Help! I have a sick Bantam Hen!

FNQCHICK · **Joined:** Fri Aug 10, 2012 6:20 pm **Posts:** 13

Hi there, I'm new to this site and I'm wondering if you can help me. I have a Silkie Bantam Hen who was broody and not long after she came off being 'broody" she has lost function in her legs. I noticed some bird lice around her thighs, so I have treated her with the lice powder. Now she has trouble moving at all, she feels hot underneath and her feathers are beginning to moult considerably. She still manages to eat, although I have her separated from the main flock in a cage of her own. We live in North Queensland, she looks like she is getting worse. Any suggestions to what this might be? My hens are well looked after and are lovely pets, I don't want to lose her.

Moobee · **Joined:** Fri Aug 10, 2012 9:04 pm **Posts:** 1

Have you tried her one hard boiled eggs I find that works real good for recovery on sick hens

FNQCHICK · **Joined:** Fri Aug 10, 2012 6:20 pm **Posts:** 13

I'm going to wash her with a medicated treatment wash and then dry her off. I don't know if she has a tick on her that I can't see. I lost a large hen awhile ago when I found her unable to move and she died not long after. All the other hens are healthy, but I'll try this recipe that I found on the internet some time ago. 1 x boiled egg yolk crumbled into mixture. 1 small teaspoon of honey. 2 - 4 tablespoons of rolled oats or Rice Baby Cereal. 2 tablespoons of plain yoghurt. 1 tablespoon of beef tin cat food. A few grains of multi- vitamin powder. 2 tablespoons of grated apple and grated carrot. It has to be a crumble mixture. I have used this in the past and it has worked on my other hens. Thanks for your advice though, I'll give anything a go to make her better.

AustralorpBig · **Joined:** Sun Aug 12, 2012 8:47 am **Posts:** 1

She may be egg bound which will temporarily cause paralysis until the eggs passes it if does.

http://www.keepingchickensnewsletter.co ... -treatment

FNQCHICK · **Joined:** Fri Aug 10, 2012 6:20 pm **Posts:** 13

Thanks, I don't think that she is egg bound as she wasn't laying anyway due to her being broody. Although that makes me think that is what happened to my large hen who passed away a little while ago. I am starting to wonder if she is suffering from having some sort of deficiency in her diet, from not eating while being broody. When she came off the nest she had a slight limp and would fall over occasionally. I thought one of the other hens had injured her. I have her isolated in a pen in the laundry now, so that she has access to water and food. She can still kick with her legs but can't seem to support herself. She eats and drinks well, but I have to help support her for that. In the afternoon we sit on the grass and she nibbles on that while the main hens are out for their run. Is there some sort of supplement such as calcium that I can feed her?

Hens and Hobbits · **Posted:** Tue Aug 14, 2012 12:40 pm

Sorry about your chooks, the girls do get very run down after broodiness, nesting and raising a family.

Vetafarm have a calicum supplement called Calcivet.

http://www.vetafarm.com.au/products/CALCIVET.html

There are also a number of other supplements to improve their condition such as Poly-Aid Plus
http://www.vetafarm.com.au/products/POL ... -PLUS.html

and Soluvet
http://www.vetafarm.com.au/products/SOLUVET.html

Little Valley Poultry have medical packs if you can't obtain any from your local vet or stockfeed or pet shop.
http://www.littlevalleypoultry.com/

I've also heard that infant's Pentavite drops add to water can also help if you can't get quick access any avian supplements.

Good luck.

Petite Poulet · **Joined:** Thu Jun 09, 2011 7:17 pm **Posts:** 5219

Comfrey is also good for calcium deficiency in chooks.

SShorter · **Posted:** Tue Aug 14, 2012 8:29 pm

Don't like to be an alarmist but the symptoms (the ones you describe) sound a [i]bit[i] like Mareks desease (a very common problem in home and commercial flocks) . It may be worth studying up on that and seeing if your feathered freind has any other symptoms.

Unfortunately it is not really cureable and will likely infect your flock and future flock if you don't treat your pens thoroughly.

You've done the right thing separating the bird, even if it is for her own comfort.

Good luck, hope all goes well and that it isn't anything as serious as Mareks.

FNQCHICK · **Joined:** Fri Aug 10, 2012 6:20 pm **Posts:** 13

I really appreciate all the advice you have given me, I hope it isn't Marek's Disease. If it is, how would she have got it? The hens have been together for 2 years now. I did introduce the young chicks that are now hens a while ago, yet they are healthy. Mind you I did have another silkie bantam that died recently due to a respiratory problem that she had over the last year. I took her to the vet, which I discovered didn't know enough about chickens and sent me home with a huge bill and antibiotics. I cured her with VETRX which I bought from the States and she was a healthy hen again. Months later she then went down hill all of a sudden, and it looked like a large tumour had developed behind the eye. She got to the point where we had to put her out of her misery. I couldn't understand it, she looked like she was on the mend. Could this have been Marek's Disease? I'm not giving up on my girl just yet, I'll keep her separated and I'll try some of the supplements that you have suggested. Poor little girl, I'll let you know of her progress.

ILoveMyChickies · **Posted:** Tue Aug 21, 2012 1:10 pm

Hi FNQCHICK

,

I'm not an expert but it does sound like it could be Mareks but we also have a silkie chook who displayed similar symptoms. She can't seem to stand like the others and spends most of her time sitting down, she falls over and is really clumbsy but it turns out she is okay. We noticed that her feet curled in and apparently it can happen if the egg isn't rotated properly during incubation. So check her feet, see if they curl in. Has she been vaccinated?

We also had a close call with another one of our silkies, she went all cold and deathly, we gave her some Poly-Aid Plus and it was like magic. Someone mentioned this before so maybe look into it, it could just do the trick.

Keep dusting for lice and things, look for ticks and those things too. Vitamins and a good diet and a lot of TLC. I hope she pulls through and that some of this has helped.

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