SeramaSilly

Aw thank you! She's doing a lot better..... no longer wobbly but still really only eating mealworms - I know they're really fattening but I worry she won't eat anything otherwise. I think she'll be staying in the indoor rabbit cage in my spare bedroom (with the radio on) until the spring now - luckily she's only the size of a pigeon! xx

A big hug from me too!

Aw poor squiggle but you gave her a pain-free and well-fed end!

Oh that's reassuring to hear!! She is soooo much better today - she ate a little raw egg along with the mealworms so we shall carry on persevering!

I don't have a utility room so the spare room's just easier for me - I will move her away from the radiator though! She seems a lot brighter but still having to syringe water to her beak and she won't eat anything other than mealworms which I know are REALLY high in fat but what else can I do?!

Thanks Dogmother, I will stop adding marmite, I still can't find the nutridrops at the moment but am still looking. To clear up any misunderstanding I did get permission from the vet to use the Tylan I already had. She is in an indoor rabbit cage in a spare bedroom next to the radiator and I'm keeping the heating on just for her. I will get a probiotic for her if she pulls through. Thank you for your help x

Hi Lewis, thanks for getting back to me I've just spoken to a lovely vet in the past ten minutes who only works Mondays and has some experience with chickens. She thinks that because I am having to syringe to her beak she is not getting enough antibiotic so my husband is going to take the bottle (of Tylan) and the little measuring scoop down to them after work (I currently have a chest infection!) and they are going to work out a high dose for her (I've recently changed vets). So I'm a little more hopeful x

Ok Vi my serama, has been poorly I think for about two weeks. At first she was dozing in the run but eating normally and so I would bring her indoors in the day and started her on antibiotics - unfortunately I now think she wasn't drinking although continued to eat. Last week I noticed that she was unsteady on her feet so immediately brought her indoors full-time. I took her to the vet who could find nothing obviously wrong although thought she was a little dehydrated and had a few crackles on her chest. I started her on antibiotics but this time syringing to her beak. She continues to eat meal worms (turning her nose up at everything else). She is still very wobbly but has eaten lots of mealworms today! I've done lots of research about this online and this does seem to tie in with moulting - she's had new head feathers growing in for about the last four months at least! The advice was that she needed vitamin B but for the life of me I cannot find my nutri-drops but there were also an awful lot of suggestions of marmite so I have been diluting some in water and giving her that. I am loathe to have her put to sleep yet because she doesn't actually look ill - she's not dozing, her eyes don't look funny. She does have the runs but I think that may be down to the fluids that I keep giving her. I have had this before with a large fowl hen every time she moulted but she seemed to pick up quite quickly once I'd brought her inside. Does anyone please have some suggestions? Am I being cruel carrying on with this or do you think there's still some hope? I did read online that someone's hen took a month to recover so that keeps giving me hope but then I question myself again.

Is 56 deemed elderly now?!

Aw, I'm so pleased - it's so worrying when they're ill! x

How is your dog doing today?

My dog picked up something nasty before christmas and I nearly lost her so I would agree with Dogmother and mullethunter - I would take her to the vet in the morning.

I have a covered run Patricia but the rain still seems to seep in under the gap between the bottom of the run and the concrete - so I'm kind of stuck!

Oh, I'll go and take a look at Flytesofancy's website. Thanks so much!

Thanks everyone for your replies - I think wood chips are the way to go then. Does this look suitable to you? http://www.fountaintimber.co.uk/timber-chips.html