Egg bound pullet?

[JMotuzick]

These are not the best pictures but this is my BR pullet (she’s a late bloomer, I think anyhow). She has been standing in the nesting box a lot lately, even at mid day with everyone else outside. She is eating for sure, as I’ve seen her, her crop seams softish. She is up and moving around and was actually mid hop up to bed in the second picture. She does seem slower then normal. Her comb went from red to Greyish white in the past day or two. I did notice a yellow/green squirt from her this morning. Not sure what else to look for but point me in that direction.... I am so to give them the monthly dose of de-wormer though... thoughts?

 

[azygous]

The greenish poop indicates she isn't eating as much as you think. Her appetite is off, and it could be from just about anything. You need to try to narrow down the possibilities.

I like to begin with the crop. You already noticed it's rather soft. Check it early tomorrow morning before she has access to any food. If it's still full, then it's very likely her woes stem from a crop issue. You will need to report your findings back here and we'll go from there.

How old is your pullet? When was the last time she laid an egg? Was it normal? Has she ever laid an abnormal egg? Does she stand with her tail held low and flat?

Do your chickens free range? What do they eat when outside? Do you have a compost pile where there is rotting veggies and other thrown-out food?

Has your flock been vaccinated for Marek's? Do you have older chickens? Have any been sick or died recently?

I'm hoping for a crop issue. That will be easy to treat.

 

[JMotuzick]

I’ll look again in the AM this one came from a friend who hatched a barnyard mix. She came at about 5 months early this winter. One of her “sisters” died about 3 weeks ago of a crop issue that was caught to late. I dont know for sure that she has ever laid an egg. No compost pile, but they often get the scraps from the kitchen veggies etc. last week I gave them a acorn squash that was turning soft and a cabbage from the grocery store. With the snow on the ground they have been cooped up a bit but the large run (30x50)has been open a few days this week. They have had the small run (12x20)all winter even though they never use it.

 

[JMotuzick]

We do have older hens in the mix as well, that’s why I’m not sure she is laying. Seams slow on the move tail kinda down.

 

[azygous]

Do you have anti-yeast meds on hand? Miconazole it the easiest to get. If the crop is still full and squishy in the morning, I recommend starting treatment immediately twice a day for seven days. If the crop feels like it has cabbage and squash still in it, you may need to treat with coconut oil first to clear out the solid stuff.

 

[rebrascora]

She is clearly unwell and may benefit from being brought into the house for warmth and monitoring and some TLC.
Do you have a rooster? She looks like she has a bit of mating damage to her feathers.
It is concerning that her sister died recently and suggests there may be something more serious going on.
How does her body condition feel? Is she quite small and thin? The best place to assess this is the breast area. If her breast bone down the middle of her chest feels quite sharp under the skin, she is underweight and there is an issue with food intake or metabolism and will benefit from a heat source. If she is reasonable well covered and you can feel the breast bone but it is more rounded, then that is less concerning.
As azygous says, check the crop when she roosts at night and then first thing in the morning. If it hasn't gone down, it may hopefully be a crop issue, but it could also be a blockage lower down her digestive tract. The next place to check is her vent. Look for any swelling or pulsing or any abnormal bulges. If it appears to be pulsing, an internal exam to check for a stuck egg might be a good idea. This is done by carefully inserting a gloved finger an inch or two and feeling for an egg. It might be a normal egg or a soft shelled egg. The latter are particularly difficult to lay and take a lot out of a bird trying to push it out. and can make them feel very under the weather.

If you can come back to us with more info, we might be able to suggest what you can do to help her.

 

[JMotuzick]

Well I slept in today, gota love the weekend!

I went out and found her in the same spot on the roosting pole as last night. I opened the pop door first and everyone was already out side. I brought her inside.

She didn’t move while I set up her sick bay. I set her up with some grower crumbles and water. Duta-drench spiked water!

I can feel her Brest bone and it does seam sharp. Crop feels about the same as both times I checked it yesterday.

We do have a roster and he seams to have picked on a couple, most notably a EE. This one may be getting it from the girls too though as she is low on the pecking order. Food is out 24-7 with a couple Home made 4” pvc feeders. Maybe I should add another?

Thanks for all your help

 

[azygous]

Perhaps, given that her crop was still full this morning before you brought her in and offered food, you should begin treatment for either impacted crop or sour crop or possibly both.

 

[rebrascora]

I agree with azygous and would start massaging her crop immediately. azygous recommends giving them a tablespoon of solid coconut oil to help lubricate and people seem to be finding that helpful.... I haven't tried it myself but I have used olive oil. Being skinny may be due to being bullied from the feeder but may also be down to an impacted crop.... essentially she is starving because her digestive system is blocked.
I would remove the dry crumbles and just mix a few into her water to make a thin slurry, that will provide a little more nourishment than the water with just the vitamin supplement.
Massage her crop 4x a day if you can for 10-15 mins at a time. Be guided by her as to what she is comfortable with. Wrap her in an old towel as she may well poop on you during the process. It can take a week or even longer to get an impaction broken down but you need to ensure that fluids at least are going through.
Does her breath smell unpleasant? That would be an indication that the contents of her crop have gone sour and may need additional treatment.

 

[JMotuzick]

10-15 minutes! Wow ok, I’ll start that as soon as I send this message! I was doing it for like 2 minutes at a time. 3 times so far today...

How should I administer the coconut or olive oil ? We have both in the house.

Very green poo in the “sick bay” shavings tonight. I haven’t noticed any bad breath, I’ll check again.