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[Essjay]

Hi everyone, long-time lurker and occassional poster here

 

I'm just back from the vet with Nelly, my Speckled Star who has peritonitis. She's only about 10 months old and although looking very healthy and happy has stopped laying and I could feel her abdomen was a little full. We just lost Myrtle (our ex-batt) about six weeks ago to the same thing

 

My question is - is it something that we're doing? We'd like to think that our chicks are spoiled rotten but is there something that I could do to prevent this happening. Is it true that pure breeds are less prone to it?

 

We've got medication for Nelly and will be going back to the vet on Tuesday next week so fingers crossed.

[chickiepiggies]

i have one peritontis as well. just think it bad luck.

mine have treats but only of an evening and if i can see they have been eating there normal food. your not doing anything wrong.

 

hope she gets better

[Essjay]

Thank you

 

I hope so too - she's such a lovely chicken. Finger crossed.

[Egluntyne]

It does seem to be commoner in hybrids, I suppose because they are bred to churn out eggs. I've lost several to peritonitis, and they have all been the bog standard ginger hen.

 

The vet might be able to drain a little of the fluid away, which will make her more comfortable, and perhaps give some antibiotics,

[Essjay]

We're quite lucky as we've found a good vet (I should add him to the list). He drained a little fluid yesterday and she's on antibiotics for a week. I've managed to catch it quite early this time and she doesn't seem poorly at all but I must admit the vet thinks that it's a bit of a slim chance that she'll pull through.

 

I was talking to my husband last night about rare breeds. I suppose what we're looking for is a chicken that doesn't normally lay every day but it seems that it's either hybrids who lay all the time or rare breeds who aren't great layers. I'm sure eventually we'll find a happy compromise.

[Budgies]

I'm sorry to hear your girl has peritonitis. Just thought I'd add that I got 4 pure breeds after I lost my two original Omlet hens, mostly because the breeders were telling me that they didn't get peritonitis in the same way.

 

However, my vet now tells me that in her experience most of the pure breeds are still as prone to it as the hybrids.

 

You have to bear in mind too that pure breeds do require more care in terms of them going broody - one of mine has gone broody twice so far this year and it feels like we've barely begun the warmer weather!

 

My vet implanted one of my original girls to try and stop her laying but she had been unwell for too long for her to survive the 6 weeks necessary before the implant works with regular draining and antibiotics. Apparently now they have 20 hens on their books that they have implanted though.

 

It is very common for the yolk to miss the infundibulum which then tends to lead to peritonitis, and is often just "one of those things" - but it can be caused by birds being overweight or getting a shock.

[Essjay]

Thanks for the info Budgies - it's much appreciated

 

I was wondering about her weight actually - she's a big girl. Mine don't often free range and although they have a WIN with roosting bars I had thought whether lack of exercise meant she wasn't as fit as she could be. I've had no broody experiences yet so I'll bear that in mind when deciding what we should do next. I've just given Nelly her tablets which was easier than I thought it would be despite the fact she was fighting like a tiger which is a good sign.

 

Despite losing two girls (maybe three) in the last year I still love keeping chickens - it's the most addictive thing ever. Fingers crossed though that we manage to have a quiet few months after this!

[The Dogmother]

Please don't think that it is your fault, apart from over-feeding, or feeding the wrong stuff, it isn't something that can be caused by the owner.

 

Draining and antibiotics will help in the short run, but unfortunately the prognosis is never good.

[Essjay]

Thanks Claret - it's good to hear that it isn't something I'm doing. I must admit though that it's made me more cautious about their weight. They only eat lettuce, sweetcorn, mash and corn but possibly too much. When I take her to the vet next week I'll ask him if he thinks she's overweight.

[The Dogmother]

You'll be able to tell that yourself by picking her up (which is why it is so important to handle/check your birds regularly); a egg bird (with the possible exception of a marans or sussex) should have a fairly prominent keel (breastbone) and relatively little breast meat on each side. They should feel firm around the breast and thigh area (ooo err missus!). Chickens tend to store excess fat in the body cavity, which is why it has so much effect on their laying ability.

 

Make sure that their diet is mainly of their layers pellets or mash and that any treats are given towards the end of the day, and kept to a minimum. Although they love carbs like pasta and rice, these really aren't necessary in their diet (empty calories) so only give a little. Extra protein in the form of meal worms (dried or live), and alfalfa (which is also full of other nutrients) are good treats. My girls love dried seaweed and I give it to them neat in a galley pot attached to the side of the run.

[Essjay]

Hmm, I pick her up fairly often (especially now she's having meds!) but I should have a better feel around. I know my ex-batts are tiny in comparison with Nelly and Natasha (who's a bluebell) but I thought it was just different breeds. I'll have a re-think about their food too as they do get a lot of treats; sweetcorn first thing, lettuce at lunch and corn last thing alongside mash which is their main food. I think I need to get them out and about in the garden more now it's lighter - help them work some of it off!

 

Thanks again for the advice

[The Dogmother]

Bluebelles are more busty girls and tend to be a heavy type - that's the marans in them.

 

Try restricting treats to just the evening or late afternoon and then only a wee bit. The only exception to this should be the odd bit of dark green veg hung in their run. Free ranging will help too as they scratch around more and work harder for what they eat.

 

Ex-batts will be more prone to egg-tackle problems anyhow, so peritonitis is more prevalent among them. They do benefit, though, from a dab of a good quality poultry tonic in their water a couple of times a week - it helps to settle their tums (if it contains probiotics) and adds more nutrients to their diet.

[Essjay]

I'll definitely make these changes to their diets. I think I got into the habit of "feeding them up," when I got my original three ex-batts. They were so scrawny that I obviously showered them with food.

 

Natasha and Nelly are the first chicks we got at POL and I just carried on the same feeding that I've always done. I'm going to hang some greens up to so they can work a bit more. I'm also going to let them out when I get home so they can run around a bit.

 

Oh dear - they'll probably be a bit angry about this, lol. But if it keeps them healthy then it's definitely worth it.

[The Dogmother]

Feeding them up is fine, just make sure that it's with the right stuff - things that we think of as comfort food aren't much good for them - think protein rich and healthy, so mealworms, live or dried, other dried crustaceans like dried gammarus shrimp (47% protein), Garvo's Alpha mix is good, dark greens and the odd apple. The key is just to make sure that it's given in moderation and at the end of the day.

[Luvachicken]

Claret, do you have to rinse the sea weed to get rid of the salt and how long do you leave it to dry ?

Also, how often can they have it ?

[The Dogmother]

None of the above; it's dried seaweed prepared for animal feed. There are different versions on the market - this is just one of them: