poorly hen

[lettuceleaf10]

Hi there . I have a poorly hen . She has lost some feathers and I was wondering if it's a little late for this to be normal moulting . This morning she is sitting with her wings slightly out and just is'nt herself , sorry but it's not something i can explain she just isnt moving about as much not even for her beloved morning strawberry

[Nicos]

Oh dear- she does sound poorly doesn't she??

My gals are moulting at the moment- and are off lay, but they are perky as usual.

Is she still laying?
could she have an egg stuck?
What does her crop feel like?
Have you checked for red mites in the coop- and is she nice and red??
How old is she?
is she an ex-bat??
Has she been recently wormed - if so what with?
have you checked for lice etc
What are her poos like?
Have you separated her from the others?
She's not being bullied is she??
Are her eyes and nose clean- and is her breathing fine?
Has she injured somewhere and in a lot of pain??
Could she have eaten something a bit toxic?

...just a few things I can think of to check out

fingers crossed it's something simple. xx

[lettuceleaf10]

Hi thanks for replying . She is still laying every day. We don't know how old they are but they are miniature bantams , just one hen and one cock , do you think we should get another hen to distract him a little ? I will try and catch her to examine her for injuries , crop ect . We had a problem with red mite but thanks to the forums here we now have them under control . We used verm ex to worm them but they don't seem to like it . Her breathing was a bit laboured this morning when i let them out but now seems fine and her poo is not runny . I will check the garden for things that could harm them as they have free range all day . I hope i'm just being over protective and she is late moulting . Thanks again for the advise i will let you know how she gets on.

[Nicos]

OK- my thoughts are...

verm-X won't kill all worms- you need something like Flubenvet. If her breathing is a bit laboured- I'd rush off and get some for her..and treat both of them

Just her with him??....ouchy ouch..I think a few more bed fellows are needed
-check her vent for damage
( could account for feather damage too)

...I'm very much no expert- but that's what I'd do!

[elizajay]

Mine are moulting big time, the chicken house has clouds of feathers in it and there is a fair scattering around the garden. The moulting ladies are lively and hungry, but are bullying the younger hens and chicks. My little Japanese bantam is missing feathers on her head and her comb which was so perky and pretty is quite bedraggled. She and another broody hatched a chick each and they still have the choice of sleeping in the broody pens, but both have chosen to run the gauntlet of the bullies to sleep in the house with them. I have treated her with purple spray and a dab of cannibal yucky smelly stuff to put them off. One of my chicks at 10 weeks is bigger than all the others as s/he is a L/F brahma and also comes in for bullying except his/her "mother" no longer thinks such a big creature needs to be protected, despite plaintive cheeps. I really need to find a new home for her/him, but think I have to wait until s/he crows or lays.
None of them have laid for the last few days.

[motherhen]

Lettuceleaf10, I would stop the strawberries, they will not benefit them at all, one hen per cock bird is too few he will tread her all the time, I would imagine that's where the feather damage is coming from although all the birds here are moulting like mad but are all perky and well if not a little scruffy looking, his attention will possibly drive her off the food, what do you feed?
If you have had a mite problem this can debilitate and weaken, has she been broody at all?
During the moult, the need for protein is increased as the birds try to replace every feather on their bodies, some birds are brought down by this process and some seem to breeze through but usually a healthy well bird will have few problems. Hope this helps

[frias]

One on one! Poor girl. My vet advises an average of 10 hens to one cock.

[RichmondHens]

It is dependent on the cock. With very placid breeds you can get away with one to one or one to two (breeding trios are very common). I do put one cock to one hen occasionally if I am separating them off for one reason or another and they need a companion. Bantams however can be horny little devils so as a rule they generally need several wives to keep them happy.

[lettuceleaf10]

Many thanks everyone . We are looking into getting a few more hens . She is much more perky today so i think its just a moult . I will stop the strawberry's . We feed them layers pellets in the morning and mixed corn in the late afternoon . She was broody in the spring and hatched five chicks although one died and one just dissapeared overnight , rat perhaps ? She has been thouroughly checked for injuries/parasites and she is clean so hopefully she will be ok now .