Ascites?? Swollen, squishy abdomen - WITH PICS & VIDEO (page 9)

[guesswhatchickenbutt]

Wow tamtam84 - That's weird! I'm crossing my fingers that it's a good sign and that maybe her body reabsorbed it!! That would be great. How is she acting this morning?

 

[tamtam84]

I'm hoping it's a good sign as well, but I'm cautiously optimistic. She is acting just fine this morning. She was the first one to run out of the coop this morning when I opened the pop door to let them all out! I would think if it was a bad thing that she would be showing some ill effects. She seems to be feeling better, though, and is more active so I'm hoping that means it's a good thing. I picked her up and she is pretty light, but she has lost some weight since this all started a few months ago. She is still eating just fine and goes crazy over treats, so hopefully the weight will start to come back.

 

[speckledhen]

It happens that way occasionally, but the fluid will return in time. If you read the story of Ivy, same deal. She "recovered" twice, without draining and only with massive doses of penicillin, but in the end, nothing would fix the problem. I can't recall if I ever did drain Ivy. I know the first time she was swollen, we did not, only gave her the penicillin and her body reabsorbed the fluid. She laid a couple of eggs, from whence came our Fern, then it started again. Same deal with the penicillin, fluid left again, laid one egg, then fluid built up a third time. That time, the antibiotics did not work. She died a while after that.

Olivia also reabsorbed the fluid and when she died, she had very little in the way of excess fluid, but when I palpated her abdomen upon her sudden death, I could tell the cycle was beginning all over again. At least, she wasn't dragging around a bowling ball when she did pass away, thankfully. She did have fluid that was in her lungs, it seemed like at the very end.

 

[tamtam84]

speckledhen - Thanks so much for the reply. It just seemed so crazy to me that she could absorb that much fluid, but I guess it's possible. I've drained her every time she got too big, but I guess her body just took care of it this time.

This never ending cycle is really frustrating sometimes. But she appears to be doing well at the moment so we'll just see what happens.

 

[Terri O]

Good luck with your hen Tam! I had one with it too and she went on and on but then when winter came I guess the cold was just too much for her. When I drained her I just used a large gauge needle, poked her and let it drain into the sink. It seemed easier than poking and poking to me. Good luck on your hen! Terri O

 

[tamtam84]

Terri O - Thanks so much! When I've drained Buttercup before, I only poke her 2 or 3 times and let it drain out. Much easier, like you said, to just let her drain on her own.

 

[tamtam84]

Just thought I'd share this side-by-side comparison of Buttercup before her fluid disappeared and after -



Before she spent a lot of time in the "penguin" position with her tail down. Now that the fluid is off her she is standing upright with her tail high in the air. You can probably tell that she has lost weight because she looks rather thin for a wyandotte. But she is really active lately, hopping around with ease and running for treats. I know from others that the fluid will return eventually, but I hope it stays off for a while longer.

Should I try to put some weight back on her for the time being? Is there anything I can give her to help her gain some weight?

 

[guesswhatchickenbutt]

Just thought I'd share this side-by-side comparison of Buttercup before her fluid disappeared and after -



Before she spent a lot of time in the "penguin" position with her tail down. Now that the fluid is off her she is standing upright with her tail high in the air. You can probably tell that she has lost weight because she looks rather thin for a wyandotte. But she is really active lately, hopping around with ease and running for treats. I know from others that the fluid will return eventually, but I hope it stays off for a while longer.

Should I try to put some weight back on her for the time being? Is there anything I can give her to help her gain some weight?

WOW she looks GREAT!!!!!!!! I'm totally impressed! And totally crossing my fingers that she's over this!!! I'm just floored. The "before" picture is how my Clementine spent about 3 months. Seriously - I'm beyond happy for you and her!!!

 

[RobinZech]

tamtam84-Your pictures are amazing, I'm so happy Buttercup is rebounding. My Ruby seems to be doing the same only I think she is starting to molt. I have found a few feathers
here & there. I contuine to feed the milk thistle with the table scraps and have included a small handfull of Gamebird feed which is 20% protein to help with their feather growth I still
have only two of my five girls laying for me. Dolly has finished her never-ending molt and hopefully will start giving me those beautiful green eggs again.
Just when you think they're all on track, something else pops up.

They bring me a great deal of joy and then I'm rewarded (sometimes) with eggs.

 

[tamtam84]

She does look totally different, doesn't she? It's crazy how much fluid can build up and shocking how different they look when the fluid is gone.

Buttercup has been losing some feathers lately, but I'm not sure if it's a molt. This morning I lightly pulled on a feather by her leg and it came right out. I may try giving her some higher protein food to help with that and maybe put some weight on her.