Eggbound peahen

[ferret4]

Hello! I have an eggbound peahen. I have read through old threads and have done the calcium gluconate injection (2 ml of the 35% solution two days in a row now), tums crushed in water and given through a dropper, KY jelly every day, and yesterday soaked her in a warm bath for about an hour. She has two heat lamps she can sit under inside the barn and has been doing that other than when it is nice out and she comes outside. I can feel the egg only about an inch inside. It seems covered in a film and almost attached to her. I have tried massaging externally to work it downward but it isn't coming. I don't feel like I can manipulate it out internally due to the fact it seems attached and I am afraid of ripping her internally in the process?
This is the 5th day. I called the only vet in the area who deals with peafowl 4 days ago. She said to do all that I am already doing. She didn't want her to come in to the office due to the coronavirus (they are seeing limited patients as drop offs only) and she thought me bringing her in and leaving her would be too stressful. I have observed her urinating and defecating, so that is getting out somehow? She isn't actively walking around like she normally would be, but is alert and sitting with the others. She will walk outside and back in and hop up on the perches alone.
I am worried because I know everything I have ever heard says she can die within 48 hours. This has obviously not been the case with her, but I still need that egg to be out! Any chance she will pass it alone still? Should I keep everything up or wait? Any other suggestions?
Thank-you

 

[casportpony]

Welcome to BYC, sorry your hen is not well.

When mine are egg bound I give lots of fluids, either orally, subcutaneously, or both. Do you want to learn how to tube fluids?

 

[casportpony]

Oh, I also usually start mine on Meloxicam and Baytril, of course they get calcium gluconate too.

 

[ferret4]

Yes, I would tube fluids if I knew the proper way to do it.
Is the meloxicam and Baytril something I would ask my vet for? I can't seem to find it online, which makes sense I guess.

 

[casportpony]

You can get Baytril without a prescription, but it will take many days to get it. Call you vet and ask about getting both.

Is your vet working today?

 

[ferret4]

No she isn’t. I called again yesterday because I didn’t want to go through the weekend like this and they told me she was off until Monday. I called every other vet in our area and No one would see her.
How is the baytril and meloxicam given?

 

[KsKingBee]

I would up the amount of GC to at least 2ml injections just under the skin and five ml orally. You are doing all you can do and she is much better off with you than at the vets' office.

I have a hen that struggled for only a day this week that I thought I was going to have to give GC to. I collect eggs at night and at about 11 pm she was on the roost looking very 'stuck'. I was going to give the GC the next morning when I noticed that she had expelled an egg without any shell under the roost. At that point, I am thinking she had a crushed shell still in her because the cock had been chasing the hens a day or two before. The next morning I checked on her and found this egg right under where she had bee roosting.

It appears that the membrane of the first egg was cleared out by the second egg. Sometimes these things take care of themselves and other times no matter what you do you just can't do enough. Hang in there, you are doing everything you can.

 

[ferret4]

I would up the amount of GC to at least 2ml injections just under the skin and five ml orally. You are doing all you can do and she is much better off with you than at the vets' office.

I have a hen that struggled for only a day this week that I thought I was going to have to give GC to. I collect eggs at night and at about 11 pm she was on the roost looking very 'stuck'. I was going to give the GC the next morning when I noticed that she had expelled an egg without any shell under the roost. At that point, I am thinking she had a crushed shell still in her because the cock had been chasing the hens a day or two before. The next morning I checked on her and found this egg right under where she had bee roosting.

It appears that the membrane of the first egg was cleared out by the second egg. Sometimes these things take care of themselves and other times no matter what you do you just can't do enough. Hang in there, you are doing everything you can.
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Sorry for the late reply and thank-you!
I have raised the GC dosage to what you recommended. Nothing yet. She is currently soaking in the tub again. I guess good news is that she shot diarrhea all over me on the way in. I have read that is how they often die is from not being able to defecate/urinate around the egg! She also is acting like nothing is wrong other than her wings are drooping slightly and she sits wherever she walks to instead of being up exploring. It is so frustrating because the egg is only about 1/2" in but it hasn't moved in days now.

 

[casportpony]

Giving her 200-400 ml of fluids per day will help.

 

[ferret4]

Giving her 200-400 ml of fluids per day will help.

I am going to call my vet today as she should be back at work and see if I can get some fluids. The tech on Friday (when the vet was gone) said they prefer to give birds fluids orally, but I would think that would be a lot to try to do orally? What do you do?