[happychickens]

Hi - Friends chicken very ill does any one have any idea from the symptoms, she has not been perching and today is very weak, have tipped her to help her poo and the smell was unbelievably bad, watery and brownish, she is also at time standing like a penguin and has a bloated tummy\bottom end but her breast bone is getting prominant, today will take water but no food - she has lice and some flat brown looking things - maybe red mite? have washer her bottom and powdered her - not looking good.  Any advice very welcome.  Thanks

[muntjac]

afriad she is to far gone,. cull her or have some do it for you ,dispose of the body properly . check all other birds use wormer and mite sprays powder etc . wash out the coop and the run with jeyes in a sprayer and hose out with jet washer or spray hose attachment .allow to dry leaving the door open .fresh bedding wash all feeders and drinkers with jeyes and rinse extremly well . move the coop if possible onto virgin ground

[happychickens]

Thanks for your prompt reply - any ideas whats caused it? I have never had anything like this with my chickens, at present the poor thing looks and is standing more like a penguin.  Thanks

[muntjac]

could be a load of things but having mites etc knocks them back in beating illneses  

[Aunt Sally]

It sounds to me like peritonitis - not uncommon and usually fatal.  A precious hen can be treated with antibiotics and will improve but underlying causes will mean the hen will relapse again.  Euthanasia is the kindest option in my opinion  :cry:

[happychickens]

Hi - How do you put a chicken down?  Not anything I have looked into and not sure if I am brave enough, even though its not my chicken - the ill chicken is, I think, very near the end - kind suggestions appreciated :cry:

[muntjac]

if you havent got a person who can do it ..... here is a qwick way .take a pair pruning shears ( old pair .) grind the sharp edge off with a file or grindstone and then place the shears over the chickens neck .near to the head and close hard this will crush the neck bones severing the spinal cord .humane dispatchers work on the same principle ///i will be doing a full photo course on killing a chicken for the table at some point soon

[wildeone]

if you havent got a person who can do it ..... here is a qwick way .take a pair pruning shears ( old pair .) grind the sharp edge off with a file or grindstone and then place the shears over the chickens neck .near to the head and close hard this will crush the neck bones severing the spinal cord .humane dispatchers work on the same principle ///i will be doing a full photo course on killing a chicken for the table at some point soon

ooooooo :oops: I couldn't do it :cry:  :cry:  :cry:

[happychickens]

Could not get rid of her like that, even though she was not my chicken and the logistics of me on my own, shears and a sick chicken - yuk.  Anyway she passed away quietly in the sunshine, new it was near the end when she did not want to sip any more water.  Its hard to get good vet info because we would have to travel about 30 miles to a practice that deals with chickens, our local one, even though they do livestock, no real chicken keepers in the area.  Oh well you live and learn, hopefully none of mine will get like that. :cry:

Whilst holding the sick chicken, she had fleas which came onto my top and I dutifully picked off, put into water then down the toilet! I guess its likely they may have hopped off and gone to ground - whilst my chickens were no where near the sick one, this morning they walked over the grass - is it likely they can pick them up and are they easily got rid of? or how long do they linger in grass

[muntjac]

they linger around waiting for the next victim to pass . dust them all with mite n lice powder this will fix them ..also worm them

[happychickens]

Thanks for the advice