[westie]

Sunset has bright green and white watery poo. She's not eating but is drinking a little.  She doesn't scratch either.
She had a nasty fright with a fox in the middle of August and has stopped laying since (although she wasn't laying regularly even then).
I thought at first the lack of laying was because ashe was growing new feathers but they haven't appeared.

I expect the answer will be to take her to the vet but am loath to spend out lots of money. What I need to really know
is this something you think might get better with a course of antib's or if she won't eat and so antib's won't get inside her, do you think it would be kinder to say 'goodbye' and put her out of her misery.

I don't want to drag her suffering out and equally don't want the other hen to get very poorly too. The two new ones have a cough and snuffle so think they will be needing some antib's anyway....but they are both lively and eating well.

Please send some advice this way soon!

[Aunt Sally]

Have you wormed the hens Westie ?

Green poo is often a sign of a heavy infestation of worms OR it can also she isn't eating and the bile is coming through without much food.

Either way she is very unwell and needs treatment. Worming and/or antibiotics !

If you can take a picture of her poo for us to see it would be a good idea.

[Aunt Sally]

Definitly get the other hens respiratoey problem sorted out too !

[westie]

Hmm I thought the answer might be something awful like that.

Ok so now I have to find a friendly vet!

Or do you think I could treat the ones with respiratory problems with antib's without taking them to the vet?

What is usually prescribed?

Sunset is definitely not eating now.She hasn't touched any food all day. :cry:

[Aunt Sally]

I think you can only get antibiotics from a vet.

We normally use flubenvet for worms but the vet can give panacur which will work faster !

Let us know how you get on Westie

[westie]

Thanks Aunt Sally
I have wormed them all in the last week.....will see what tomorrow brings :cry:

[Aunt Sally]

What did you use to worm them westie  :?:

[westie]

Flubenvet

[Aunt Sally]

Well that should have sorted out the worms.  If she doesn't improve you may want to take professional advice or ....  

[westie]

Well, she got very close to...... :cry: , but my husband gave her a reprieve and yesterday she ate a little, little bit of food and today I offered her some worms and she gobbled them down. She also ate some fruit and veg that I had left over from dinner last night. Her poo is still not at all right, but better than green liquid. So I am just waiting and seeing...we had to go to the allotment on a worm hunt. I came home with a bucket full of worms instead of beans - good thing no one stopped us!
The one with the cough definately doesn't have a discharge from her nostrils. I think it was better today. She eating like mad and is laying occasionally.
I gave the hut a good clean and drenched it with anti mite stuff(can't remember it's name.) We have a mega problem with mites - worse than I realised last week when I did the same :?  I hope it's not the mites causing her to be anaemic

[Aunt Sally]

It could well be the mites.  You'll have to scrub them out at least once a week. and use anti mite powder all the time in the nooks anc crannies.

Seems like you might be winning now

[westie]

Well, it's now 2010, Sunset is STILL with us and today she laid her first egg since August 2008!!!!!
I'm so eggcited 

It must have been a good day for them all, because the other one who hasn't laid all winter also laid an egg today and go old Rusty, who's kept going nearly all the time since we got her, back in 2008. Bless.
They had big treats for being such clebver girlies

[GrannieAnnie]

Oh Westie that's wonderful!  what a surprise for you.  Our little Rosie who had never laid an egg and we re-homed her last year has just started to lay and she'll be 3 on 7th September!!!! See, miracles do happen!!!!!