Droopy Tail and Vent oozing eggs without shells

[rahbunn]

I have an 18 month old Andalusian hen, Pearl, that has not laid in 2+ months. She has droopy tail and her vent is constantly pulsing. I have been giving her calcium glucosate every day, which perks her up, but she still is not laying a hard shell egg. Goop (the whites of an egg) will ooze out of her vent, as it pulses constantly. Not sure where to go from here, without the calcium she withers away, with it she is perky but oozing...help...

 

[Eggcessive]

It sounds like she may be having oviduct problems. Unfortunately reproductive, such asimpacted oviduct, salpingitis, egg material coming from vent, shell-less eggs, and others are problems are common in most flocks with chickens over 1-2 years. Since she is 18 months old, are you seeing any evidence of her molting? Is her vent area clear or red and irritated? What does she eat? I would be tempted to give her a human calcium tablet with vitamin D, such as Caltrate or the generic form, for about 3 days. D is important as calcium is to lay a hard shell. But if she appears to be molting, I would wait until that is over, since hens do not commonly lay during a molt. Some will lay shell-less eggs during a molt if they continue to lay.

Viruses, such as infectious bronchitis may cause all kinds of egg shell quality problems. Here is some reading about common reproductive problems:
https://wagwalking.com/bird/condition/impacted-oviduct

http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/egg-peritonitis

http://www.theveterinaryexpert.com/backyard-poultry/egg-yolk-peritonitis/

 

[rahbunn]

It sounds like she may be having oviduct problems. Unfortunately reproductive, such asimpacted oviduct, salpingitis, egg material coming from vent, shell-less eggs, and others are problems are common in most flocks with chickens over 1-2 years. Since she is 18 months old, are you seeing any evidence of her molting? Is her vent area clear or red and irritated? What does she eat? I would be tempted to give her a human calcium tablet with vitamin D, such as Caltrate or the generic form, for about 3 days. D is important as calcium is to lay a hard shell. But if she appears to be molting, I would wait until that is over, since hens do not commonly lay during a molt. Some will lay shell-less eggs during a molt if they continue to lay.

Viruses, such as infectious bronchitis may cause all kinds of egg shell quality problems. Here is some reading about common reproductive problems:
https://wagwalking.com/bird/condition/impacted-oviduct

http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/egg-peritonitis

http://www.theveterinaryexpert.com/backyard-poultry/egg-yolk-peritonitis/

 

[rahbunn]

Let me address each of your recommendations:

She is not molting.
Her vent appears normal but oozes clear liquid (thinking the whites of an egg); and she is pulsating all the time
The flock eats Layena with Oyster Shell, they also get a handful or two of Grubblies (dried fly larvae), they free range all day, ground oyster shells and crushed egg shells are provided, berries, other scraps etc.
i will get her some Calcium tablets with Vitamin D as you suggested, but wonder is she gonna recover?

 

[Eggcessive]

It is hard to know, but depends on the cause. I had a hen who was injured by a dog, who previously laid perfect hard shell eggs. She stopped for 5 months after the attack (molting then winter weather,) and when she resumed laying, all eggs were soft or shell-less. She later died from suspected egg yolk peritonitis. I have also had hens who have died from reproductive disorders, the most common cause of desthnin chickens. I have had some who never really laid well or stopped young.

If her problem is just a calcium deficiency, it may improve with supplements, but it is not possible to treat an impacted oviduct. Some do try antibiotics such as Baytril, a powerful one that may help with salpingitis if treated early. It may help to extend her life. Here is a link about that:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/baytril-enrofloxacin-sources.959119/

 

[rebrascora]

Can you feel her abdomen for any swelling, particularly below her vent and between her legs? Compare her to other hens by feeling them too.... roost time makes the job easy. My hunch is that the "egg whites" that you are seeing is actually urates which come from the kidneys. They are the white capping on normal droppings but if she is suffering from some form of intestinal blockage, food will not be passing through her digestive system much but she may well be drinking more fluids to compensate so her urates are coming out more fluid as this slimy clear egg white type liquid, perhaps with streaks of white in it?
If I am right and her abdomen just below her vent is hard and swollen, my suggested diagnosis would be salpingitis, especially as her vent is pulsing. Salpingitis is an infection of the oviduct which causes egg material to become infected and impact the oviduct. The mass can become as large as a grapefruit and irregular in shape and is impossible for them to pass. The mass becomes so large that it starts to push against the intestines causing them to become constricted or nipped and waste is not longer able to pass. The bird will want to both poop and push the mass out of the oviduct, so the vent will often pulse. Eventually the bird will die of toxic shock due to the inability to poop, in the same way as egg binding causes death. NB. If she has not laid for a couple of days I would suggest the cause might be egg binding. but a couple of months suggests the eggs have just been building up inside her. Sadly, if I am right, she is not long for this world. The existence of swelling below the vent would be quite tell tale. Usually birds with such swelling will soil themselves, so they will have poopy butt feathers or may excessively preen to remove soil and become bald and the skin may look strained and irritated.
A photo of her butt might help.

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

@Eggcessive @KikisGirls

 

[Eggcessive]

I answered earlier today on the OP’s duplicate thread :
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/droopy-tail-and-oozs.1266150/