Ascites in young laying pullet

[PeepingK]

Hey everyone!
So I purchased a 5 month old pullet (not laying yet) from a trusted and well known breeder in my area. She is a BC1 Olive Egger (BCM x Silverrudds blue).
When I first brought her home this past July I didn’t notice anything off about her but about a month and half or so later I noticed that her abdomen was swollen. That’s when I realized that she had ascites. I messaged the breeder and she told me that she’s never experienced this issue before and that it most likely wasn’t genetic (and she owns 200+ Birds).
I did some research on my own and found that it’s most common in broilers or possibly older production laying hens that developed a tumour in their ovaries and caused the fluid build up.
Aside from the genetic aspect it also seems that they could develop ascites from environmental factors.
Has anyone on here ever dealt with ascites before? I understand that there is supposedly no cure but I’d just like to know what could have caused my pullet to develop this condition? She was barely over half a year old when she developed this so what could have caused it?
I payed good money for her so I would really hope that there wasn’t an underlying genetic disorder within her lineage. This breeder sourced her birds from excellent and trusted lines.

I’m grateful for any insight that someone might have!

 

[Razzlefrazzle]

There are a bunch of possible causes of ascites: heart issues, liver issues, reproductive problems, infections, etc. I have never noticed it in such a young hen, but her case looks pretty mild or at least she doesn't look very uncomfortable/swollen in the pic. How much swelling would you say she has from slightly squishy to giant water balloon? Has the ascites been getting worse or does it seem stable? When did you notice the swelling in relation to when she started laying? Have you noticed any other symptoms like panting, unusual tiredness, or a darker blue/purple color to her comb? I have seen minor ascites in some hens that I was treating for other issues that later went away on its own, so it's not necessarily a death sentence or even a permanent health issue.

Some hens also develop reproductive issues, such as cystic right oviduct and internal laying (egg yolk peritonitis), that can feel like ascites.

 

[PeepingK]

There are a bunch of possible causes of ascites: heart issues, liver issues, reproductive problems, infections, etc. I have never noticed it in such a young hen, but her case looks pretty mild or at least she doesn't look very uncomfortable/swollen in the pic. How much swelling would you say she has from slightly squishy to giant water balloon? Has the ascites been getting worse or does it seem stable? When did you notice the swelling in relation to when she started laying? Have you noticed any other symptoms like panting, unusual tiredness, or a darker blue/purple color to her comb? I have seen minor ascites in some hens that I was treating for other issues that later went away on its own, so it's not necessarily a death sentence or even a permanent health issue.

Some hens also develop reproductive issues, such as cystic right oviduct and internal laying (egg yolk peritonitis), that can feel like ascites.

That picture was taken in September so it wasn’t as visible at that time (I just wanted to share a picture of my girl ) but I’ll try to take a picture of her today so you can see how large it is now.
When I first noticed it was about the size of a baseball, round and squishy. It’s grown since then to the size of a soft ball :/ surprisingly she’s stay laying though. She has no other symptoms other than walking a bit funny from all the weight in her abdomen.
Now that I think about it I believe that it started right around the time she started laying, but I can’t know for sure because I never checked her abdomen before then.
Thank so much for your help, I really appreciate it!
Here’s a picture of her from back in October (it’s brown since then)

 

[PeepingK]

you can see how it droops down

 

[Razzlefrazzle]

She doesn't look terrible, but you might need to drain her sooner or later if fluid keeps building up. Too much fluid not only slows down the chicken and makes it difficult for her to walk, roost, etc, but it also starts compressing her other organs which can be deadly. If you have an avian nearby and it's within your budget I recommend taking your girl in. They might not be able to tell you exactly what the root issue is but they could hopefully narrow it down and they could drain off the fluid letting you know whether it's just "normal" ascites fluid or if there is egg material or signs of an infection etc.

If you can't take her to a vet you can start preparing to drain her yourself. Lots of advice on here and videos on youtube...

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I don't really see anything wrong with her in the photo.

You don't report any lethargy or symptoms that would be that concerning at this time.

Probably the best course of action would be to monitor her until she starts having problems. Then you would consider possibly intervening with treatment.

 

[PeepingK]

I don't really see anything wrong with her in the photo.

You don't report any lethargy or symptoms that would be that concerning at this time.

Probably the best course of action would be to monitor her until she starts having problems. Then you would consider possibly intervening with treatment.

That picture was taken months ago, here’s a more recent one. That sag is all fluid not fluff or fat. It protrudes about 2 inches from her keel bone.

I would take her to the vet to get it drained but I can’t afford it :/ I just really wish I knew what caused her to develop this at such a young age.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

If it's all fluid, you can try draining and see what happens.
Personally if a hen is still chickening, eating/drinking, pooping and moving about, I just monitor them. If they get to the point where they need to be drained or treated, then I will do that.
It's your call. Draining is a supportive care measure, possibly make a hen more comfortable if she's having difficulty, but it's not a cure and whatever is causing the fluid to accumulate still exists. Whether that's something like Fatty Liver Disease, a reproductive disorder and/or organ failure, it's hard to know. You can find that out if you lose her by having a necropsy through your state lab or doing your own. Even though informal, doing your own is often educational and you can learn alot.

There are numerous videos on YouTube and 1000s of threads about hens with ascites and how to drain them, give them supportive care and also some alternative treatments like giving Aloe Detox. Just do an onsite BYC search, and you find them.