Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Poultry and Pets => The Hen House => Topic started by: upert on January 25, 2010, 20:24
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it's not looking too happy, tail down, hunched up, pooh watery, losing weight. for some reason i think it's not digesting properly. what to do?
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Go to the vets!
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if i keep going to the vets it'll become too expensive. they're not pets, they're working chickens. this one is an ex batt about three and a half years old so it might be on it's last legs anyway. it's in semi-retirement as it is.
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Oh, i thought ex-bats were supposed to be kept as pets in retiremet when they are re-homed with you!
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they virtually are tbh. there again i did have to pay for them, they don't come free. they have to earn their keep.
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upert, i had a girl like this a few weeks back and i was really worried as she wasnt eating very much either. she was only like it for 2 days though and then made a recovery, ive no idea what the matter was but she is a maran and not an exbat. how long has your girl been like this for?
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weeks.
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she sounds in a bad way, if your not willing to take her to the vet i would cull her if i were you, just wondering what return i'm to expect from my pet cats and dogs, they don't come free either.
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Why I agree with your statement about working hens and vets
It's a long while for a hen to be in that condition :(
Is she eating/drinking at all ?
I know it sounds daft but if she's eating try getting her to eat some dandelion leaves. They quite often help I don't know why ?
But to be honest if she's not eating/drinking or just not getting any better then it's probably best to put her out of her misery. Batt's have a hard life it must take it out of them.
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while i appreciate not everyone is willing to take a hen to the vet, ex batts are not working hens once they are released from the cages, they are rehomed as pets and if you get eggs it's considered a bonus and a thank you from them for giving them their freedom, having said that i wouldn't leave any hen of mine (ex batt or not) poorly for weeks and ask for advice at the last minute.
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Why the hell are you allowing this chicken to suffer????? :mad: :mad: :mad:
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it's eating and drinking and pottering about ok, it just looks a bit miserable and there's some rather loose pooh in the run. i've tried bioyoghurt and some 'tonics', i'm not totally callous; likewise i don't name them and do expect something in return. apart from the vet thing they're well kept, especially compared to the others on the site.
tmg, these aren't pets. it isn't "last minute".
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Agree with Rom, your ex-batt has had a hard life before being 'rescued' so they can have a stress free life. I paid for my ex-batts, i think they asked fo £1.50 per hen, this is to cover costs for things like fuel for the rescuers. She cannot be expected to earn her keep as she isnt a working hen.....her work due has more than been paid when she was living in the conditions you rescued her from. Dont let her suffer any more
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i don't want to appear like i'm getting at you, it's difficult when you don't know the full story, but you have said she's been ill for weeks and i wonder why you didn't ask for advice before? if you didn't know what was wrong with her.
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i've asked offline. try not to assume i'm the devil.
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i've asked offline. try not to assume i'm the devil.
why didn't you say that at the beginning? how am i suppose to react when you only give scanty details? you said the hen was ill, for weeks, you weren't willing to take it to the vet, put your horns and tail away ;) and put your bird out of it's misery or take her to a vet.
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That girl needs to be treated/culled. Chickens hide their illness very well, so the poor thing must be unwell to have been like this for weeks. And as regards not naming them....well thats fine, lots of people dont name them, but you cant leave them ill for weeks, she wont earn her keep because she was already worn out when she came to you, and i doubt very much the people who you got them from would have known they were going to be expected to earn their keep either!
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sorry i didn't give an exhaustive account. i'll try some dandelion (thanks richyrich) and some more tlc but if it doesn't pick up i'll cull it.
my mum's has had flu for 2 weeks, if she doesn't pick up she's next.
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sorry i didn't give an exhaustive account. i'll try some dandelion (thanks richyrich) and some more tlc but if it doesn't pick up i'll cull it.
my mum's has had flu for 2 weeks, if she doesn't pick up she's next.
no one asked you to be exhaustive, a few more details would have helped that's all.
glad i'm not your mum :ohmy:
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3 1/2 years isn't bad going for an exbatt. You mention you don't think she is digesting properly, hunches are usually pretty acurate!
Watery poos may mean drinking but not eating, have you checked crop in the morning? Losing weight can be a symptom of a crop problem an impacted crop will cause weight loss.
