Underweight chicken

[Brittbee]

First off, I wm kicking myself for not noticing this sooner. Nugget, one of my 3 year old chickens, is very skinny. I had cut back on the treats and scratch because most of them were starting to become plump, but they are fed 20% flock raiser and I feed back eggshells daily for their calcium intake as their base feeds. Yesterday I picked nugget up and immediately noticed her body condition, or lack there of. I am in the coop daily, checking them for thinks like feces on around the vent and for injuries when they are perched at night, but dont typically pick them up on a regular basis.
After noticing this I checked everyone else, they all are good body weights now. I am very concerned, but she is still active, bright, alert, and drinking and eating normally, just very skinny.

I did check her poop for worms, no visible signs but I feel I should worm them just in case. Any advice on this would be great.

I will attempting to feed her scrambled eggs to start, but would meal worms help yo increase her body condition?

She was not like this 3 months ago so I feel like I failed her for not noticing this sooner. She is one of my first chicks so her, and her sister Soup, hold a very special place in my heart. I feel awful about this and just want some advice on improving her body condition and what I should ve looking out for.


I checked them this morning. Her crop is empty, 3 of them seem to have stones in them but are small. Thank you for any advice on this situation.


Last thing, they are not free range at this time as I let my yard recover and grow. They did a lot of damage to it the last few years.

 

[Eggcessive]

It is good that her crop is emptying overnight. You might check it when she is on the roost this pm to see if she has a full crop. Try wetting a little bit of feed in a small bowl, and offering that to her. Scrambled egg is a good nutritious treat. Worm eggs are not seen in the poop, so it would not hurt to worm her with Valbazen 1/2 ml orally, and repeat it in 10 days. SafeGuard is also good to use 1/4 ml per pound given orally, and either repeat it in 10 days for roundworms only, or give it for 5 consecutive days for most chicken worms. Cancer can be common in hens over 2-3 years old, and could cause weight loss. Hopefully, that is not her problem. I would put out some crushed oyster shell for extra calcium to promote hard shells.

 

[Brittbee]

I did check their crops last night and they were all full, even hers, so I know she is eating. Which of the dewormers are better?
They have never touched oyster shells in the past hence why I recycle the egg shells. Picky little girls. She ate the eggs and ate some of their crumble so I will start mixing wet crumble with the eggs when I offer it. I will continue to monitor her crop to make sure that it's full in the evenings. I want to add, he feces are normal, no diarrhea or odd coloring. I was trying to find actual worms as I know the eggs are not visible.
If it is cancer, that will be hard. What would be the most prevalent signs to watch aside from Nugget becoming weak?
She's strong and lively right now so I am hopeful it's just worms. I did let her free range last night before bed (their bedtime not mine lol) and she loved it. I may just let her and her sister, Soup, do so in the evenings so she gets the extra goodies from the lawn. They are only confined until the vegetation has a chance to really recover, but I feel like two chickens grazing won't have a large impact. They do have a ample space in their run so I am not worried.

Should I resume treats just as an added supplement for weight gain? If so, what would be the most beneficial mix?. I don't want to just offer Scratch, I want something with more nutrient support.

 

[Eggcessive]

I use Valbazen because the 2 doses 10 days apart get most chicken worms. It is found more online, but some stores have it. SafeGuard liquid goat wormer or horse paste is a little less money, and more common in feed stores and TSC. Here is a link for Valbazen:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/bumblefoot-surgery-necessary.1569682/

 

[Brittbee]

I use Valbazen because the 2 doses 10 days apart get most chicken worms. It is found more online, but some stores have it. SafeGuard liquid goat wormer or horse paste is a little less money, and more common in feed stores and TSC. Here is a link for Valbazen:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/bumblefoot-surgery-necessary.1569682/

This leads to another thread lol. The vslbazen may br the better option as I would prefer.
I appreciate the response, I will do what I can for her. I know if there is no improvement then I will need to do what is humane to end her suffering. I just am kicking myself for not noticing sooner.

 

[nuthatched]

What type of feed is she on?

 

[Brittbee]

What type of feed is she on?

She is on an all flock crumble - 20% protein

 

[Eggcessive]

Layer feed is 20% protein and has the 4% calcium, and is an adequate feed. I have fed both all flock and layer depending on if was raising chicks or not. You could take Nugget aside and feed her some scrambled egg and other treats to see if she will gain some weight. Is her keel (breast bone vet prominent.)

 

[Brittbee]

Layer feed is 20% protein and has the 4% calcium, and is an adequate feed. I have fed both all flock and layer depending on if was raising chicks or not. You could take Nugget aside and feed her some scrambled egg and other treats to see if she will gain some weight. Is her keel (breast bone vet prominent.)

I kept them on all flock as I raised chicks that I hatched last year and they seemed to do better on it. All the layer feed I can find local is 16% protein. I switched brands a couple of months ago so this could be the cause, I will be going to the feed store to buy the brand I used to feed.

She has thick plumage so it's hard to see externally but she does look thin and you can definetely feel it. There is indents where the bread tissue should be. It's like she is wasting away