Forge Cottage Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 The girls appeared active and healthy yesterday with normal poos. I poo picked their house and pen, cleaned and disinfected the house, put in fresh bedding with a bit of red mite powder mixed in as normal. Then I powdered each of them, which is always a bit of a shock. They hardly ate any pellets yesterday, free ranging most of the day on grass, with occasional visits to the back door for grapes... Quite common at weekends. Today, all three have been doing very watery clear squirts, with small traces of yellow or white, but Peggy's almost completely clear (she has done half a dozen like this). Apart from the watery poos, the other two girls seem OK, just not as energetic as normal. Peggy is the one who has not laid for some months. Today she is standing or walking slowly about, tail flat, very docile. She slept in my arms for a bit today and I noticed she had an enlarged crop, but soft, just full of liquid. Peggy is a good size but never eats as much as the others and normally holds less in her crop, more like a golf ball size, so this is bigger than normal and has no grain inside. This sort of thing always seems to happen on a Bank Hol weekend! We will keep an eye on her, but does anyone have any ideas please?? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Space Chick Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 Has it been warm there? I have had this with my girls when there has been a change in the weather. They drink more and then have watery poos which return to normal the day after. However, it does seem a bit of a concern re the crop feeling squishy. Give them some probiotic yoghurt if you can. Also when did you last worm them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forge Cottage Posted May 2, 2010 Author Share Posted May 2, 2010 Thanks, yes, they are a bit like heatstroke poos, but it has not been that warm here yet (I wish ). Peggy has perked up this afternoon, but still the watery poos, so there cannot be much going through her. At least her crop has gone down a bit and I can feel some food in there now, so I hope she will get her metabolism back to normal soon. I will see how she is in the morning. A bit of a mystery. Worming method? It has been about 3 months since we wormed them. No sign of worms in poo or other symptoms, but we have the pellets all mixed with Flubinvet ready to start worming tomorrow. The trouble is that Peggy is not the main pellet eater (she prefers grass) and it is always hard to tell whether the right hens are eating the right amount...?! I have seen other people talking about dabbing Flubinvet on grapes. Tempting and simple, but when you think they should be getting about a quarter of a teaspoon each per week, that sounds like a huge random oversdose. So I guess we'll stick to the pellets mix for now, to spread the dosage, unless anyone has a better idea?? Also, I have some cider vinegar and have put a few drops in their water. Off to get my dinner on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Space Chick Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 Can you limit their free ranging time to encourage pellet eating? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted May 3, 2010 Share Posted May 3, 2010 it is best to follow the manufacturers instructions, so that they get the correct dose throughout the day, rather than a guesstimated dose, in one hit. It will involve limiting their free renging, until at least later in the day, but if the dose is measured correctly into thei pellets, they will get the correct amount of Flubenvet, as their appetites are driven by their age and weight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
