6-7 y.o. eggbound hen - help me save my matriarch!

[ChickenWisperer]

Hello everyone -

Just yesterday I noticed Tau'i, our matriarch - a 6/7 y.o. black aussie - wasn't up to her usual self and had lost feathers on her bum. This morning mother tells me she's probably dying, comb is dusky, etc at about 6 am - I was under the influence of sleeping pills and went back to sleep. If she passed, she passed, and I didn't want to stress her.

I go to check on her about 1-2 pm - she's doing okay, but standing in the "eggbound" position, breathing heavily, not her normal self, but her comb looks good. I went out to examine her on roost, sure enough, her abdomen/butt is quite swollen and hard in some places. She hasn't layed for a long time so I brought her in.

I'm about to give her a warm bath and massage. From what I've read, that's all I could find to do - Is there anything else I can do? What are her chances for survival?

Thanks in advance!

 

[speckledhen]

She probably isn't egg bound, not at that age. Egg binding means an egg is stuck in the oviduct and you should be able to reach in and feel it, but egg binding does not swell up the abdomen like that.


You said she hasn't laid in a long time, so I'm betting internal laying or even ovarian cancer. She's pretty old. A bath won't fix this, I'm afraid.


These threads may be helpful to you.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=362422

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=195347

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...ences-on-egg-reproduction-production-necropsy

 

[ChickenWisperer]

She probably isn't egg bound, not at that age. Egg binding means an egg is stuck in the oviduct and you should be able to reach in and feel it, but egg binding does not swell up the abdomen like that.


You said she hasn't laid in a long time, so I'm betting internal laying or even ovarian cancer. She's pretty old. A bath won't fix this, I'm afraid.


These threads may be helpful to you.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=362422

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=195347

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...ences-on-egg-reproduction-production-necropsy

Thank you for the info. I kept finding conflicting information - the abdomen swells, doesn't swell. I was hoping her not laying in a while had been the symptom of egg binding... She's my first hen to ever reach this age and I never thought about cancer, did about internal laying. My other hen that passed from it didn't swell as she did, but the tumerous yolks had occurred more in her chest cavity.

Is there anything I can do to ease her pain? I gave her the bath, she's in the bathroom, where it's dark and warm. It's so hard to know I'm loosing her.

 

[speckledhen]

Not all with internal laying have swollen abdomens. And it may not be technically internal laying-there are several things that mimic each other, but have similar symptoms, all involving the oviduct, infection, egg yolks backing up somewhere, either the oviduct or abdomen or both. Some of mine never did swell up at all, just lost massive amounts of weight, but I found the oviducts full of gunk and some in the abdomen-the abdomen may be large, but the keel bone may be so sharp, you could cut meat with it from weight loss right before death.

Even with ovarian cancer, they will have come fluid accumulate that, at the very end, begins to fill the lungs. My hens over 5 died with ovarian carcinoma with little tumor like growths all along the oviducts, in the oviduct and along the intestines. One had a fibroid-like mass blocking the oviduct entirely-she was my Reba, who was squat-walking. There is an entire thread just on her you may want to read.

Unfortunately, there is little you can do other than give her favorite treats and enjoy her company. If she is very uncomfortable, you can give her an aspirin, but best to euthanize her, I hate to say. You've cared for her well for her to live that long. I know the feeling of being helpless-been there many, many times with my girls.