Eglu Cube Coop For Sale

[moyra]

Hi

One of my girls isn't very well. She has pecked herself bald underneath and is acting a bit oddly. Sometimes she seems fine, she'll run over to the back door when I open it and scoff anything that she's given. But over the last couple of weeks she's taken to hiding under a chair, all hunched up and isn't interested in food. She's lost weight as well. She's not constantly doing this and there doesn't seem to be a pattern. This afternoon she ran over and had some sweetcorn and poultry spice but an hour or two later she was standing in the corner with her back to the world.

My other chicken (both are gingernut rangers and almost 2 years old) is absolutely fine.

I've checked the chicken health section and have seen some possible problems like mites, but I don't think that only one chicken would be affected.

They're fed on layers pellets and I put apple cider vinegar or vermx in their water. They get to run around the garden all day, so she's not cooped up a lot.

I'll get some veterinary powder and puff her tummy with that to see if that helps the oven ready look that she's sporting but I'd be grateful if anyone could assist with any other suggestions.

Thanks

[BeckyBoo]

Not an expert - she could be moulting, that can take it out of them. treat for mites and treat the hen house too, they're little devils to spot and they can make them feel rough too.

 

Hopefully someone will put this in the chicken clinic bit and someone will come up with other ideas. Hope she picks up...

 

BeckyBoo

[Chucky Mama]

Worming with Flubenvet is a good idea if you haven't done so within the last 3-4 months but I wonder if she is broody perhaps.

[Egluntyne]

I'd be inclined to worm her with Flubenvet.

 

The weight loss and hunched attitude suggest worms to me. Herbal supplements such as the one you describe have their place as preventatives, but are not terribly effective as a treatment.

[moyra]

Thanks everyone. I've ordered some flubenvet. She's not a happy camper today. She hasn't come out of her eglu - not even for some sultanas - not a good sign.

[The Dogmother]

Hopefully she'll pick up once she's been wormed

 

If the exposed skin looks sore, then smear it with some Johnson's Tea tree Cream; that'll soothe it.

 

[moyra]

Hi again everyone

 

I've administered the flubenvet and puffed her with vet wound powder (am waiting for the tea tree ointment to be delivered) but I've just noticed that her ears have a yellow speckling on them, which Maggie's (other healthy chook) don't. I think it looks like a fungal infection. Could this be the case? And is that something that would cause the other symptoms? She's still acting oddly - one minute seems fine and then hiding and hunching.

Does anyone know if the yellow stuff on her ears is likely to be a fungal infection?

 

Thanks

[The Dogmother]

Hard to say without seeing it, do you have any photos?

[moyra]

Unfortunately our camera is away being mended so can't take any photos at the moment. However, she seems a lot perkier in the last couple of days so hopefully the flubenvet is working its magic. Fingers crossed.

As an aside, my dad saw her at the weekend and he is a gamekeeper and says that the pellets he gets for the pheasants have flubenvet in them. I was thinking about getting some off him to mix with normal layers pellets every couple of months. What do you think?

Thanks

[The Dogmother]

Not sure which ones he has, but the Marriages pellets with Flubnevet mixed in are only available from licensed outlets. You wouldn't mix them with your regular pellets, but feed them on their own as their only source of feed for the week, as you are now doing with the pellets that you have dosed yourself. You should only need to do this 4 times a year.

[staceychristie]

Watch the dates if you do get some from your dad. Don't forget that feed goes off, so it probably won't keep till the next treatment is due.

 

Stacey

[moyra]

Hi

 

Daphne seemed to be getting better. We both thought that she's put on weight and seemed a lot perkier. But the other night when we went to lock them in their eglu bedroom, she was sat in the run (it was dark and she would normally have put herself to bed). We put her to bed and made an appointment to see the vet today. Yesterday she seemed full of beans and we almost cancelled the vet's appointment.

This morning when we let them out, she came out after a minute or two and ate some pellets, drank some water and ate some sultanas but half and hour later we found her dead in the back garden.

