Advice needed - soft eggshell adhered to cloaca

[Eggscalibur]

I have a 2 yr Bourbon Red turkey who is has been laying soft shelled eggs (we have since added calcium to her diet), but her immediate problem is that one of the eggs was not fully excreted. The limp eggshell became lodged in her cloaca, where is has adhered to the soft tissue (it is quite the poopy mess). She is clearly in distress, so I have cleaned the area with warm water and attempted to massage shell and cloaca with vegetable oil to remoisten the shell and detach it. No luck. SO, do I continue with this course of action or is there something else I can try? I do not want to pull too hard on the egg and tear the delicate tissue.

 

[Eggscalibur]

Success I kept at it with the massage and the oil, and was finally able to remove the egg mass. The cloacal tissue is quite inflamed, but the bird seems clearly relieved and we will continue to watch her until her laying returns to normal.

 

[realsis]

I'm so happy to hear this! great job!! Great news!

 

[Eggscalibur]

Thanks! I am glad it worked out. Incidentally, this turkey is "Lucille," as in, "one tough red-head." This poor bird has survived more trauma than any we've ever owned (and we've owned a lot).