Hen Acting Sick. Help!!

[HannahL]

Hi all,

So I have a 3 year old Buff Brahma hen named Paisley. She’s super sweet and friendly, one of my favorite girls. Recently, I’ve noticed that she’s been acting quite lethargic. She has had lead poisoning from contaminated dirt in the past so I took her to the vet to see if maybe she’d been re-exposed. Her lead levels were normal and they said that she seemed in good health. They ran some blood work on her anyway and I’m currently waiting for the results. I’ve noticed that she’s stopped laying as of late (or at least I haven’t SEEN her laying). I figured it was because of the cold weather but it’s spring now and she hasn’t picked back up. The vet said that she didn’t feel an egg or anything that was stuck. She’s still eating and drinking but moves much slower, isn’t as interested in treats, takes a really long time to get to and from the coop/jump up on the roosting stick, and overall just lags behind the others. If anyone has any suggestions about what could be wrong or maybe tips on helping her get laying again they would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance to anyone who takes the time to reply!!

 

[Eggcessive]

It sounds like she probably is suffering from a reproductve disorder, such as salpingitis, egg yolk peritonitis, cancer, or ascites (water belly.) Unfortunately it is hard to diagnose those until after death when a necropsy is done, but having a vet who can do lab and perhaps an xray, that may be helpful. Can you feel of her lower belly for any enlargement, and also check her crop early in the morning before she eats or drinks, and let us know if it is empty, full, hard, doughy or soft. Crop problems can go along with reproductive problems because of abdominal pressure. I would give her some Poultry NutriDrench for a couple of days to give her a boost, and try to get her eating and drinking. Your vet may want to treat her with an antibiotic to see if it helps.

 

[HannahL]

It sounds like she probably is suffering from a reproductve disorder, such as salpingitis, egg yolk peritonitis, cancer, or ascites (water belly.) Unfortunately it is hard to diagnose those until after death when a necropsy is done, but having a vet who can do lab and perhaps an xray, that may be helpful. Can you feel of her lower belly for any enlargement, and also check her crop early in the morning before she eats or drinks, and let us know if it is empty, full, hard, doughy or soft. Crop problems can go along with reproductive problems because of abdominal pressure. I would give her some Poultry NutriDrench for a couple of days to give her a boost, and try to get her eating and drinking. Your vet may want to treat her with an antibiotic to see if it helps.

Okay so I checked her crop and it feels pretty normal to me. Usually soft but sometimes a bit doughy. My tractor supply store is closed because of all the coronavirus stuff so I couldn’t get the NutriDrench, but I added a bit of apple cider vinegar to her water and she seemed to perk up significantly. I’m gonna pick up some electrolytes later on today. The vet took some blood and is currently waiting for the results. She says that the test should show if there’s any internal infection going on so that’ll give us some good info. I still haven’t seen her lay, but she’s perked up a bit so I’m hopeful at least. Thanks so much for your insight and I’ll keep everyone updated!

 

[Eggcessive]

Let us know what the bloodwork shows. The crop should feel empty first thing in the morning before eating/drinking. If there is something in there, she may have a crop impaction or sour crop. If it feels doughy now, that is abnormal. Here is some reading about crop disorders:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/