Chicken bald back

[Tiggy]

Patsy was not her normal self this morning, sitting on the ground, tail down & not wanting to eat or drink or go out with the others, I've brought her inside & managed to get her to drink & have a small syringe full of olive oil, she has laid a really big egg. Her crop felt really hard & bobbly, it seems to have gone down a lot now & she is more alert, is there anything else I can do

[jade&mike]

get her some live maggots tomorrow, any fishing tackle-bait shop should have them, they will clear any blockage still there and prevent another occuring.

i hope this helps.

[Tiggy]

thanks for that, I've just popped out from work to the local tackle shop - 60p for a few maggots, cheaper than the vetf

[jade&mike]

glad you managed to get some.

you may need to give them to her several times over the next few days, if your not sure just trust your instincts and keep feeding them until your happy.

[Tiggy]

I let them out this morning it was still fairly dark the others came rushing out but Patsy just would not move, I wanted to give her some maggots but she is not interested the others certainly liked them - I work full time so wont be home again until 7pm, I have a half day tomorrow, I hope she will be OK until then, I think she may need the vet, her crop was empty this morning but she is really not right

[Egluntyne]

It doesn't sound like impacted crop of it was empty this morning.

 

Perhaps you could make her a sloppy pellet porridge to get some food and fluids into her.

 

I think it might be a good idea if you were to take her to the vet tonight. She doesn't sound well.

[The Dogmother]

Doesn't sound too good Tiggy

 

If her crop is impacted then it will still be full and hard in the morning (see my post about this in the FAQ section). You will need to keep up the oil and massaging for a couple of days, cut her food right back but make sure that she has planty of probiotic yoghurt and water with Avipro in it to keep her hydrated.

 

If you're at all worried, then take her to the vet; do you have a good chicken vet there?

[Tiggy]

I got some more maggots, the local tackle shop just gave me a few when I said what they were for, my other girls managed to eat most of them, I'm off tomorrow so will have chance to spend time with Patsy, I'm not sure our local vet has had much experiance with chickens but I know one of the nurses has, I'll pick up some probiotic yogurt on the way home, fingers crossed she will be Ok they were all in the eglu last night when I got back.

[The Dogmother]

Fingers crossed Tiggy - I wish I were closer so that I could come and look her over for you.

 

Do keep us posted, won't you?

[Tiggy]

thanks claret, I'll keep you posted

[Tiggy]

Patsy had roosted under the table when I got home, wasn't able to get up the ladder or jump to the eglu, she is not walking very well. This morning seems brighter today, eating OK, she did huge amounts of poo after I wormed her, she is still very wobbly but the vet yesterday did not seem to know why, she was trying to lay yesterday but nothing comming out I steamed her vent to see if that would help. I kept her in the house again last night to make sure she has some food & water, the others are bullying her & stopping her getting to the food but she seemed OK going back into the coop early this morning - the vet is going to get some advice from someone who has experiance with chickens & ring me today

[The Dogmother]

Hmm, sounds like something else as well as sour crop then - that wouldn't make her so poorly and unable to walk in such a short space of time. She's lucky to have such a sensible owner.

 

Shame that my chicken expert vet is so far away from you Tiggy

[Tiggy]

she has eaten the pellet & corn porrige i left for her over night & her crop feels soft today and slightly full, she is alert & pecking at some spinach, I'm wondering if when she was feeling poorly if she fell off the coop table & twisted her leg, she is griping OK & the vet didn't seem to think there was a prob with her hip or leg yesterday, she still hasn't laid, I wont be home until nearly 7 tonight so wont know if she or one of the others has deposited in the nest box, I'll keep her in the house again tonight to make sure she eats & drinks OK

[The Dogmother]

It coudl well be a sprain Tiggy - that's the most common cause of chicken leg problems. Keep her warm and try to restrict her movements a bit to give it time to heal - do you have a dog crate?

[Egluntyne]

A bit of extra calcium can help settle sprains and the like.

[The Dogmother]

A bit of extra calcium can help settle sprains and the like.

 

I'd forgotten about that Egluntine - arnica is good too.

[Tiggy]

Patsy seems much better today, still a little hesitant on her legs, chose to walk down the ladder from the coop table this morning where as she normally is first out & flaps down, seems to be eating OK, vet rang me yesterday, she really didn't have a clue & is trying to find a vet locally with a bit more expertise, I think my vets will need a crash course there is achicken owning exposion aropund here

[The Dogmother]

Glad to hear that she's a little better, The Boy wishes her well too.

 

I am sure that you've tried this, but have a go at phoning round all the local vets to see if any of them are poultry specialists.

 

I can heartily recommend West Bar vets in Banbury - Clive Madeiros there is one of the country's leading poultry experts, and David Shepherd is brilliant with chooks too.

[Tiggy]

I popped home at lunchtime (had to collect dad from hospital - thats another sory) all 4 hens seem to be bobbing about the run, whatever it was Patsy seems to have recovered, I'll ring round vets next week to so see who knows a thing or two about chickens

[Egluntyne]

That is good to hear.

[The Dogmother]

Good news Tiggy