- May 25, 2014
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"Pumpkin" expelled something odd. Perhaps a "lash egg" which is a puss-like substance. I've attached photos, do you agree or have other ideas? If so, can you recommend a drug or treatment that might help?
She is the last of her flock and lives full-time indoors with us (free reign of the house). Want to do right by her, as best we can, so appreciate any advice you have for her well being.
Here's the full situation:
1) Pumpkin is at least 7 years old, perhaps much older than that. She was an adult when she came under our wing and I don't know her past. It's possible she is 10 or more years old.
2) While chickens never go through a real "henopause" (they lay eggs all their days but do slow down with age), Pumpkin has not laid an egg in over a year. Before that, she would not lay eggs much but she would have a streak that lasted about a month where she'd lay an egg every two days.
3) The lash egg came out last night while she was sleeping. I've never seen one before and so it might be something else. It's small, about 1.5 inches in diameter. It looks like a little white clump in a heart shape with two halves. I split them apart and crushed one half. It is surrounded by a skin with a meat-like material on the inside (visible in the attached photos).
4) Pumpkin moves normal. Her tail is high. She stands normal. She sits normal.
5) Pumpkin is not eating nor drinking like she used to. She has become very picky with her food. It's like she has cravings. She'll eat corn one day but avoid it the next day. She waffles between corn, raisins, sunflower seeds, cucumber, bread, and scrambled eggs. She won't touch her pellets. She won't touch millet which used to be her favorite! She has not drunk any water (or if so, very little) over the past four days. Note: she typically doesn't have that many treats and mostly eats pellets... but when she wasn't eating, I figured give her anything that appetizers her and, if these are her last days, let her be happy with her meals.
6) The volume of food she consumes is about 1/4 her normal appetite and her poop is about 1/4 as well. The poop is more watery than normal. Sometimes it's very watery, other times it's thick but more water than what is typical for her. It's like her food tract is moving, and crop emptying, but at 1/4 the speed it used to be. Her crop is mostly empty in the morning (not fully) but fills up during the day. As full as it gets, it's no wonder she doesn't want to eat/drink her normal volume... it's moving too slow through her digestive tract.
7) Approx. 2 weeks ago she started drinking lots of water (to the point of upchucking it) and then got very lethargic. I gave her 7 days of Doxyvet-P (four capsules per day). The active ingredient is: Doxycycline Hydrochloride. It's a broad spectrum antibiotic. If I'm not mistaken, that's in the tetracycline family which should be ideal for salpingitis (infection that causes lash eggs). In hindsight, it appears a good choice but I had no idea she had oviduct problems at the time.
8) 4 days ago she was straining, making pushing noises, and not happy. Her vent was palpating (moving quickly). I put on a glove with KY jelly and stuck a finger in her vent. I thought I felt an egg, like the top of the shell... it felt solid. I thought she was egg bound! But then when my wife tried, and then I immediately tried again, it was gone! So I'm second guessing that I felt an egg. I don't know. I can't imagine she could suck it back in but maybe she did. I'm confused about that.
9) Pumpkin has had warm baths with epson salts twice per day for the last 3 days. She likes it, but no egg came out. Probably she is not egg bound... I'm now thinking she has an infection in the oviduct and was likely straining to get out a small lash egg (the one that came out last night).
10) Today we started a new antibiotic: Premoxil 550. The three active ingredients are: Tylosin Phosphate, Amoxicillin Trihydrate, Paracetamol. Not sure if that's a good idea or if I should give her another round of Doxyvet-p, something else, or stop medicating altogether. It's just that since I saw the lash egg this morning, I figure she may still be struggling with an infection in the oviduct. The infection could be viral in origin, which would mean antibiotic won't help.
My mind is full of thoughts. Maybe she has cancer near or in the ovaries. Maybe there are other lash eggs stuck in the oviduct, which are getting larger, and pushing on her intestines and other organs making her not want to eat/drink. Maybe it's time to say good bye to our feathered friend :-( But maybe, just maybe, you have insight that could extend her life.
