[Pixieswift]

My wee sussex bantam is under a year and has been sick on and off with respitary problems, sometimes she is ill and sometimes she is ok she has had a couple of visits to the vet.
Now she has been in her nest box for 4 days she will not come out i feed her by hand 3 times a day and give her water, but i think i should have to let nature take its cause.
I dont know what is wrong with her but she looks in pain today, like she is straining and closes her eys wincing in what appears to be pain, it,s heartbraking to think about it but is it best to send her to chicken heaven or let it just happen. Im new to this she is my favourite hen i love her very much but can not stand to see her in pain and she has not been to the toilet for 4 days nearly HELP!!!!

[Casey76]

If she is in pain you ABSOLUTELY MUST NOT let it just happen.  Take her to the vet if you can't cull her yourself.

Having said that it actually sounds as if she is trying to pass a soft shelled egg.  Just sitting in the nest box is also a sign of being broody, and if you don't left her out she will not toilet.

So first things first... lift her out of the nest box and put her down as far from the coop as you can.  If she has to walk about for a while she will realise she can eat, drink and toilet.  I'm sure you would look distinctly uncomfortable if you hadn't been to the loo in 4 days either!

Once she has had time to wander around a bit she may look a bit brighter.

Do this, then come and tell us how she gets on

[chasechicken]

I'll second that - taking away the fact that she has had past respiratory problems, she sounds broody or possibly a soft-shelled egg..

[Pixieswift]

Hi thankyou for advice, i have lifted her out and placed her on the ground, she didnt move just sank really low to the ground looking scared. I left her for a little while but eventually picked her back up and had a good look around her vent, it looked really pink and to my horror i saw some beasties scarpering around beige in coulour is this LICE...
I immediatly put lice powder on her bum, wings and neck how can this be i have only had her 5 weeks, is this why she has been so sad
I cleaned out the house and powdered the other girls, who all looked fine...

[henamoured]

I'm not sure the powder will get rid of lice I think it's more a preventative measure.
Try putting one or two drops of Frontline for cats at the base of her neck where her wings meet (her hen equivalent of shoulder blades). This will kill the lice within 24-48 hours. I'd try to get hold of frontline this evening if you can (they stock it in some big supermarket chemists).
I'd also treat the other girls otherwise they'll just re-infect each other.
Although the lice might explain your hen's deterioration she still might be broody as well so it's still worth lifting her off the nest at least once a day if she stays in there.

[Casey76]

Well that is what broody hens do.  They go into a trance while they are sitting, and at first when you put them outside, they just huddle down again.

I usually bounce mine up and down a bit to break their trance (they will put thier wings out to balance) and this usually snaps them out of it.

Broody hens are much more susceptible to lice, becayse they don't groom themselves while sitting.

It will also be why she isn't laying  Give her a couple more days, keep kicking her out of the nest box/coop.

[Pixieswift]

Thankyou all, this site is such a great help...I think she is definately broody especially as she is making rosey sounds cluck, cluck,cluck, cluck....
In the 5 weeks i have had her she has started out with a rattling in her chest and had baytril from the vet, got well, then another respitery problem, broody and lice...I know there shouldn't be favourites but i adore her she is the cutest wee girl like a little white ball of fluff.

[Lindeggs]

I know what you mean about not having favourites, Pixieswift.  I have a (heavy breed) Sussex who had a respiratory infection and I had to catch her twice a day and bring her inside to give her antibiotics.  When she was really sick I kept her in a box in the spare bedroom and would go in at night and listen to the poor little thing snoring! 

You definitely bond with an animal that you have spent so much time and effort caring for.

It really does sound like broodiness is the main issue with your girl, and everything else is complications caused by that.  Do keep taking her out each day to make sure she eats, drinks and poos.  Also make sure all the lice are dealt with.  I'm sure she will be feeling better soon.