Is her comb pale or a normal colour?
Check for lice -these seem to inhabit more readily our ill birds.
Apple cider vinegar is a good aid for the gut 25ml per litre.
Her poor condition is unlikely to be caused by worms, although they can be a contributing factor, if you missed worming in the autumn I would consider worming them all.
Finally, just have a look around the coop, in this weather hidden areas of mould can easily develop!
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sorry i didn't give an exhaustive account. i'll try some dandelion (thanks richyrich) and some more tlc but if it doesn't pick up i'll cull it.
my mum's has had flu for 2 weeks, if she doesn't pick up she's next.
no one asked you to be exhaustive, a few more details would have helped that's all.
glad i'm not your mum :ohmy:
Rom, I think Upert means his Mum's chicken has flu, not that his Mum has flu! :D :D
But the girls are right Upert. a 3.5 year old ex batt is OLD! You are lucky she has lived this long. I know some can live for 4.5 - 5 years, but they are not usually laying by then. If you can't sort her, please put her out of her misery.
If you want WORKING hens, then buy POL for goodness sake. People take on ex-batts so they can retire from working. She's probably almost out of eggs anyway, so were you going to cull her when she stops laying as she won't be able to 'work' ??
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oops, i do apologise :) i thought you were joking that your mum had flu and if she didn't pick up she was next to be culled :)
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just as bad tho, that hen has been ill for 2weeks!
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oops, i do apologise :) i thought you were joking that your mum had flu and if she didn't pick up she was next to be culled :)
I think you were right TMG, he was joking about his Mum.
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Not the way I read the sentence Carol! ??? :D
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nah, i was talking about my mum. she's still got a cough.
this morning i couldn't tell which chicken it is that's ill, so it may not be at death's door just yet.
thanks foxy. i've massaged the crop before now. when i say it's lost weight i can feel the breast bone but the chicken still has a plumpish belly. the comb has looked fleshier and more red before now, i'm sure. they were all wormed in autumn and they have acv and occasionally a poultry tonic. no lice on any of them and the coop is clean and dry.
i can't find the pooh pictures that were on here so i can't refer you to one. it's just not solid and not enough of it for my liking.
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Last year my 4.5 year old hen sounded just like uphert's. I could have killed her, but she did not seem to be in pain so I left her. Now she has a beautiful new set of feathers and runs down the garden like a mad thing when I open the back door. I am glad I let her live and just kept an eye on her. Sometimes we give up too easily when they are just getting old. From the look of her comb she will lay a few more eggs yet.
When she gets on the perch and I take out treats she panics as if she is trying to remember where she put her zimmer before the others scoff the lot.
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Can you add some oil to her feed, or give her a drop in her mouth, to soften anything that's in the crop?
It's very easy to make judgements on a forum like this folks - remember we simply don't have all the information we need to condemn anyone.
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this morning i found a waxy-like deposit where they lay their eggs. it's about the size of a large marble, though not that shape, and it doesn't seem to have an odour. what on earth is it?
sick chicken has tiny black/dark marks on it's comb... the comb appears smaller than the other birds' combs.
i'll try some oil.
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Have you tried cidar vinegar It is a natural tonic an antibacterial and an anti coccidial product that can help towards the health of all poultry you put 25ml to 1 litre of drinking water. Not going to hurt anything. And it is a natural wormer to, that is according Virginia Shirt Book (The right way to keep chickens) You can give this daily to there drinking water. I am no expert but my ex bats love it , and if you do not want to go to the vets cidar vinegar is cheap!!!
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One of them has probably laid a little bit of womb lining, not usually too much of a problem if as you have pointed out there is no offensive odour. Common in exbatts/ older hybrids.
Massaging with oil IMO does didley squat for an impacted crop, if you think that is the problem. Check they all have grit if in an enclosed run.
The black marks could be a result of the odd peck from the other hens common if she is low down the pecking order. Have a close look and make sure they aren't wart-like, wet or crusty looking.
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Could the dark black bits on her comb be frost bite after all the really cold weather? I noticed someone elseon the forum had that problem not long ago.
Carolbriar