How Quickly Does Albendazole Work?

[wiganchooks]

Hello

 

We took in 3 ex-batts last Monday and both before and since I've been reading so much useful info on this forum so THANK YOU!

 

However, I would now really really appreciate some advice.

 

2 of the hens have settled in very well, really bonded, feeding, laying, enjoying themselves. The one in the worst state when she arrived (half her feathers missing, skiny) was ok for a few days but has since gone downhill.

 

She is bottom of the pecking order but was eating ok as we put separate food in the run and house so she could get some. The middle ranking hen was picking on her a bit but she was coping.

 

However the last 2 days the little one seems to be giving up. She is barely bothering to eat and is being bullied a lot by the middle hen (but no blood drawn). I didn't want to separate them as hoped it would settle down. However even when I took the middle, bully one out today (to roam the garden for a bit by herself) the little one was just all hunched up, the classic picutre of "ill hen" that you seen in the books, not eating and shaking.

 

I've just got her in a box in our house, she's now asleep (still alive). I don't think she is egg bound, she doesn't have an impacted crop or sour crop.

 

I'll wake her up for a bit and syringe feed her some porridge if she won't eat.

 

Does anybody have any ideas of what might be wrong?

 

I'll keep her in overnight - but if she makes it will keeping her apart any longer do more harm than good - will they bully her more when she goes back in?

 

Thank you! (Sorry this is so long)

[sandyhas3chucks]

the important thing is to get some fluids down her. try pt warm water mixed tsp sugar. then syringe few drops at a time if she won't drink it.

posting incase you are waiting.

[Redwing]

Sorry to hear you are having problems

 

Its been quite cold and very wet these last few days, do they have a cover on their run? perhaps she is chilly and/or damp? remember they might have come from hell but it was warm there...

 

I would keep her in overnight and let her warm up, some chicken food mixed with warm water and a little corn will warm her through if she is cold and cheer her up if she isnt, if she doesnt eat it offer it on your finger, if she wont eat then you will have to syringe a little warm water in to her

 

Net Tex do some really good drops that claim to perk up a chook in half an hour as they contain concentrated nutrients, these worked for me when I had some poorly chicks and I rate it though others may not.. but if you have a local stockist near to you they are worth a try - obviously they wont treat anything underlying

 

Consider getting a 'bumper bit' or beak ring for the bully, this will stop her really jabbing with her beak and pulling any feathers, you can get them quickly from ebay

 

Also put more food and water spots out if you only have the one at present, simple coop cups would do if necessary, this gives all hens the opportunity to eat without being pushed away

[sandyhas3chucks]

if you have some ready brek, make it with water and nice & slloppy might tempt her.

keep her in and warm tonight and if she is no better OR better still get her to a vet tonight.

They can go down hill very fast and you have only had her but a short time. sounds like something is wrong, she needs time to recover and regrow her fesathers without being bullied , at least for a while if she is as poorly as she sounds.

She may have an infection and a short course of antribiotic might be all that is needed.

The other possibility is she has a softee on the way and this can make them feel very off!

this will be sotred hopefully by the morning if as you put it she is still with you.

You can work on the bullying bit when she is better, and tommorrow you will get lots of advice.

good luck with the water. for now

[wiganchooks]

Thanks - wow that's quick!!

 

She's awake but not interested in porridge so I'll water it down a bit, add soem suggar and syringe her a bit then let her sleep the night somewhere warm.

 

Good thought about the rain (and it has rained badly here) but they are nice and dry as I've got a big pvc shower curtain over the run and another cover over the far end to block the wind.

 

I hope it is something like a soft egg. Otherwise I'll call our vet tomorrow and see if he'l give me some baytril or something else suitable for hens. (Any recommendations? - we live in an urban cat and dog area - not sure our vet will have had a hen in recently.)

 

Re the bullying - I wonder if they recognise that one is ill or off colour and try to drive them out the group? It's not so much pecking or jumping on (no more feathers gone, no blood) it's just they don't let her near the main food trough, (and sometimes try to drive her off the other pots for the hell of it) or if she is in the house and the bully want to be she drives her back out (hence the big rain cover!).

 

If I can figure out photos I'll post one as she is cute despite the half feathers gone!

Thanks again.

[sandyhas3chucks]

they will def know if she is feeling off. and yes horrid but will chase her off more. don't worry about getting food into her, if she won't eat she might choke if you force her but the water you can dribble in.

Vets usually go the baytril route to start.

or something injectable, thet all cover basic chook stuff at school. you cansearch for a chooky vet if you want.

[sandyhas3chucks]

logged on to see how you are doing this morning?

[wiganchooks]

Good news this morning, it must have been a soft egg that was causing her bother.

 

Last night she perked up a bit after being given a few drops of warm suggary water and proceeded to drink a whole ramekin of it by herself, so must have been a bit dehydrated. Didn't want to eat anything, but slept the night in a box on a hot water bottle, and this morning there was what I assume is a "softie".

 

It was a sort of rubbery shell, surrounded by mess as it had been squashed. the "shell" had all come out, but was like floppy soft rubber not shell!

