Chicken waddling and gained weight, worried!

[Lonistone1863]

Hello!
I have a 4 yo Rhode Island Red. She’s the sturdiest biggest and healthiest chicken in our coop until recently. She seems to have gained a lot of weight in only a week, she hasn’t laid any eggs and her waddling seems slower and less sturdy. He legs also seem more wide-set. Her wattle is bright and feathers and shiny and she’s eating. Yesterday we also discovered a very thin shelled egg that had broken in the coop. Any help would be so much appreciated!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

She seems to have gained a lot of weight in only a week, she hasn’t laid any eggs and her waddling seems slower and less sturdy. He legs also seem more wide-set.

Yesterday we also discovered a very thin shelled egg that had broken in the coop.

She seems to have gained weight - have you weighed her?
Might be a good idea to get a weight on her now and track it.

How does her abdomen feel - hard, soft, squishy, fluid filled, bloated, etc.?

She hasn't laid eggs, is waddling, legs more wide-set, weight gain...personally, I would lean toward reproductive disorder. Egg Yolk Peritonitis, Internal Laying, cancer, etc. can be common in laying hens. Weight gain could possibly be from fluid in the abdomen.
Of course, it's just a guess on my part-I'm not a vet nor expert. The symptoms you describe, I have seen in my own hens. If they are eating/drinking and relatively active, I just monitor them. If they start to decline, then I do offer supportive care to see if that makes a difference. Once they appear miserable I put them down.

 

[Lonistone1863]

She seems to have gained weight - have you weighed her?
Might be a good idea to get a weight on her now and track it.

How does her abdomen feel - hard, soft, squishy, fluid filled, bloated, etc.?

She hasn't laid eggs, is waddling, legs more wide-set, weight gain...personally, I would lean toward reproductive disorder. Egg Yolk Peritonitis, Internal Laying, cancer, etc. can be common in laying hens. Weight gain could possibly be from fluid in the abdomen.
Of course, it's just a guess on my part-I'm not a vet nor expert. The symptoms you describe, I have seen in my own hens. If they are eating/drinking and relatively active, I just monitor them. If they start to decline, then I do offer supportive care to see if that makes a difference. Once they appear miserable I put them down.

She seems to have gained weight - have you weighed her?
Might be a good idea to get a weight on her now and track it.

How does her abdomen feel - hard, soft, squishy, fluid filled, bloated, etc.?

She hasn't laid eggs, is waddling, legs more wide-set, weight gain...personally, I would lean toward reproductive disorder. Egg Yolk Peritonitis, Internal Laying, cancer, etc. can be common in laying hens. Weight gain could possibly be from fluid in the abdomen.
Of course, it's just a guess on my part-I'm not a vet nor expert. The symptoms you describe, I have seen

No we haven’t weighed her, no. I guess she just looks heavier because her gait has changed and her abdomen and hind quarters seem bloated. She’s been so healthy I can’t imagine what caused this but, we’re trying everything. We have her a warm bath and checked her vent. We isolated her to keep her calm, maybe it’s a bound egg? We feel terrible. I can’t imagine putting her down but thank you for you insight and reply.

 

[seminolewind]

In my non doctor opinion, I would grease up a finger and go up the vent and see if there's any blockage. Note the color of the poop. If there's no blockage it may be egg peritonitis. That's where the hen starts laying eggs inside her abdomen and they do get heavy and waddle or sit all the time. In that case there is really not anything you can do. It's fairly common in hens that were bred to lay eggs like crazy . In 12 years I've had 3.

 

[Lonistone1863]

We did grease up a gloved finger and tried to feel around but honestly these are our first hens and we’re not sure what we’re feeling for. I called a local egg farmer and he said she could be egg bound but she’s still eating and drinking and paddling around. So that doesn’t seem likely. Anyway, if she makes it through the night, we’ll see what color her poop is and report back. Appreciate your insight.

 

[seminolewind]

If she's egg bound , you can feel it. If you examine her vent wise if you feel anything that feels like an egg you will know it.

 

[Lonistone1863]

So we should definitely feel an egg if we probe around inside? My husband tried but he wasn’t sure. He said he felt two bulbous things on both sides, but they felt more soft like glands or something? Did you read above that we also found an egg with a super soft shell in the coop. Could that we a sign of anything? We will check again tomorrow, fingers crossed. Thanks again for your comments.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

We did grease up a gloved finger and tried to feel around but honestly these are our first hens and we’re not sure what we’re feeling for. I called a local egg farmer and he said she could be egg bound but she’s still eating and drinking and paddling around. So that doesn’t seem likely. Anyway, if she makes it through the night, we’ll see what color her poop is and report back. Appreciate your insight.

So we should definitely feel an egg if we probe around inside? My husband tried but he wasn’t sure. He said he felt two bulbous things on both sides, but they felt more soft like glands or something? Did you read above that we also found an egg with a super soft shell in the coop. Could that we a sign of anything? We will check again tomorrow, fingers crossed. Thanks again for your comments.

Yes, you would feel an egg if she were egg bound.

You mention if she makes it through the night .... is she lethargic? Not eating/drinking?
Is she able to poop?

Her wattle is bright and feathers and shiny and she’s eating

 

[Lonistone1863]

She’s not doing well, she’s not pooping and very bloated...not sure what we should do but we’re going to call a vet.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

She’s not doing well, she’s not pooping and very bloated...not sure what we should do but we’re going to call a vet.

I'm sorry she's not doing well.
If you can see a vet, that may be best.

Not pooping - have you felt inside the vent for an egg?
Being bloated, she may have fluid that is accompanying a reproductive problem like Egg Yolk Peritonitis, cancer or similar.
It really stinks, but it does seem all too common in laying hens.