Day 20 broody sick nonresponsive

[mammat]

My Silkie has been sitting on eggs for 20 days now. She would not get off to eat or drink or poop so I have been getting her off 1xday. I know she was not getting off because she is in a dog kennel and there was no poop. She would eat and poop but not drink. I did not take her off last night because I read that you should leave them alone for the last 3 days. This am she pooped in the nest box. I took her out to clean it out and she is not responsive. She will stand up but staggers 2-3 steps. Every other day she would walk around ,scrath and talk. But not today. I put her back in the nest box and she will not sit down. The feathers below her vent are dirty but the vent is clean and is moving like she needs to poop but cant. She has been standing there for over 30 mintues like this. Do you think she is sick? dehydrated? Crop feels normal, eye look clear but she is very lethargic. I am certain she is not just sleepy. I dont not want her to die over these eggs. She is my favorite hen

 

[nnbreeder]

It sounds like you need to get some water and electrolytes in that girl. In a pince Pedilyte or gatorade can be used but cut them 50/50 with water.

If needed use a crop tube to put a little water in her crop. Basically it is a syringe with a long, soft, plastic tube on it that can be inserted into the crop. Do not worry about going into the lungs as you would with a human. The breathing tube is at the back of the throat and can be clearly seen with a light. The placement of the tube can be easily felt by hand.

 

[mammat]

ok-thanks!

 

[nnbreeder]

Here is some info that I found on another site. This young lady is probably one of the most knowledgable about birds that I have ever ran across.

From Crazychick/Laura 2005
I had an araucana rooster that had a real problem with constipation. He would get constipated for no apparent reason, but I think that he had weak and sluggish "pooping muscles" in his bum... So scientific, eh? Anyway, if I kept his vent clean, he was usually okay. But more often than not, his vent would get dirty and crusty, then he'd get constipated. Here's how I dealt with his constipation (and I had a chick almost die once because of it...) Get some mineral oil and mix about 30 cc of mineral oil with 30cc hot water. Mix this all up and with a syringe, shoot it up his bum, 12 cc at a time. Stand back. After a few minutes, about half a gallon of the smelliest, grossest poop would come out in a powerful stream, then my roo would smile, look relieved and crow, half the time. It was funny, but gross. I had to do this to Sam-I-Am (my roo) about 30 times in his lifetime- he never once complained about it. If he had caked poop on his vent, I'd soften it with hibitane soap and water- let it sit for 10 minutes, massage, then wash off. His condition was called Vent Gleet (weakened muscles and smelly poop). To a lot of people, vent gleet means they have a candida (yeast) infection, but in my texts, it means the weak muscles and inability to pass poop properly. If you don't have mineral oil, vegetable oil mixed with warm water will work, but the mineral oil works better. In a pinch, lube (not vaseline- water soluble only) can be used as can epsom salts and water OR just really warm water with a wee bit of dishsoap OR just the really warm water. I find the mineral oil/hot water works the best...

 

[speckledhen]

Saved a broody like that by squeezing a vitamin E gelcap into her mouth and syringing water in as well. She didn't have any eggs, though--we could not break her no matter how hard we tried. Wish you could put the eggs under another hen or in the bator. You may lost her. What has she been eating while on the nest? If you let her eat mostly scratch during that time, it helps keep poops solid and won't hurt since she isn't expending much energy during that time.

 

[mammat]

She has been eating layer pellet,scrambled eggs,little bit of watermelon,rolled oats. She poops a couple of time when she is off for her daily walk. I am going to go out and give her some gatorade. Do you think I should bring her in the house?

 

[nnbreeder]

If there is a chill in the air it would not hurt her a bit.

 

[suebee]

What are you going to do w/ the eggs? Didn't you say it was day 20? She must be very dehydrated if she hasn't drank any water at all. I just had a silkie broody for 90....yes, 90 days...no eggs. She's finally off the nest and completely normal. I do think pedialyte or gatorade will really help, maybe applesauce too. Keep us posted.

 

[mammat]

Well I decided to hell with the eggs this afternoon. I took her off,gave her some gatorade with a syringe,scrambled egg(what she would eat) gave a partial bath to the rear and a good dry. Gave her a little mineral oil to the vent. Took her out for a little walk. She perked up some. Brought the cage with the eggs and her in the living room. She slept for a couple of hours. I went to check on her and offered her some watermelon and she ate a significant amount. Ate a couple raspberries and seems much more responsive but still tired. Sitting on those eggs like a champ. While I was doing her spa treatment I put hand warmers over the eggs in the nest. The whole event took maybe 35 minutes so I will just hold my breath and hope they hatch. Buffy(the mamma) and my DD will be very disappointed if we dont get any. I am planning to go buy her some chicks if I dont get any action by Monday and hopefully she will continue to perk up!

 

[mammat]

Photo of Buffer the wonder Silkie( a couple of days ago)

Buffy as a baby