 

She feels much better and is back in the run and house. Still keeping away from the big bossy one and spending most of her time in the house but she's eating and drinking and looking perky.

 

Do you think this might just be her body settling down into her new life, or does this sort of thing reoccur? She hadn't laid at all since we got them from BHWT last week. The other 2 are laying nice hard shelled eggs, but I've mixed oyster shell directly into their crumb and disolved a human calcium tablet into their water containers to see if that will help.

 

Fingers crossed she doesn't do that again!! She's a little drama queen.

 

Thanks for the advice

[sandyhas3chucks]

oh good a softee alright.

Yes sometimes it can take a while to settle, but you say she is the least feathered, she will need extra tlc.

If you can take her out separately to be sure she is eating, you can help by giving her extra protein to help regrow those feathers. mealworm is good, a lottle grated cheese, not too much, a few sunflower seeds, cat food is often used too. I would also crush some of that calcium tablet up in her own food. To make use of the calcium, they need vit D3 which will be in extra short supply with less sunshine, you can add cod liver oil to all there mash/crumbs as I expect the others will also need some help.

Now for the bullying.....

Are they in an Eglu?

[wiganchooks]

No, it’s not an eglu I’m afraid, it’s a wooden house and run from a local shed place. The house is 3ft by 3ft and on legs so the run is underneath and then out by 6ft, so 9ft by 3ft in total. I’ve made it interesting though with branches and hung up greens, and a attached a plastic sheet roof and 2 sides.

 

That egg must have been making her feel progressively worse for about 2-3 days I think, looking back, as now she’s back to how she was the first few days, or better actually. She’s still bottom of the heap but is now getting by alright.

 

The bullying has dropped off during the day as she's got better (or is it the other way around? - chicken and egg I guess!)

 

She’s become brighter and happier all day and this afternoon has been staying in the run with both the other two for good long periods. She’ll move away if they decide they want to eat from whatever she’s got at the time, but she’s not fleeing back into the house so much, she’s figured she can just move to the other end of the run and eat something else. So she’s eating plenty at last and very little pecking is going on. (Equally very little of my work was getting done today as I’ve been watching them and supervising a 2hr exploration of the garden!!)

 

They are all starting to regrow feathers and the little one especially is looking a bit like a porcupine. I’ve just ordered some meal worms and they are on the ex-batt crumb so hopefully they’ll get enough protein from that.

 

I’ve got a couple of stupid questions though which I wonder if you could help with:

 

1. Can they over eat? Should I measure out a set amount of food a day and stop at that?

At the moment they are just eating and eating freely but are skinny so I’m not concerned – yet… (I was following the instruction on the bag and just giving them crumb and a bit of corn in the afternoon but today I put lots of greens in to help with distractions from bullying – they’ve been stripped bare so I expect runny tummies all day tomorrow! )

 

2. Do you know why they would have lost feathers in the first place?

I’m guessing a lot of pulling out of self and others due to stress of being confined or too hot, but I’m also wondering if they’re likely to have come with mites/lice etc? However they don’t appear to be in any discomfort, aren’t pulling any out now, and I’ve put diatom on them and in their house and I cleaned their house with poultry shield before they moved in (and I’ll do it again this weekend).

 

P.S. Conveniently the calcium tablets (just off the shelf Tesco ones) have vitamin D in them as well.

[sandyhas3chucks]

It's the D3 that is needed for calcium absorbtion.

You are rigt the ex bat food "aught" to be best, It iIS what it was designed for, baut every little helps.

They are crammed into such a small space they peck each others feathers out, in order to get to food, maybe boredom too, maybe for the extra protein.#

Too horrid to think too deeply about

No they won't over eat.

Keep the food pots topped up all the time. They will be eating more to re feather and also it does take them a while to realise that food is there all the time & they don't need to fight for it.

You could put loads of feeders around in that space. just tghose cheap coop cups that slide on the side will do.

Right now if you can do this it "might" help like it helped mine.

The squared trelliss maybe 6/8 inches square.

I had a piece that I had cut off from somewhere it is only 2 squares tall and about 5 or 6ft long. I put it in my 4ft by 8ft run diagonally.

It seemed to work as a mental barrier, the girls can get through the squares, They can also jump on top and roost or walk.

It seemed to stop any chasing, like it was really too much effort.

I wish I had discovered it when I first had problems and only had the Eglu, as I think I could have done similar in there.

I am glad she is better, softees make them feel very miiserable AND drink a lot too!

Good luck

Oh and do enjoy

I hardly watch any tv now (well more now it is darker earlier) I just spend all my time in the garden with my gardening pals

You are in for such a treat watching them And "gettiing to know them"

[Egluntyne]

Let them eat as much as they want.

 

They have a lot of feathers to regrow, which uses up a lot of protein. Also, they are moving about more, and excercising muscles they didn't know they had which also uses up a lot of energy.

 

They lose their feathers because:

 

1: it is so hot in the battery shed that they have to cool down somehow. Their combs over develop for the same reason.

 

2. They are churning out eggs, on a commercial diet, which might not be brilliant, and that uses up reserves that would otherwise have gone into feather production.