Buff Orpington with fluid mass

[Joycefam]

Hello, one of my 2-year-old buff orpingtons has a large fluid-filled mass below her vent. She’s still free ranging, eating and drinking (as far as I can tell), moving and socializing normally, and her comb looks firm and red. Last night I gave her an epsom salt bath and sprayed vetericin on it and offered probiotics in her water. (It’s all I had in hand.) I couldn’t feel an egg when I checked. Is there anything I can do for her? Any chance she’ll be ok?

 

[coach723]

It sounds like ascites, which is fluid in the abdomen being leaked by the liver. It's a symptom of something else going on. It could be a cancer, infection, or organ failure. It often accompanies reproductive problems and the birds are usually not laying. This is unfortunately not uncommon in hens over the age of two. It's hard to know for sure what's going on inside, sometimes imaging from a veterinarian can help, sometimes not. That is sometimes expensive and treatment options for most of the causes are very limited. My birds that get this way, I leave them with the flock as long as they're basically acting normally, eating, drinking, staying with the flock. Once they go off food or water, isolate themselves, are obviously not feeling well, or sometimes get attacked by the flock, then I euthanize rather than let them suffer. It's often not known for sure what the actual cause is until they pass and a necropsy is done. Some times people will drain the fluid, which can make them more comfortable for a while, but it will usually recur as the underlying condition is still there. It does come with some amount of risk, if the fluid is removed too much too fast it can cause shock, which can be fatal, and some small risk of infection from the drain puncture. But many do it successfully, there are videos on youtube showing how to do that if you are interested (search for draining ascites/waterbelly in chickens). I've had birds live as long as 18 months once the abdomen was bloated, I've also had some pass much quicker than that, it's hard to predict and depends on the underlying cause. Some of them may also develop slowed or stopped digestion which shows up as crop problems, caused by the pressure in the abdomen. They may have difficulty breathing from pressure on the air sacs, and droppings building up in feathers below the vent is also common as droppings may be runny and they can't push them out as hard.
I'm sure that is not what you were hoping to hear, I'm very sorry.

 

[Eggcessive]

Does the mass show up in a picture? Does it feel more like fluid or solid mass or fat? What do her droppings look like? Is there any yellow in the dropping? Does she lay eggs? Ascites/water belly can cause fluid build up in the abdomen from liver disease related to a reproductive disorder, cancer, or heart failure. An enlarged lower abdomen can also be from infection, internal laying masses, cancer, or fatty liver disease.

With ascites, it is possible for fluid to be withdrawn with an 18 gauge needle and large syringe (from a feed store.) If yellow fluid is withdrawn, that is a diagnosis of ascites. Draining fluid is only a temporary fix, since the conditions causing ascites are eventually fatal. Infection and death are the risks with draining.