[mrs chook]

We have had Martha (copper black maran) for nearly 4 months - she is approx 40 weeks old...yesterday i noticed she wasn't herself. she seems lethargic, loss of appetite but is still drinking.

she had a drink when i let her out this morning followed by a very watery poo. it was white & watery with a little ball of brown.

i am thinking about isolating her but am very worried about her being warm enough on these cold nights.

Advice please , i really don't want to loose her :-(

[mrs chook]

forgot to add...all 3 were wormed a week ago

[Silkychicks]

Somewhere in these pages there are pictures of different poo's. Did you have a look at them? Or maye you could post a picture?

Is she laying? Is she warm? Snot?
Can you take her in at night in a box if it seems neccesary to isolate her?

I don't know if I can give you advise, but maybe it helps when you give some more information 

[mrs chook]

i took her to the vet. they checked germ weight, vent, nose & eyes - all good. comb & wattles a good colour etc. said chooks can pick up bacteria after being wormed - not heard of this b4. she had 2 shots of antibiotics. no need to isolate her unless she is being bullied. return to the vet if she's still not right or if the other girls get poorly .

watch this space!!

[grinling]

antibiotics for what and is their egg withdrawl time now due the drugs?
Mine aren't eating so much, which I find in winter.
I have 2 who prefer to sleep on the hen house roof, 1 in each nest box and 1 on a perch. All seem fine even with partial moult.

[mrs chook]

egg wirhdrawl for 7 days...she is drinking, not eating & still very lethargic. hopefully the injection she had will work & fingers crossed it's soon! tomorrow will be day 3 without eating much!

[barley]

all mine have been in various stages of molt recently

can knock them back - few of mine even went off eating for a few days and had watery poops

[mrs chook]

she doesn't seem to be losing feathers at the moment. How long was it before your girls picked up?

[barley]

she doesn't seem to be losing feathers at the moment. How long was it before your girls picked up?

it can be quite for a few weeks

if she is coming into molt they don't start loosing feathers on day 1

the new feathers start to grow under the old feathers and gradually push the old ones out - it takes a lot of energy to do this hence them being off colour

maybe try to dig up a few wiggly worms as a treat for her  - won't do any harm

[mrs chook]

still no change this morning. more watery poo. walking slowly to catch up with girls ...hubby popping back to check her @ lunchtime.

[Beano]

If she's drinking and not eating, it might be an idea to put something in the water to keep her nourished.  Avipro or similar type of thing. One of mine went off her food for a few weeks and I'm convinced that Avipro kept her going. She was on antibiotics also. Good luck.

[mrs chook]

currently using AVC should i put in poultry tonic instead?

[Beano]

It wont harm to have some tonic in her water, just to give her some help. Whether it's as good as avipro, I'm not sure.

[helens-hens]

I agree with Beano about the Avipro - I am sure it has kept a couple of my hens going in the past when they have been off their food, at least it means they are getting some nutrients.

Have you tried tempting her to eat e.g. with pellet porridge?

[mrs chook]

i keep trying with porridge but she's not too interested. Can't say how much or if she's eaten as she was going to bed when i got home . hubby said she had a little corn & a drink earlier.

will poultry tonic b ok?