Is she sick?

[be_collective]

Hi- Im new to this and am worried about one of my hens. She is a 16 week old buff orpington. I noticed yesterday that she was laying around more than usual. Today she hasnt wanted to come out of the coop. She looks normal, but is slow and stands in the back corner of the coop. My other 5 hens are acting normal. Is she sick? Are there things hens do before they start to lay eggs? Any help would be appreciated.

 

[ozark hen]

Welcome! Your coop is absolutely gorgeous...more like a townhouse.

How hot is it where you live in WA? I assume you are not getting the heat that the rest of the country is getting? If so it could be the heat. I would separate her and keep her off by herself until you know for sure what is wrong.

 

[be_collective]

Thanks for your response. I don't think it is the heat...we maxed out at about 70 today.

 

[CarriBrown]

Is there a vet around you that can do a fecal float? If so, get that done ASAP because birds can hide an illness for very long... so long that sometimes it's too late.
Separate her from the others. Check her for lice and mites, and you will need that float to check for internal parasites. Also, consider worming and dusting the rest of your flock. Let us know if you need recommendations for wormers, etc.
Good luck with her and keep us updated.

 

[ozark hen]

yes, please keep us updated on her. Seventy degrees isn't going to hurt her.

 

[be_collective]

called the vet and they want to charge $250 to do the test. Does this sound right?

 

[silkiechicken]

250 for a fecal float!!! If that was all they were talking about.... it should not be 250 to literally mix poo in water and place slide on top to catch eggs and put it under a microscope. Now 25 would be the more normal cost....

Edit: Well, it's not water they use but I was simplifying it.

It really should not be 250.

 

[be_collective]

I isolated the hen for two days in our garage. By the end of the second day she was breaking free of the cage we had built. She was running around and acting like normal. I did more research online about mites and lice- did as thorough an inspection I could do and didn’t see any signs of anything. We decided to reintroduce her to the coop. She did fine that night and was perfectly normal the next day. This morning, we woke to find that she had given us our first egg!!! Little thing- but an egg non the less! She is acting completely fine.

 

[speckledhen]

Great! Sounds like she was not feeling too spiffy with that first egg about to come out.