Thanks for listening to Pumpkin's story and appreciate any advice you can offer.
She is the last of her flock and lives full-time indoors with us (free reign of the house). Want to do right by her, as best we can, so appreciate any advice you have for her well being.
Here's the full situation:
1) Pumpkin is at least 7 years old, perhaps much older than that. She was an adult when she came under our wing and I don't know her past. It's possible she is 10 or more years old.
2) While chickens never go through a real "henopause" (they lay eggs all their days but do slow down with age), Pumpkin has not laid an egg in over a year. Before that, she would not lay eggs much but she would have a streak that lasted about a month where she'd lay an egg every two days.
3) The lash egg came out last night while she was sleeping. I've never seen one before and so it might be something else. It's small, about 1.5 inches in diameter. It looks like a little white clump in a heart shape with two halves. I split them apart and crushed one half. It is surrounded by a skin with a meat-like material on the inside (visible in the attached photos).
4) Pumpkin moves normal. Her tail is high. She stands normal. She sits normal.
5) Pumpkin is not eating nor drinking like she used to. She has become very picky with her food. It's like she has cravings. She'll eat corn one day but avoid it the next day. She waffles between corn, raisins, sunflower seeds, cucumber, bread, and scrambled eggs. She won't touch her pellets. She won't touch millet which used to be her favorite! She has not drunk any water (or if so, very little) over the past four days. Note: she typically doesn't have that many treats and mostly eats pellets... but when she wasn't eating, I figured give her anything that appetizers her and, if these are her last days, let her be happy with her meals.
6) The volume of food she consumes is about 1/4 her normal appetite and her poop is about 1/4 as well. The poop is more watery than normal. Sometimes it's very watery, other times it's thick but more water than what is typical for her. It's like her food tract is moving, and crop emptying, but at 1/4 the speed it used to be. Her crop is mostly empty in the morning (not fully) but fills up during the day. As full as it gets, it's no wonder she doesn't want to eat/drink her normal volume... it's moving too slow through her digestive tract.
7) Approx. 2 weeks ago she started drinking lots of water (to the point of upchucking it) and then got very lethargic. I gave her 7 days of Doxyvet-P (four capsules per day). The active ingredient is: Doxycycline Hydrochloride. It's a broad spectrum antibiotic. If I'm not mistaken, that's in the tetracycline family which should be ideal for salpingitis (infection that causes lash eggs). In hindsight, it appears a good choice but I had no idea she had oviduct problems at the time.
8) 4 days ago she was straining, making pushing noises, and not happy. Her vent was palpating (moving quickly). I put on a glove with KY jelly and stuck a finger in her vent. I thought I felt an egg, like the top of the shell... it felt solid. I thought she was egg bound! But then when my wife tried, and then I immediately tried again, it was gone! So I'm second guessing that I felt an egg. I don't know. I can't imagine she could suck it back in but maybe she did. I'm confused about that.
9) Pumpkin has had warm baths with epson salts twice per day for the last 3 days. She likes it, but no egg came out. Probably she is not egg bound... I'm now thinking she has an infection in the oviduct and was likely straining to get out a small lash egg (the one that came out last night).
10) Today we started a new antibiotic: Premoxil 550. The three active ingredients are: Tylosin Phosphate, Amoxicillin Trihydrate, Paracetamol. Not sure if that's a good idea or if I should give her another round of Doxyvet-p, something else, or stop medicating altogether. It's just that since I saw the lash egg this morning, I figure she may still be struggling with an infection in the oviduct. The infection could be viral in origin, which would mean antibiotic won't help.
My mind is full of thoughts. Maybe she has cancer near or in the ovaries. Maybe there are other lash eggs stuck in the oviduct, which are getting larger, and pushing on her intestines and other organs making her not want to eat/drink. Maybe it's time to say good bye to our feathered friend :-( But maybe, just maybe, you have insight that could extend her life.
Thanks for listening to Pumpkin's story and appreciate any advice you can offer.
