eggbound? or something else?

[kmatt87]

Why would a hen refuse to come off a roost? My yr old BO did not want to get off the roost today. Normally she's out by 6 or so and i just now took her off and put her outside. Her crop feels empty, but normal, no injuries that i can see, she has a soft ball size, squishy area in her abdomen....but she normally doesn't do her huge morning poo till she's out of the coop so I think that might be it... She also pecked at me when i reached toward her on the roost. She will normally only peck if you try to reach under her while she's in the nesting box. Any ideas? Things i should check? I've never dealt with a strange acting chicken before.


* I noticed a hard mass in the squish abdomen..since it feels egg shaped i'm guessing she has one stuck in there. So she's had a warm bath, some vaseline put in and around her vent, she's currently relaxing in some clean bedding in a storage tub in the house. I also gave her a little bit of leftover scrambled egg from breakfast with some crushed tums sprinkled on top and some tetracycline powder in her water just in case meds are needed.

Does that sound like a good start? I've never dealt with anything like this before.

 

[kmatt87]

so she's not pooping, trying to lay anything, wanting to drink or wanting to eat and its been at least 8 hrs since i've tried anything new. Anyone able to think of or suggest anything?!?!

 

[FenikT]

IMO, it sounds like you're on the right track.

Some things I would recommend are:
- Continue giving warm baths (more than pee warm but shy of hot). Be sure she is submerged enough to cover the vent fully.
- Gently manipulate manually around the area you suspect contains the egg / mass while bathing your chicken. When manipulating, pull toward the vent and don't push inward or toward the center of the body. If it is an egg which can't clear a kink in the oviduct, manipulation may do the trick. This may also stimulate a bowel movement, which could be impacted by a bound egg.
- Lay off the Vaseline inside the vent. If there is any infection within, Vaseline does an equally good job of trapping possible sources of infection rather than letting the body expel it normally. Trust me, a warm bath coupled with a 5-10 mins of manipulation will likely cause a couple ounces of water to enter the first few inches of the vent opening.
- Be sure your tetracycline regiment is measured and an effective dose and not just haphazard sprinkles. You're not doing the bird any favors by administering a drug at less than the optimum level, which in the long run promotes bacterial drug resistance.
- Manually administer a daily 3-4CC/ML calcium and Vitamin D supplement (via a syringe w/out the needle) like Wellesse Liquid Calcium w/ Vit D (sold @ Walmart). Vit D helps w/ calcium absorption. If you plant the tip of the syringe on the back of the tongue, this should cause an involuntary swallowing movement.
- Isolate your bird in a quiet, warm, subdued light environment. Offer free choice water and pellets/crumbles as well.

If you don't see any improvement in vigor, bowel movements, and color w/in a couple days, eggbinding is probably not the issue. Most birds who are truly eggbound die w/in a couple days if not given effective treatment/intervention.

 

[hrhta812]

How is she? I had a hen act very similar and it was soooooooo cold out then that I brought her in so I could try to help her [that was more for my benefit than hers LOL]. I realized after I'd had her inside for 24 hours that the shavings in the cage were clean - no poop.

I gave her drops of olive oil, 3 or 4 drops and then again several hours later. I also gave her an Epsom salt soak and massaged her crop. I palpated her belly while she was soaking but I don't know if there was anything abnormal or not - not that I could tell, at least.

She started having very watery stool the following day, then had some more normal and I saw a long piece of hay sticking out of the stool. It must have been that causing the problem. The spa treatment seems to help for lots of situations: http://hencam.com/faq/the-spa-treatment/

 

[casportpony]

Why would a hen refuse to come off a roost? My yr old BO did not want to get off the roost today. Normally she's out by 6 or so and i just now took her off and put her outside. Her crop feels empty, but normal, no injuries that i can see, she has a soft ball size, squishy area in her abdomen....but she normally doesn't do her huge morning poo till she's out of the coop so I think that might be it... She also pecked at me when i reached toward her on the roost. She will normally only peck if you try to reach under her while she's in the nesting box. Any ideas? Things i should check? I've never dealt with a strange acting chicken before.


* I noticed a hard mass in the squish abdomen..since it feels egg shaped i'm guessing she has one stuck in there. So she's had a warm bath, some vaseline put in and around her vent, she's currently relaxing in some clean bedding in a storage tub in the house. I also gave her a little bit of leftover scrambled egg from breakfast with some crushed tums sprinkled on top and some tetracycline powder in her water just in case meds are needed.

Does that sound like a good start? I've never dealt with anything like this before.

Read this:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/738201/goose-what-is-this-how-did-it-happen-what-do-i-do-about-it