I feel really bad about not taking her to vet sooner but she didn't seem poorly most of the time. Since we wormed them she seemed to perk up . But obviously not....

Maggie, the other chicken, is fine. For her point of view (if a chicken has such a thing), is it better to leave her on her own for a while or should we be looking at getting another chicken?

Thanks

[Daphne]

Sorry to hear about Daphne Don't worry or blame yourself, chooks do get things and have a habit of keeling over; its particularly difficult to spot anything if they are up and down and anyway some things just can't be treated.

 

I'd think about getting one or two friends for Maggie, sooner rather than later. They are flock animals and like company.

[moyra]

Hi

 

Thanks for that advice. Next question, how to introduce a newcomer to Maggie? I was thinking about getting a couple of bantams instead of one chicken. If I do, do I just let them out in the garden with Maggie or try to keep them seperate? If I have to seperate them, that could be a problem as I just have one eglu. To complicate matters further, we're going away next week so they'll be unsupervised for 5 days (apart from our neighbour coming in to check their water and food). Life's never simple!

 

Thanks

[Daphne]

I would get Maggie some company as chooks are flock animals. Slow introductions are advocated (see threads) which requires separate accommodation and really you should quarantine newbies first for 7 days or so in case they have any airborne bugs. I do always quarantine (I know plenty of people don't but having had virus' with bought-in birds I don't take any chances), but in emergencies after that I have put a newbie in with an established flock - but always into the house at night and I've always been around to supervise in the morning as this is when they are likely to fight. Mine also have a pen or FR so they aren't confined to a run and can get away. I don't think I'd do this in your situation unless you could supervise for 3 or 4 days before you go - ie be happy they won't fight.

[moyra]

Thanks for your help. We've been out and got a new chicken. A columbine this time - we're still thinking of a name. I've put the new girl in the run and locked Maggie out while she free ranges in the garden (she never uses the run during the day anyway). I was going to lock Maggie in her coop tonight and leave the newbie in the cat box locked in the run and then perhaps let them meet tomorrow (I don't have the facilities to quarantine I'm afraid).

Maggie has been VERY vocal this afternoon. I'm assuming that this is her voicing her displeasure at the interloper.

Fingers crossed no flying feathers later!

[Daphne]

I'd perhaps let them meet in some supervised free ranging so room to escape one another. They will have to sort out the pecking order so there will be some peckicuffs but hopefully it won't be too bad. If it is more or less OK then I'd shove the newbie in with Maggie tomorrow night when roosting, then be around in the morning to see they eat together (perhaps put down 2 feeders/drinkers) and interact more or less nicely, and if you're lucky, that should be that! I have a feeling there's a thread with names on it somewhere. Thelma springs to mind for some reason. Anyway, fingers crossed you get a nice blue egg!

[moyra]

This is exhausting!!!! Maggie must have a sore throat by now, all the noise she's been making. We've had to go round and apologise to neighbours, she's been THAT noisy!

Anyway, I found the really helpful thread about introducing a new chook to one older one and we halved the eglu run with canes and put Maggie straight into her bed through the side door and left the cat box in the other end for newbie (we're thinking, Mabel) to sleep in. I went out at 10pm and found Newbie perched on top of the cat box so put her into the box myself and covered the box with a towel to keep any draughts out.

This morning we let Maggie out to FR and kept newbie/Mabel? in the run. Then after a couple of hours we let newbie/Mabel? out. It was okay for a while but then Maggie spotted her and oh, my gosh, Maggie jumped on her back squawking like a banshee. Newbie couldn't get away quick enough and kept well out of Maggie's way. There's been another couple of undignified spats but more or less Maggie's ignoring Newbie. We'll see how the afternoon and evening go and maybe try and put Newbie/Mabel into sleep with Maggie or it'll be another night in the cat box.

Thanks for your help. I need a lie down and a large pinot grigio after this!!