Cheepy Chicken unwell........

A

Anonymous

Guest
This am all my chooks were their usual selves,when I went out to give them their corn early afternoon,3 ran up,but cheepy who is usually first for anything yummy didn't come :? .I looked for her,and,she was stood,a little way away,but totally disintersted.I called her,and she did walk over,but she usually runs breaking the land speed record :D .
She came,but was not interested in the corn :eek: .The only way to describe her was miserable looking.I was concerned,so went to get her a few grapes,she wasn't interested in them either.
I've kept an eye on her today,(well,both my eyes-as I'm not a chook!!!!)all she has done all afternoon,is stand around,looking lost and miserable, and by 5pm ish,she was definitely hunched and miserable.As my chooks are all used to being inside my house,they were all in this am until I evicted them,I brought her inside and tried to examine her,not easy when your a complete novice :roll: .
I sat on the floor,with Cheepy stood between my outstretched legs.Her comb is still red and normal,her eyes are normal,although she keeps shutting them,they are clear and bright,no discharge.No discharge from her nostrils either(or are they called nares in hens?)on feeling down her body,her crop feels full and soft.I wouldn't describe it as distended,but,I had a hand operation on Fri 25th sept,so haven't really handles my chooks as they seem to catch or peck my stitches :( which does hurt :eek: .
Cheepy's vent seems normal,she is my only chook that is moulting from her vent downwards.I suspect she is possibly swollen or distended on her underside,starting a few inches from her vent towrds her breast bone.I don't think she is quite as plump around her breastbone as she was.This bit doesn't make sense to me,as to be losing weight from this area suggests her not feeding/eating enough and she has been fine all week and ate some breakfast this am.
Cheepy then went to toilet,looked like pure water,no urate or faeces in it.On picking her up,she does make a weird sound,that I can't quite describe properly,it is very faint but reminds me of a small bellows being depressed.As if by holding her I am deflating a small pair of bellows.I am not holding her that firmly.She also made a faint cheeping that sounded like a cry.
So,now I know that she is definitely in pain somewhere,but where.
To sum up,she isn't eating,and appears miserable.Despite her crop being soft,I do think she is blocked somewhere internally.I did feed her some olive oil,which she loved,and massaged her crop.No food was expelled,just oil and water.
I rang my closest poultry vet for advice,and spoke to a helpfull vet,who asked a lot of questions,but didn't really suggest anything that i could do to help Cheepy feel better.
I am hoping that Cheepy will be back to normal in the morning,but,in my heart of hearts I don't really believe she will be.Assuming she is still alive,will ring vet back and make an appt for her.
I am gutted,at how quickly she has gone downhill.
 
Tim

Tim

Administrator
Messages
2,127
Location
Herefordshire, UK.
Hi Lydia,

They do go downhill very quickly when ill.

She sounds lethargic and ther's definately something wrong with what she's passing out of the back end.

It's very hard to guess at what could be wrong - if her crop is full (and check it does empty by the morning or she could have a blockage here - called impacted crop or sour crop) but her breath would usually stick as it literally ferments.

You can listen to her breathing by placing your ear to her back when she is calm - but it doesn't sound like a respiratory problem.

I hope the vet can do something for you. They may just give her some antibiotics but my guess is they will be vague as it's so herd to diagnose these sorts of things without spending lots of money on testing. Most of these things are diagnosed commercially by sending birds for a PM.

You could add ACV to the water or mineral drink and check her crop but I'm at a bit of a loss at thinking of anything else right now...

Good luck, my fingers are crossed for her.
 
S

snifter

New member
Messages
426
Sorry to hear she is unwell. I can't really add anything as Tim has covered it all really.

In my experience with ex batts when they get like this is its usually the end for them. Of the batch that we had a number did this sort of thing and within 48 hours it was usually the end of them. I did have one hen go off like this and she lingered for a week, gradually getting sleepier and less mobile.

In my experience with ex bats I've said before, sometime you get them and they go on a fair while, others just literally fall off the perch overnight soon after you get them home.

If she has not perked up within 24-48 I'd not leave her to suffer as it sounds to me like there is something internal going on there that won't have a happy ending. As harsh as it sounds, you could spend a small fortune trying to get to the bottom of it and never finding out. Ex batts do have a tendancy to conk out like this and tail off badly, even only a few weeks after getting them.

Saying that she could perk up tomorrow and be ok.

If her crop is empty tomorrow morning I'd not give her anything fancy food wise. No treat foods. Keep it simple, something like layers mash or pellets softened with warm water or Ready brek and just water with a bit of ACV to drink. Easy to digest. Also you could try live yogurt (if she isn't moving and eating well it can help anything icky in her crop. But no veggies, fruits or fancy treats as this may not help her.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Thanks Tim and Snifter,yesterday I did start to add ACV to their water again,I add it for a week once a month.
If she is still alive in the morning,I will offer some of her ex-batt crumb stuff with warm water Snifter,thanks for pointing a mash out.
I will have a better idea of what to do for the best in the morning.I will either ring the vet for her to be examined,or,be ringing a local poultry keeper who i spoke to earlier this evening.
I know that when a bird is unwell,I should dispatch it rather than let it suffer.He will dispatch her for me.
If I can get a grip of my emotions/tears,he can show me so I know for future.

Unfortunately,ex-batts are a lottery when it comes to their health etc.,or lack of it.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Well after sunday,when Cheepy got progresively worse,and I was really worried :cry: ,monday morning when I let them out of their house she came tumbling down the ramp with the others ready for food and foraging :shock: .She tucked into her mash as recomended by Snifter and was then off to forage.
After about 45 mins,she was showing signs of lethargy again.Started closing her eyes slowly again,same as sunday,as opposed to a blink.I kept an eye on her,as I was worried that she might start to decline again.By 11pm,she was her normal self.I gave her(and her friends)some more mash at lunchtime,and she was def back to herself :D telling her friends she was back,on top form and they could wait for some mash......if she left any :lol: .
Today she is still her usual self :D .
On monday morning,her crop was empty when I let her out,and,when she went to bed mon pm it was full,but not as big and soft as sunday,when I tried to assist her in emptying it :? .I kept her off all treats yesterday,today she has had a few fresh peas and she can have her corn in a bit.She did have the runs yesterday,but,more like normal than sunday,today they seem her normal ones.
I did try to listen to her respiratory rate,as Tim suggested......I er couldn't hear anything :) which would obviously be a problem if she was lying down motionless :lol: but as she wasn't a good sign.

I can only assume that she did have a slight blockage,where her crop carries on into the rest of her digestive system,hence it being so large,only allowing some fluids to seep through.If my assumption is correct,Cheepy has been very lucky,and I'm over the moon.
 
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