FINCHforum

Hi! I have a sick hen. She has been sick for about two weeks. She had had one clutch with four chicks, and everything was ok. After some time, she laid eggs again, but neither of them opened, and just during those days another couple threw their chicks from their nest, so I put the only one who was alive in this hen´s nest, and she and the cock raised the baby well. Then they had four eggs again, but I saw the hen was fluffed, so I took her out of this cage (and took away the nest with the eggs), and I put her in a small cage, inside my house. I supposed maybe she was tired of raising. Then I saw like she had diarrhea, and I gave her Ronivet during 7 days. She continued to be fluffed, and sometimes hids her face like she is sleeping, but in other moments she seems normal, and she eats well. She eats charcoal very much. Her heces are very black. She finished with Ronivet yesterday, and I thought she was a little better (although at times fluffed). But today I saw her fluffed more often, and I saw she has diarrhea. I don´t have an avian vet here, and the only one I know who I trust, although not completely since she doesn´t seem to know a lot about these birds (she didn´t know what Ronivet is), told me she is travelling these days and on the phone told me I should give her an antibiotic, with penicilin. But I don´t have the dosage, since I will have to use human medicine, I suppose. Can you give me some advice?

I'm sorry to hear about your troubles. The only thing I can say is never ever ever give charcoal to your birds while you are medicating. The charcoal basically makes the medicine useless. The charcoal absorbs the medicine. This is why when you are medicating fish (in fish tanks) they always say to remove the charcoal filter before medicating.

Charcoal and medicine should never mix. It's either one or the other. If you provide both at the same time, the medicine will have no effect on the birds. Good luck!!

Could she be egg bound seeing how she was laying eggs at the time she became fluffed. I would give her extra heat and a variety of calcium sources. A drop of liquid calcium directly to her beak would help also. See if she improves and take it from there.

Thank you... I didn´t know about the charcoal and medicine... and, as I told you, she eats a lot of charcoal, many of her droppings are black. But I suppose it would be dangerous to give her Ronivet again, wouldn´t it? I would like to give her more, ... I trusted it would be good for her. But I will wait for your advice, since I suppose it could be dangerous.
She had finished lalying eggs some days before getting ill, they were beginning to incubate them. Can she still be egg bound? The truth is I don´t know really what egg bound is , is it when an egg gets stucked in the hen and it can´t get down? If it was that, could she be still alive (and eating well, etc), after about two weeks? Anyway, I will try to find sources of calcium for her. Meanwhile I will offer her egg shell and cuttlefish

You should tru worm away it has always worked great for by birds when they are sick and having diarrhea. Best of luck.

Well, she has been like this for about two weeks, so I don´t think she can be egg bound. I don´t know about the Ronivet, if it would be wise to give it to her again. Like I told you, she isn´t very bad, she eats a lot... But at times she is fluffed... She is in a small cage now, since I have read this is how they should be when they are sick, but I think maybe she would be happier in a bigger one. When I have to clean her dishes, etc, I have to get my big hand inside the cage, and since it is so small, I bother her a lot. I don´t know what else to do... maybe just wait and she will get better. I am not very happy about giving her penicilin... I have S76, do you think it would be a good idea to use it?

Will, yes, I wash her dishes with detergent, but I am very careful to rinse them thoroughly. But thanks for the advice, of course even when I try to be careful, this could have happened. Once I found (before putting it in a cage) a seed container which had some detergent in a corner, and I was surprised, I really rinse them several times! I will be more careful, but I suppose this has not been the problem. By the way, do you recommend washing the bird´s dishes with detergent, or with something else?

I'm not familiar with medicating (I try not to medicate my birds other than SCATT/S76) so I cannot comment on re-medicating with Ronivet. However, given that you had charcoal available to her during the medication period would mean that the Ronivet had little to no effect on her. Basically, she didn't even get any of the benefits of the medicine.

I don't think she is egg bound. She would have died by now if she hadn't passed the egg for two weeks. I think perhaps she has something going on internally. Eating a excess is charcoal can mean two things -- either that she has a issue with her liver, or she has some sort of internal bacteria/parasite issue. Next time you treat any bird, with any kind of medication, make sure you remove all charcoal.

Ok, I will take out the charcoal and begin with S76, which would help if she has parasites, I suppose. Also that way I will be able to watch her droppings better, since now they are mostly black. Thank you!

Yes, definitely take the charcoal out and as a matter of fact, wait a few days before starting the S76. Allow the charcoal to flush out of her system before treating her. You want all the remnants of the charcoal to be out of her body before you start treating her again. Good luck!

I thought this happened while she was in the process of laying eggs. In the light of how long ago that was I also agree, not egg bound. If you feed things like lettuce their droppings can be watery.
S76 is for the treatment of mites and some worms
Ronivet is for the treatment of Trichomoniasis (canker), Chochlosoma, Giardia and Hexamita

Is she acting sick and lethargic, sleeping alot and being fluffed up alot? You say she is eating alot and not that bad, I think I would just put her back in the bigger cage and watch her closely for other symptoms. I would for a time keep her food basic, seed and hard boiled egg, see if her droppings look better.

Hope you can sort it out, best of luck

forget the ronivet and put her onto a diet including some softfood such as a good quality egg and biscuit mix. also make sure she has a high quality calcium grit available. remove the charcoal for now-her high consumption of this seems to indicate she is trying to flush toxins out of her system.

Also dont dose with S76 until she is well

maru wrote: By the way, do you recommend washing the bird´s dishes with detergent, or with something else?

I always use Dawn dish soap... but then I dip it in very hot water and then I rinse it and put it in the drain board... when its dry I hold it under running water for about 30 seconds and let it dry again...