Possible Egg Bound 1 y.o. R.I.R

I have read through many forum posts and am wondering if anyone has any additional advice to lend re: egg binding. My 1 y.o R.I.R began acting strangely last night (puffed up, lethargy, runnier poo than usual) and this morning her comb was purplish/bluish. I immediately brought her into the house and soaked her in warm water for 30 min. I didn't have any liquid calcium on hand, but I gave her probiotic water with vitamins and minerals in it, as well as provided some crushed up Tums. I felt her stomach and it didn't feel abnormally tight, and I couldn't palpate an egg (I'm a massage therapist by trade so I am generally really adept at feeling abnormalities) but just to be safe I inserted a finger and still felt nothing. It took her closer to the 1 hour mark for her to pass anything, but it wasn't a whole egg. She stood up, and while she didn't appear to strain excessively, I could tell she was exerting more effort than normal for her to simply be passing a poo. What came out was quite a bit of water and a good deal of yellow coloring that appeared very similar to the coloring and consistency of egg yolk. I can feel no shell still inside my girl so I am wondering; did she pass an egg that had perhaps broken inside of her? Or could this be something else entirely? I should have taken a picture but I threw a towel over it all without even thinking. I will be keeping her inside tonight to watch her, though her appetite and thirst have definitely improved since the passing. Is there anything else I should watch for? Any special instructions I should follow?

Thanks in advance!!

I'm glad to hear she's improved.

... Give me some travel time to make it to my house, and I'll devote my attention to your poor mama and help if I can.

MrsB

Thanks Mrs Brooke. I have done more research and reading and am worried she might be an internal layer if the problem isn't egg binding. With 5 hens it's been hard to tell who lays and who doesn't and whose eggs are whose, but I know there has always been one who lays really small eggs occasionally, just like I have one who lays larger eggs. This hen has always been my skinny hen too. I just want to help her if at all possible.

Forgive me for not returning sooner.

It sounds to me like you're on the right track with internal laying.

It is also possible that the egg broke inside of her. Have you investigated since she passed the yellow, yolk poop?

How have her poops been since? Still eating and drinking okay?

MrsB

This morning there was no egg laid, no shell passed, and I still can feel no shell or new egg inside. Her comb was purplish/bluish once again; though not as bad as yesterday. She is drinking more than she is eating, but still she hasn't consumed more than 1/4 c water all day. She is definitely not pooping as much as "normal" and while her poop it isn't as watery as yesterday, it still has the yolk yellow coloring. Any suggestions? I don't want her to suffer, but I don't want to put her down if it isn't really internal laying.

We also have the same problem with one of our chickens. We have soaked her several times (last 2 times I added epsom salts for relaxation and hoping to help her pass what she is holding) So far she is passing a slightly thick liquid with darker specs in it. Can't completely identify if it is broken egg yoke or poop, but it has a yellowish color to the liquid so I tend to think it could have yoke. First I crushed up some oyster shell calcium tablet along with some Vitamin D and gave to her by mouth. Then I decided to mix up some Rooster Booster from Tractor Supply that has vitamins and electrolytes with lacto bacillus. She was holding of a lot of fluid at her bottom end but it has been relieved somewhat with soaks. She doesn't have much of an appetite. She ate some mealy bugs yesterday, wouldn't eat scratch. She also ate some wet cat food....which I would rather not, but she needed to eat. She isn't wanting to eat this morning. Her comb has good color BUT her craw is full with water (Rooster Booster). She has drank a lot of water and it looks puffy like a small balloon. She will walk around some if we move her and she will walk around some right after a soak. Also not knowing what I saw in her liquid poo - I started her on some antibiotic drops that I have that I have used several times for the animals because I don't know what I am dealing with. Yes she could be passing yoke not icky poo poo, (and I kinda think it is yoke but haven't seen an egg sack or shell) , but it is hard to get answers on things like this unless someone has been thru the same thing.

We had a chicken that was egg bound and her bottom end was very swollen and I withdrew some fluid because it was night time and she needed relief. I just looked it up on the internet on what to do. We took her to the vet the next day and she was so bound with eggs that you couldn't withdraw anything without hitting on yoke (several yokes) so we had no choice but to put her down.

This situation is different in that this one is passing stuff (probably yoke plus slightly thick liquid that could be the write of the egg,)

Maybe we can keep each other informed on what is happening till this is hopefully solved. I know a chicken that looses her appetite is not good for any length of time.

If her abdomen is filling with liquid, it could be Ascites or "water belly."