[hillfooter]

It could well be Red Mite at this time of year.  If you don't know the difference there's lots of info on red mite on the site and you can google it too.  If it's RM you need to treat the house with a pesticide as they live in the house and only visit the bird to feed.  If it is lice Frontline for cats in a dropper is OK.  Apply two drops to the skin at the back of her neck only as sjhe is a bantam.  Heavier L/F use 4 drops.  Treat all your birds with the Frontline if you use it.

If the louse powder is made by Barrier it's pretty ineffective to be frank and that goes for their Red Mite spray and powders too.

HF

[Pixieswift]

Been out to give my wee girl her breakfast and water, i will wait till it's midday to take her out as she like's to feel the sun on her.
I moved her to another nest box, as the one she sleeps in is the one where all my other girl's lay there eggs but she has managed to get herself back into that one...The other girls all heavy breeds just sit on her and lay anyway then Gladys sit's on there eggs. I applied powder to them all yesterday except my Barnavelder as i can not blooming catch her i was on for 3 hours trying to get her i tried every tactic, she is so nervous and the only one who will not feed out of my hand. I tried to get her when she was sleeping but she went crazy and i don't want it to be traumatic for her plus none of my hens will perch at night the all sleep in a nest box some times 2 in one. I have tried lifting them onto the pearch but they all go back to there usual sleeping  :nowink:position it has been like this since i bought them 5 weeks ago they all lay everyday and are very happy and bright (and Spoilt)...
But how will i catch her? My ranger and large sussex come to me no problem for a cuddle and wee gladys my bantam, but Barnavelder she is like road runner and can sense when she is trying to get picked up and is OFF....
Im so grateful for everyone's help.

[Lewjam]

Just shut to coop and go for her while she is stuck.

She wont like being picked up or cornered, but if its a skittish chicken it may never.

If it needs medical treatment its better to just get in there and grab it (still gently) rather then spend ages chasing it round.

Can sometimes do more harm and cause more stress being overly gentle then just getting it while in the coop and doing what needs to be done.

[LittleRedHen]

Wait until she is asleep at night and grab her then.  She'll be so dopey she won't know what's going on until it's too late.  Plop her back into the hen house when you're done.

[Casey76]

Pixieswift, you have to keep your broody girl off the nest.  Make sure she leaves the nest first thing ona morning, then stick her in a dog cage, or similar, with food and water (no bedding).

If you wait until mid day to life her off you wont be able to break the cycle very quickly, and it is possible she will lose weight due to not eating enough.

When my brahma was broody (and they are tenacious) I completely locked up the coop so she couldn't sit at all.  But I have other coops where my laying girls could get into.  It took about a week, of making sure she wasn't sitting anywhere before she gave up.

[Pixieswift]

I had my girl in the garden today, lifted her from the nest box and brought her onto soft grass as soon as i put her down she just lay there, i tried moving her and standing her up but she just wouldn't move it's like her wee legs have stopped working. It gave me a good chance to check all her feathers and vent no sign of the lice but she did have what they have left behind hard greyish white balls of eggs at the base of the feather there was only one but quite large my poor lass, i removed it with some effort and a little squak from Gladys she was very brave...
She seemed to enjoy being in the garden and ate everything i put infront of her, but she still has not been to the toilet in 5 days now im so worried for her. She seemed sad when i put her back in the house at around 5pm i will bring her back into the garden tom am i sat with her all day she seemed to like that...
I think she has had alot to cope with in her short time Respitary problems, LICE etc i'm hoping she will get well but it feel's like it has been for such along time she has felt unwell it make's me feel so sad seeing her like this i wish it was me at least i could tell someone what was wrong with me, my poor wee lass 

[jinty1911]

If she is broody, move her 1st thing in the morning, shut the house so she can't get in.  Any time you see her settle down, go and move her and make her life as uncomfortble as possible. I used to put my hands under them and gently wave them up and down about 3 times and then let them go fro about 6" of the ground.  It wakes them up and they have to land on their feet.  They then usually run straight for the food.  .
I know how you feel when you favourite is ill.