[coxyMFC]

i too have a poorly chicken, for about a week now she has seemed very detatched from the group. when the others were fighting over mealworms, grass, and grapes i threw them, she seemed to just sit in a corner on her own. We noticed this about 3 days ago and since then its got worse. when the others are out in their pen she will take herself off to the house and just sit there for hours, or under the house on her own. when either me or the OH go out to see them then the other 8 will be up on the perches near us (wanting corn) but she doesnt seem interested. We isolated her yesterday and she did eat, drink, pass a solid poo, and lay an egg. so lastnight we put her back in with the other girls. thismorning when we let them out the other 8 flew out of the house (not literally) and she sort of dragged behind, she just seems really lethargic (sp?). i have changed all the bedding recently and at the start of the month they all received their worming food (verm-x - which she ate), and i applied diatom to the food and the house (dosage as suggested)

today we picked her up and had a good look at her, her rear feathers are ok and she doesnt feel like she has an egg stuck

as i type this she is stood in a corner with neck tucked right in - her chest looks puffed out, but im guessing this is because she has her neck tucked in

her comb is very small and no where near as red as the other girls are

we have had the girls for a couple of months now, and prior to us getting them they were treated as follows ....

http://www.glencroftpoultry.co.uk/chick_vaccination_programme.htm

she just doesnt seem happy at all. does anyone have any ideas

thank you in advance.

Andrew.

[Aunt Sally]

How old are they coxy ?

We'd advise getting some Flubenvet to worm them as we consider verm-x not effective for killing any worms they have.  It just helps to prevent them.

Have you checked the house for red mite ?  They hide in all the nooks and crannies during ther day and suck the chooks blood overnight 

Make sure her breathing sounds clear and that her crop is empty in the mornings before they are let out to eat and drink.

[coxyMFC]

they are just gone 22 weeks

i shall try and get some of the flubenvet and give that a whirl

ive checked the house with kitchen roll and there was no trace of red mite, tried all the nooks and crannys

her breathing seems ok aswell, and her crop was definately empty thismonrning when i let them out

its baffling

[poultrygeist]

Hi coxy.

Whereabouts are you in case anyone nearby could help you with the flubenvet.

Rob

[coxyMFC]

hi rob

im in sunny middlesbrough - gods country !    ................ (theres 2 lies)

haha


btw, just had a look at the girls there, the bird in question has a different looking array of feathers around her back end, her bum is clean and there doesnt seem to be any redness or anything like that (had another bird prolapse the other month)  . but the feathers under her bum are not fluffy and clean like the other birds. they are kind of matted. as if she has been seeping liquid or something from her rear end

[poultrygeist]

Bit far from me but you never know 

Dirty feathers can indicate worms but could also be more serious. Not my field of expertise (bit like everythign else) but if it's a simple upset then natural yoghurt can help, as can garlic.
I would try what Aunt Sally says and try and get some flubenvet pronto if you can and see if that helps her.

Rob

[coxyMFC]

cheers im gonna get on the case right away. do you think i should keep her on her own until she is better ?

[poultrygeist]

Might be a good idea until you know what's wrong at least.

The flubenvet is a 7 day course and they should all be treated. At least you'll know they're free from worms.

Rob

[karlooben]

hi there one other thing to check for as well is lice , u dont always notice them on the bird unless u take a real real close up look .

[snowflake]

try washing her bum aera with shampoo and blow dry if the feathers dont all fuff up like stuck down base of shaft its lice eggs glued to them.
feed her fishy cat food as a protine boost and cabbage leaf for iron apple cider vinigar ( cloudy sort) in water helps. seperate her from the others if possable untill she is better.

[coxyMFC]

update -

put her to bed lastnight, knocked up an isolation area, made sure she was warm and had plenty of food and water (wasnt interested in either mind), and when we did leave her she was laid in a big pile of straw, still looking miserable

went in thismorning and it seems she has got out of the bed we made her. but during the night she has became a norwegian blue

RIP   Clown 

[joyfull]

so sorry to hear about your loss, hugs xx