it also holds slug and snail eggs & worms----which can cause parasitic worms and other probs in your chickens.
I fully appreciate you are trying to be organic, but there are times you have to resort to conventional medicine---next most important step is to worm them with Flubovet (nothing else will do), takes a week (Your chickens will be much better for it) and I recommend that the eggs are destroyed for that week.(just because you can't see them doesn't mean they haven't got them---the books say do it every 6 months.)
Why do you feed your chickens DE at all?, really cannot see the point, I am yet to be convinced it will help them in any way.
Whilst your cleaning out the coop, have a real good look in all the nooks and crannies for RED MITE, nothing to do with your current problem but it may delay any problems with them in the future----1 very good reason for using plastic and not wood--something to think about.
Most importantly enjoy keeping chickens and don't beat yourself up when something goes wrong, sometimes, things happen that we have no control over.