Friendly Flower
Chirping
- Mar 25, 2017
- 11
- 1
- 62
Hi, I am pretty new to raising chickens (8 months into it) they are "pets" and the bonus is that they lay eggs! One of my1 1/2 yr old hens has been a little down for a few days. She ekes her head tuckind-in like a turtle, and her tail is pointed down instead of her usual perky self , head and tail up!!
She eats, drinks, not too much but still doing both. Her belly between her legs is very swollen. I thought she may have had an impacted egg so, I did it..I lubricated my finger at the instruction of a chicken book, and stuck it up her bum and gently tried to feel if there was something hard like an egg...I went in about 2 inches and felt nothing except poop. I think it is her intestines that are swollen. yesterday, she was lying down most of the day, "pumping her tail" as if she was going to lay an egg.(she did not, and is still "pumping" her tail).
aha I have tried thus far:
1. I held her in a leg-to-tail- deep warm epsom water bath and rinsed her off. she seemed to like that so I'll try it again today.
2. been giving a slight amount of apple cider vinegar in her water (1/8 tsp to 4 oz water)
3. tried cottage cheese
4.leaving a variety of food for her to keep eating: baby greens like beet, kale, spinach, grit and regular pellets some meal worms.
I'll check again today if there is an impacted egg, but short of that, I don't know what to do. I have her inside to keep her warm (it's still pretty cold here in Maine), her mates are back in the chicken house I know she would probably rather be in stead of a 18" X 18" cage inside.
Please help! where she is swollen, is her lower belly, quite reddish-pink in that area, between her legs, just almost up to her vent. Poor thing!
Thanks Danielle
She eats, drinks, not too much but still doing both. Her belly between her legs is very swollen. I thought she may have had an impacted egg so, I did it..I lubricated my finger at the instruction of a chicken book, and stuck it up her bum and gently tried to feel if there was something hard like an egg...I went in about 2 inches and felt nothing except poop. I think it is her intestines that are swollen. yesterday, she was lying down most of the day, "pumping her tail" as if she was going to lay an egg.(she did not, and is still "pumping" her tail).
aha I have tried thus far:
1. I held her in a leg-to-tail- deep warm epsom water bath and rinsed her off. she seemed to like that so I'll try it again today.
2. been giving a slight amount of apple cider vinegar in her water (1/8 tsp to 4 oz water)
3. tried cottage cheese
4.leaving a variety of food for her to keep eating: baby greens like beet, kale, spinach, grit and regular pellets some meal worms.
I'll check again today if there is an impacted egg, but short of that, I don't know what to do. I have her inside to keep her warm (it's still pretty cold here in Maine), her mates are back in the chicken house I know she would probably rather be in stead of a 18" X 18" cage inside.
Please help! where she is swollen, is her lower belly, quite reddish-pink in that area, between her legs, just almost up to her vent. Poor thing!
Thanks Danielle
