i ^think^ there is something wrong with one of my hens.

[bamboobutton]

but im not sure what, or even if there is anything wrong.

she had stopped laying and she had a very dirty bottom and was having diarrhoea so wormed all the chooks.

she is eating, drinking, laying again, pecking and scratching around and her comb is red but she still looks thin and has a thinner crop then the other two hens, she has a kind of ridge of feathers down her breast.

could that just be a side effect of worms and it will take a while to fatten her up again? or do i need to take her to the vet?

Aw bless her. I'd guess that if her behaviour looks normal she's ok. You can reworm after 3 weeks with a known infestation - did you use flubenvet?
Try giving her a tonic like lifeguard in the water and some well rinsed tuna to give her a boost.

didn't use flubenvet, i used a wormer from the local animal feed warehouse, the second dose is due in their water in a few days.

i will make up some pasta and tuna for them tommorrow as a treat. and i might even treat them to some live maggots as my blardy sister mentioned crop bound which has had me stalking her all afternoon trying to see a non existent bulge in her puny chest(the hen that is, not my dsis)

Try posting on chicken clinic on the omlet forum. Hope your girl perks up.

will have a look at omlet now.

ta muchly!!

have you checked the house for red mite? omlet forum is great for better help.

It could be coccidiosis or northern fowl mite.

Treat immediately with some coxoid (for coccidiosis) and buy a kitten strength permethrin spray from the pet store - this is the only thing that will get rid of the northern fowl mite - ivermectin won't work on this.

You can get rid of red mite by steam cleaning the coop or thoroughly cleaning with bleach. I prefer the steam clean method.

don't think it's coccidiosis or mites, i have checked her and the other two hens for mites and they are clean and i have scoured the coop and that seems clean too and she has no blood in her poo.

she still seems fine, happy and healthy and is hanging around the kitchen door for her daily corn and chases me if go out without feeding her, she just seems very skinny and looks pinched in at the base of the tail and im not sure she is laying after all.

she is about 30wks old, is that too young to moult?

not sure whether to take to the vet or not as she seems fine and don't want to spend £30 just to be told she is ok.

Is she losing feathers? Hens can and do moult randomly IME. I have a couple that chose the really cold spell last January to go bald Is she maybe being bullied? And not getting her share of the food?

there are a few feathers blowing about, not loads though.

not witnessed any bullying and she gets a fair share of layers pellets and corn as i can watch them from the kitchen window.

i will just have to keep an eye out in case she goes downhill. i have looked on loads of chicken websites and her symptoms point to loads of things.

have wormed again with flubenvet so i will see if that works.

It sounds like you've got all bases covered, tbh. If it were me, I'd just keep an eye on her. Mine were all a little poorly during their moult. Like you say, vets are expensive and often clueless with poultry (not to mention the stress to the hen).

our vet is quite good with chooks as it is a rural vet, just costs alot for a consultation, more than the chook cost!

thanks for your help