AUSTRALIAN POULTRY FORUM™

We have a couple of Bantam Australorps we bought from an auction when about 12 weeks old. We don't know if they are vaccinated. They are now coming onto 20 weeks. Cute chooks. They are in a small flock with a couple of light sussex (also coming onto 20 weeks), 2 cranky old Isas (but still going strong), and a light sussex rooster.

Due to the cranky Isas the bantams were roosting at first on the top of shed wall on the edge of the corrugated iron sheeting. We moved them each night to the roosts inside the shed, but fortunately with some new recently installed roosts in the shed that sort of block off the Isa's roosts from the other roosts they have been confident to roost inside the shed. However one of the bantams is having trouble getting up onto the roost. Prior to this it would fly up to the shed wall (quite high) and settle in comfortably. Now it needs a box to jump onto first to get to the lower roost which is at the most 24" off the ground. The other bantam is getting up fine and in fact getting up to a higher roost. If the box isn't there the bantam tries to fly up from the ground but seems to have balance problems with staying on the roost and falls off. The roost is the right size I'm pretty sure for chicken feet and has rounded off edges. Last night I found the bantam nesting on the ground and when I put it up on the roost it took a while to get its balance.

The other issue with it, is that in mid December it started making a very strange noise at the same time as stretching its neck out as far as it could and twisting it at the same time. The noise is like a harsh and strangled aaaahhhhhh. It makes this noise on and off during the day and night, and will have some periods when it does it every minute or so, and other times when it doesn't make it for over a couple of hours.

It is eating and drinking well, running around with the others, doesn't seem to have any discharge from any orifices, has a clean bottom, but does seem "ruffly" around the feathers behind the comb. Her eyes are clear without discharge. We are as sure as we can be that it is a hen.

We are about to quarantine her in a caged off area within the chook yard (so she can still see the others and they can see her - we have a problem with the viciousness of the Isas against the bantams and the light sussex so we don't want to risk at this stage having her removed totally out of the flock and having to deal with hen pecking alone when she is reintroduced - at the moment there being 4 of them they are able to deflect the Isas - but as a newbie to all this maybe I am worrying for nothing re this).

The chickens are all within a large fenced yard and don't free range due to foxes although they are occasionally let into a vegetable garden to help with clean up. The last time they were allowed into the vegie garden was in late November.

They are now fed scatter mix and kitchen left overs. They were on pullet pellet mix for quite a while prior to the scatter mix.

Any ideas would be gratefully received.

An update after sitting with the chooks this afternoon in a nice sunny spot... The affected chicken is holding it's beak open quite a lot, and after the strangled cry seems to bring up something that makes it shakes its head and wipe its beak. Its getting a bit rocky on its legs. Perhaps gape worm?

Just in case anyone is following this with the sameish problem with their hen. We think the hen has a respiratory problem, and that the balance problem/difficulty getting up on the perch is the outcome of failing health and losing strength in her muscles. We now have her quarantined from the other hens so that she can regain her strength by having non-competitive access to food and water. We also have her and all the others on Doxy-T, a water soluble powder (17 days we are told they will need to be on it). I'm giving them all a morning feed of rolled oats mixed with yoghurt, small amount of honey and grated apple. The ailing hen has been on this for 2.5 days now and has stopped making the awful call, but is still open beak breathing and making a coughing noise every now and again. Her poop looks normal and she is eating and drinking OK but needs some encouragement to getup to go to the food and drink as she seems quite sleepy.

I fear its not going well. She is still open beak breathing but with a rattly noise each time she breathes. Think she might be a goner. Poor thing.

That sucks. I lost 5 chicks with this problem within a few days, and now they are sick with it again. They are responding well to Oxymav b in their water. I hope your hen picks up and survives.

Well she has lasted another night and day but her poop is back to mustard loose yucky style. Still interested in eating and drinking though. The other chickens all seem well, and today one of the new ones (think it was one of the Light Sussex) laid her first egg!