It is caused by the heart and liver not being able to keep up with the demands of a functioning chicken, and the liver leaks fluid into the abdomen.

Could you post a picture of her yellow poops?

Antibiotics won't help if it's ascites.

MrsB

Dave1shere said:

We also have the same problem with one of our chickens. We have soaked her several times (last 2 times I added epsom salts for relaxation and hoping to help her pass what she is holding) So far she is passing a slightly thick liquid with darker specs in it. Can't completely identify if it is broken egg yoke or poop, but it has a yellowish color to the liquid so I tend to think it could have yoke. First I crushed up some oyster shell calcium tablet along with some Vitamin D and gave to her by mouth. Then I decided to mix up some Rooster Booster from Tractor Supply that has vitamins and electrolytes with lacto bacillus. She was holding of a lot of fluid at her bottom end but it has been relieved somewhat with soaks. She doesn't have much of an appetite. She ate some mealy bugs yesterday, wouldn't eat scratch. She also ate some wet cat food....which I would rather not, but she needed to eat. She isn't wanting to eat this morning. Her comb has good color BUT her craw is full with water (Rooster Booster). She has drank a lot of water and it looks puffy like a small balloon. She will walk around some if we move her and she will walk around some right after a soak. Also not knowing what I saw in her liquid poo - I started her on some antibiotic drops that I have that I have used several times for the animals because I don't know what I am dealing with. Yes she could be passing yoke not icky poo poo, (and I kinda think it is yoke but haven't seen an egg sack or shell) , but it is hard to get answers on things like this unless someone has been thru the same thing.

We had a chicken that was egg bound and her bottom end was very swollen and I withdrew some fluid because it was night time and she needed relief. I just looked it up on the internet on what to do. We took her to the vet the next day and she was so bound with eggs that you couldn't withdraw anything without hitting on yoke (several yokes) so we had no choice but to put her down.

This situation is different in that this one is passing stuff (probably yoke plus slightly thick liquid that could be the write of the egg,)

Maybe we can keep each other informed on what is happening till this is hopefully solved. I know a chicken that looses her appetite is not good for any length of time.

Click to expand...

Hey Dave,

Not sure whether to feel relieved or saddened that I am not alone in this.

Like you, I administered the calcium by oyster shells and by Tums and kept water with vitamins and electrolytes readily available. 3 days into it now and my chicken seems to be returning to her normal self. She is no longer puffed up nor lethargic and her appetite has returned; I took her outside for a bit today and she was happily hunting and pecking (she was always my best hunter). I am still keeping her inside as of now because I don't want to risk it being viral and spreading to the rest of my girls, but if she continues to improve I will put her back out permanently tomorrow. Her poop has somewhat returned to normal. There is less yellow, less foam, less liquid and she doesn't seem to exert as much effort to pass a poop. She still has not laid so I am not sure if that is indicative of something specific (internal laying) or just due to the stress from being sick. I think if I'd had antibiotics on hand I probably would have administered those too, just like you, because even though it never seemed like coccidiosis or worms, there are so many diseases that cross over it feels impossible to really know for sure! My girl also seemed to have a crop/craw full of fluid from all the water she was drinking. Does your chicken seem to regurgitate it up easily? I worried for a bit over mine as all she wanted to do was drink, but either she wasn't swallowing it all or she was purposely regurgitating it all back up onto her food to soften it. Honestly, I don't know which it was, I just hoped it would encourage her to eat and let her do what she needed to. By the following evening she had stopped regurgitating the water and her crop/craw felt less squishy AND she had regained interest in eating. I hope your chicken starts improving soon. Keep me informed and I will do likewise. I know I felt very sure that my chicken had given up and there was no way she was going make it, so for now I just feel relieved that she is on the mend. I guess the how and why will have to come later.

MrsBrooke said:

If her abdomen is filling with liquid, it could be Ascites or "water belly."

It is caused by the heart and liver not being able to keep up with the demands of a functioning chicken, and the liver leaks fluid into the abdomen.

Could you post a picture of her yellow poops?

Antibiotics won't help if it's ascites.

MrsBrook

Click to expand...

Here is a picture of what she is passing. I know it looks like eggs are not completely forming. We are feeding her vit/minerals and I still give he some antibiotics just for good measure.....but her appetite is picky eating a little here and there........so we are doing all we can do. We gave her a soak epsom salts bath this AM because it relaxes her and she passes right after. She wanted to drink the water which is magnesium even though i surely could see other magnesiums that are better, but finally got her back to her Rooster/Booster mix and she was ok with it.