Chicken bald back

[Pottage]

Poorly Lola has been on .4ml of Baytril and 1.5ml of Metacam for the last 5 days as she has egg peritonitus. It's a lot of liquid for a little chicken! She seemed to be getting better at the weekend (she laid a real egg Saturday, it was weak shelled and broke as soon as I picked it up, but it was at least a proper egg), but has been behaving "oddly" again today and my husband thinks she's started going downhill again.

 

When we were at the vet last Thursday she injected Lola with the Baytril and Metacam, them gave us 5 days worth to use to treat her at home. Tomorrow is the last day of treatment.

 

The vet said we could put it in her food, or directly into her beak. We've been putting it on mash as it's dry so it soaks it up a bit, and them putting a small amount of blended tinned corn on the top of that. She does seem to fling her food everywhere though so I don't know if she is getting the full dose, and often we end up giving her half in the morning and then the rest late afternoon as she won't take it all in one go. I am reluctant to put it down her beak as I have read of you don't know what you are doing (which I clearly don't!) they can end up with it in their lungs. I also dont want give her any undue stress if I can help it.

 

So, how does everyone else get their chickens to take their medicine? The rest of mine are like hoovers if they get any whif of a treat. It would have to be the fussy, messy eater that's got sick!

[Luvachicken]

Sorry one of yours is poorly.

When mine have needed something the vet nurse always gives me some small syringes.

Queenie is a good patient - she sits on my lap and I just dribble a tiny bit at the edge of her beak and she licks it off.

 

One of my others who was not so good ended up being wrapped up firmly in an old towel and then being given the liquid at the top of the beak.

 

I have not yet managed to make one choke but then I do only dribble a tiny amount on their beak, and believe me, giving them 1ml of something can take a long time - even my son said how long it took for such a small amount.

 

They do sometimes give a little flick and you end up wearing some but once they get the taste they don't seem to mind.

Best of luck, hope she gets well soon.

[mollyripkim]

Same here, I bought little syringes (no needles) from ebay. The vet told me if you dribble in a little on either side of the beak the it's really hard to choke them but it is quite slow. I hope she makes a good recovery,

[jimnpaula]

I was taught by the vet to stick the syringe right down their throat like a sword swallower (then follow it with the pill) - I have managed it once since. I now prefer to not stress a sick bird and instead put the liquid on a small cube of bread. Don't know how I'd deal with pills, possibly squash bread around it.

 

P

[gavclojak]

My girl had this recently, I mixed her meds in with a tablespoon of her pellets and hot water sprinkled with a few mealworms and made a porridge with it, she found it irresistible and loved the fact she had a treat and the other girls watched with envy from the perimeter fence

[Chickabee]

I syringe fed one of mine when she was poorly. Wrapped her in a towel, as said previously. Very slowly dripped the liquid food into her beak and watched her swallow. Good luck. Hope she's better soon

[Pottage]

The towel and syringe method has worked for us the last few days, thanks. She’s not overly impressed with my husband prising her little beak open *at all* though, and the second she sees me now she squats down with her wings out even if I am the other side of the garden. I’m sure she’s doing it just to make us feel guilty

 

Husband has been opening her beak, and then syringing enough liquid in so it fills the bottom of her beak under her tongue (handy little collection area, that!), letting her swallow and then repeating until she’s had her full dose.

 

Her little belly is looking pink again, rather than inflamed so I hope she’s on the mend. She’s still a little withdrawn but she has been very sick afterall. Meds are finished today so I guess we just wait and see how she goes now.

[sparkysmum]

Sorry I didn.t see this earlier. I've never had meds for my hens, but when I've wormed them with Panacur I just drip it onto little cubes of bread and its gone in a trice. No waste either as the bread soaks it all up. Hope this is useful at some point. Axx

[Lydia]

I've always squirted meds straight in using the smallest syringe. You can buy in bulk from Amazon or more pharmacies sell very small ones for babies (although best not to mention it's for a chicken). That way I am sure the hen is getting the full dose. I've dosed loads of hens this way and not managed to kill one yet. It's easier with two people but possible with one.

 

To be honest, if your girl has laid an egg that recently, albeit a thin shelled one, I would question whether it was peritonitis. I'm not a vet and I've no medical training but I've rehomed ex-bats, ex-caged and ex-barn girls for 8 years and have seen more than my fair share of peritonitis. In my experience they stop laying and don't lay again if that's what they've got.

 

Also, Baytril won't help particularly if she does have peritonitis but will help if she has a general infection. 1.5ml of Metacam sounds high to me but it's a while since I've given that so I may be wrong. The Batril dose sounds about right.

[Pottage]

I'm fairly sure the vet has diagnosed correctly, given her symptoms I can't think what else it could be.

 

Poor little Lola hasn't laid since the weak egg, then this morning I went to let them out and there was eggy mess all over their bedroom (and faces ) where she has blind laid again

 

She's getting an implant on Monday (so, not only has she now cost us several hundred pounds in treatment, she's now a total freeloader ) so fingers crossed she should be all fixed up soon

[Luvachicken]

I hope the implant helps sort her out.

She is very lucky to have you as an owner

[nannyhenny]

Just one more little tip for giving medication in a syringe. Sit down, wrap her firmly in an old towel on your lap with her tail under your arm. Put your hand over the top of her head, so that you have covered her eyes, and tip her head back. Your thumb and forefinger nails on the same hand can then gently prize her beak open. Use your other hand to press the plunger into her beak (slowly) This way you only need one hand to hold her head and having her eyes covered calms her.

[Chortle Chook]

I've just got two poorly chickens and yeterday the vet showed me a very good way of giving the Baytril. You gently pinch the sides of the chicken's beak near the top and hey presto, she opens it. Then with a small syringe you can put the liquid in, onto her tongue.

I hope your chickens get better. Sadly the jury of the grim reaper is still out on my girls.

[daxigirl]

Sunday used to take his tablet hidden in a raisin. Bit of grape with wormer powder on works well. Syringes for liquid stuff here.

 

Oh no chortle, who 's poorly?

[gavclojak]

Oh dear chortle chook, I have two poorly girls at the moment too, princess layer was treated for egg peritonitis six weeks or so ago and now Betty boo laid a shell less egg Tuesday and has not been quite herself since,

 

As for princess layer, I hope a quick drain off of the fluid building up in her tummy might help, I am going to ask the vet about an implant but as an ex commercial girl who is 2 years 8 months old I guess this is to be expected. If I can keep her going another 6 months with nothing too intrusive, as she isn't laying anymore, I will be happy,

 

she is a lovely girl who is all character!!

[Chortle Chook]

I'm sorry gavclojak about Princess layer. I do hope she is recovering.

For my chooks I lost poor little Silkie Diva to Mareks yesterday. She was on baytril because the vet just did not recognise her condition right till the end (she had been going back and forth to the vet rather frequently as she go worse over last few weeks). As Mareks is a virus antibiotics were useless even though she did take her medecine very well and loved the mealy worms that followed each dose. I don't think she suffered a lot as she was eating grapes as the final injection went in, but she just wasted away before my eyes. I feel gutted. She was not even a year old

My little Poland Dot had something quite different. We think she swallowed some poison that my neighbour put down along our dividing fence and she had kidney dammage and had to have liquid seryinged in. A a wee dove of mine did not make it, but little Dot has been recovering so well and today went back to the others from the little sick bay.