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PictureGrace Kelly enjoying a blow dry after her bath!
Sick Hen Checklist

Once you have discovered that your hen may be sick, take a moment to go through the checklist below. It identifies the most common problems.  Where an ailment is highlighted, it is explained in more detail in the Ailments A-Z section.
 








Knickers:
Are they clean or is there poo on them? If they are dirty have you wormed her recently?

Poo: Is it normal or is something different? You can tell a great deal about your girls’ health by their poo. This webpage, from www.allotment.org.uk, is a marvellous guide to all things poo: 
http://chat.allotment.org/index.php?topic=17568.0

Vent:
  • Is it pulsating normally? 
  • Is there a tissue-paper-like substance sticking out? This may be the skin of a soft shelled egg.
  • Does it look more horizontally stretched than usual? It may be a soft egg on its way.
  • Is there clear or yolky fluid coming out? An egg may have broken inside her and she will need to see a vet.
  • Is there a fleshy mass protruding? This may be a prolapse.

Legs: 
  • Is she limping?
  • Are the scales on her legs flakey and coming away? This may be scaly leg.
  • Is her foot hot and swollen with a scab underneath? It may be bumblefoot.

Crop:
  • Is it hard first thing? This may be impacted crop. 
  • Is it squishy and fluidy with a foul smell? This may be sour crop.
  • If is empty at the end of the day she has not eaten - see empty crop

Abdomen:
  • Is it swollen and fluidy? Is she heavy at the back end? This may be egg peritonitis.

Breathing: 
  • Is it  wheezy or rattly? Is she sneezing or coughing?? Respiratory infections need veterinary treatment for antibiotics. 
  • Are her eyes foamy? It may be mycoplasma.
  • Is it gurgly? This may be a sign of fluid build-up in her lungs and she will need to see a vet. She may need antibiotics and possibly frusemide tablets to help drain it.

Behaviour:
  • Is she in  the coop all day? A first sign of illness. Check her over.
  • Does she growl at you if you try to take her out of the nest box? She may be broody.

A Good Vet

When you first get hens the single most important thing you can do is to find a good vet. The Chicken Vet has a list of practices that have taken
their courses and will treat chickens as they would any other pets:
http://www.chickenvet.co.uk/associated-practices/


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