Bald butt and swollen below vent.

[Asilmomma]

I am dealing will a week old Asil, its abdomen area is swollen and pooping very little. I have made sure it's clean and soaked it in warm water to help. Any ideas?

 

[Nksg75]

I also have a bcm hen who has the large swollen abdomen. She has had it for about 4 months, yet just lately with all the rain seemed to slow down, and not seem quite right. I am in Texas and the heat is so bad here! I free range the girls every other day, and noticed yesterday that she was laying down a lot and panting quite heavily. Now this could be because of the heat, however she seemed to be worse than the others. I decided to try and drain the area Thinking it could be the excessive fluids and thought it may give me a little more time to find a vet to exam her. Well when I tried to drain her, nothing really came out. I watched multiple utube videos and got a very large syringe, yet only about 3cc of murky slightly brown/pinkish liquid came out. When retracting the needle it sounded like I had punctured a ballon with air. A slight whoosh of leaking air is what it sounded like.
I desired leave the poor girl alone and. It attempt again.
I believe she still lays, however we have figured out we have an egg eater, so can't be sure.

 

[lovechickens23]

A vet told me it was fat cause they did do an atouspie on my hen

 

[lovechickens23]

Hi again got a old hen with same promblem again she still lay eggs sometimes butt kind of swollon

 

[lovechickens23]

Is chicken pen ok to.be muddy caise they eat all gras I am sure ppl who have chicken pen muddy. Then dry

 

[lovechickens23]

I just heard back from the breeder/seller. She said "They should be fine!! Most of the leghorns tend to look like that, and they always start looking pretty rough this time of year it seems." If it persists or gets worse, i'll contact her again, as well as my vet.

Hi can I help me and ask the breeder my American Anaconda hen has a swollen butt too . I had a vet do an autopsy on on of buff cochens.to see what it.Is they said fat I dont belive them or other ppl I know dont. I only feed my.chicken twice a day my.friends feeds her all the time they dont get fat. I can send a pic if u.want??? Is it normal for that kind of breed to have that? My other same breed dont have it. And I have a rooster with swollen toes been sosking them and clean how can I help with that? Thank u

 

[unbaked pegga]

My goodness, Pot Pie and my RIR hen could be twins!! I am so happy to find these threads, because up until recently I thought my RIR hen had some very strange condition! Of course, it still is very strange, but at least she is not the only one. She has been waddling around with a huge rear end for 14 months. Her legs are a little bowed (because of the extra weight) and she can no longer jump on the roost (so she has a dog kennel to sleep in) but she is still queen of the coop and no one bothers her!

Old post but I have 2 Orpingtons with exactly same symptoms. Maybe hernia. Here it is 2017 and still can’t find any info on this

 

[unbaked pegga]

has anyone figured out WHAT this is yet? it really looks serious and so many have it. We need to know what it is and what to do about it.

Did you ever find out what this was. I have 2 orp hens with exact same symptoms. I thought it could be a hernia. But 2 birds in same flock of 5!

 

[Jen2848]

My black sex link hen has the same thing. I'm taking her to the vet tonight I'll post what the findings are.

 

[rebrascora]

I must confess that I have not read right through this thread.... I got to about page 8 and became frustrated that none of the original posters updated it with their hen's progress and it just seemed like most people came to the thread, posted a report of their hen's symptoms and disappeared again. 7 years later and people are still coming to this thread and asking the same question. Unless it is in the pages I skipped, I will offer the following suggestions for diagnosis.....

The few people who had young chicks experiencing this almost certainly had omphalitis or pasty butt..... these cases are very different to those suffered by adult chickens.

For those with older laying hens there are a number of possibilities....

A reproductive disorder....

This can be internal laying where the egg yolks released daily from the ovary fail to travel into the oviduct and instead, drop into the abdominal cavity, where they build up over weeks and months to become a large mass. Sometimes the fluid leaches out of them and collects in the lower part of the abdomen with the solidified yolks floating above in amongst the intestines and liver. This build up of fluid and yolk mass puts a strain on the digestive system, respiratory system and the heart. Sometimes an infection will develop in it (Egg Yolk Peritonitis) but often it remains benign but the sheer volume and pressure of it causes the chicken to eventually die. Some do physically split open with the pressure of it, perhaps whilst trying to pass faeces and some suffer heart failure. Usually the bird will appear healthy with a red comb and act normally until the mass gets large enough to put a strain on their organs. They will often walk with a wide stance and may be more upright. During the winter, when they stop ovulating, the condition improves a little as the body is able to reabsorb some of the fluid (the yolks themselves cannot be absorbed or expelled) but in spring when they start ovulating again, their condition will deteriorate. Struggling to breath, particularly in hot weather is common as the mass restricts the exchange of air in the birds rear ventral air sacs. If the bird has been laying eggs recently when the mass is discovered, it is most likely not internal laying..... usually once internal laying starts, they are no longer able to lay eggs normally and for it to become obvious, it has usually been going on for weeks if not months.

The next option is salpingitis..... this is an infection of the oviduct, where egg material and pus build up in the oviduct and become a large lumpy mass. Sometimes the bird will pass some "Lash Egg" material which will be rubbery and have concentric layers of solid material looking like cooked egg and sausage meat when cut open before it gets completely impacted with this stuff and unable to pass anything more. The mass in the oviduct gets so large it constricts the gut and prevents the bird passing faeces properly. Sometimes just white urates can get through and the bird starts to appear sick and go off their food.... this will usually take a matter of a few weeks, maybe a few months. The swelling is more likely to be just below the vent rather than hanging lower down between the legs like internal laying. As the oviduct becomes blocked, the bird will sometimes also start laying internally as well.

Fatty Liver Haemorrhagic Syndrome involves the liver breaking down and leaking fluids into the abdominal cavity. It is sometimes associated with an inappropriate diet and poor exercise. The fluid pools in the belly between the legs similar to internal laying. Draining the fluid can give some relief but the damage to the liver will eventually prove fatal. The bird may continue to lay with this ailment. They may drink more than expected, due to the haemorrhaging. The fluid will also put a strain on the heart and respiratory systems.

A tumour can also cause a swelling of the belly.

Sadly the above illnesses are almost always fatal eventually and the treatment options are limited and expensive ..... the reproductive issues can benefit from regular hormonal implants to prevent ovulation.

The way to find out about these illnesses is to do a post mortem examination(necropsy) to improve your own knowledge. They are sadly all too common as this thread indicates. Some like Fatty Liver Haemorrhagic Syndrome can sometimes be prevented with a better diet and exercise for the remaining flock.... larger DP birds are probably more susceptible to this whereas higher production birds like sex links are more liable to the reproductive issues.