Eggbound!!

[Hennyhandler]

I know that my chicken is eggbound. She has a large abdomen and she is wattling like a penguin. I have searched the forum and heard about placing her in warm water and massaging it out. Putting her over warm air to help ease it as well and massaging in general. I know that giving her calcium will also help. I watched some videos someone recommeded.
But I think it would be a little easier for her to pass it when I tried this if there was ONE egg but with how large her stomach is there has to be more than one. SO I know it can take awhile. The thing is when do you know when it's just going to take time and you just aren't doing it right and ain't working????

Also, ya'll do seperate her yes? I really don't know where in the world to put her. How many times a day should I attempt putting her in the water? I know that when a chickens starts to close their eyes they are really sick and during treatment (massagin in water) you need to back off but when she is sitting on the heat and relaxing is this ok? She is going to want to go to sleep in general.

I just want to make sure to do this right. I also know that some have to put their finger up her to see what is up there or to help ease it out and some try to pop it to get it out but with having more than one in her would this still be recommended? And when you do this how do you know that you are doing it right?

 

[chickenlady08]

Quote:
Can you feel any eggs in the abdomen? It sounds to me that she is laying internally. Let me find a thread on this and post it or type in the search box internal layers or internal laying.

 

[chickenlady08]

Here is a link that may help you to understand internal laying and pictures of the mass of egg inside of chickens.


https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=79443

 

[Hennyhandler]

Thank you for the link. I looked at it but still can't seem to decide which it is. The things is when people talk about egg bound they make it sound like they can feel the one egg in her abdomen that they need to work out. What I feel is more a large mass throughout her whole abdomen. In other threads I have looked at the pics look like her and they have said that she had passed an egg finally but I just can't see how it could be one egg in their pic or in my bird. It is way too large.
In internal laying it seems the hen has had shelless eggs before or at the time the problem occurs. She has never had one before. How can a hen all of a sudden become an internal layer out of no where when she hasn't been before?

I just don't know what to do? Do you think a vet would be able to tell me what it is accurately? Or at least in your experience?

 

[chickenlady08]

Hennyhandler

I discovered I had a hen that looked to be roughed up from to much rooster attention so I secluded her to let her recoperate. I in tern noticed that her abdomen was getting larger and so I started researching it. She had all the symproms of internal laying. As much as I didn't want to believe it, but it was there. I took my girl to the vet and told her what I thought and knew what it was and said she didn't think so, she thought she was eggbound and hoped she could just go in and break the egg and remove the egg and shell. Well as you can see from my picture she couldn't do this without surgery. I was so sad but releived that she could remove the egg mass, but she didn't do a hysterctomy cause she said everythingg looked good with the oviduct. Well she did lay a few other eggs but then unfortunately Trooper started to lay internally again b but this time I didn't catch it in time and she passed away last year.

I do believe that the vet (hopefully familiar) with chickens can identify if this is internal laying or eggbound and I hope they could get her fixed up for you. I would INSIST on a hysterectomy though cause it will only start over again and then you may wind up losing her and I don't want you to lose her.

Is she weak? Is she eating and drinking? Trooper was in really great shape considering what was going on so she felt she would make a full recovery and she almost did.

I wish you SO mush luck and send lots or prayers your way.

I would get her to the vet ASAP cause this gets pretty serious pretty fast, but you did hopefully find it early enough.

Ps I have another Delaware hen internal laying? Just found her and she seems in good shape right now but the trick is to act as fast as you can and get some medical attention for her.

 

[Hennyhandler]

Well when I brought her in her crop was empty and she didn't want to eat in oyster shell that I gave her but I got electrolytes in her. When I moved her to her temporary housing and gave some feed she went at it. SO she is eating now at least. She keeps her tail tucked in, she waddles like a penguin and she is slow. She laid down right after I got her out of the water but after that she will not lay down like maybe the pressure bothers or hurts her. She did kinda fall asleep as she was sitting in the water.

I have read and read and someone said that an eggboung hen would squat when placed in the water and that any other kind would stand there. My hen just stood there. I have heard of people trying to release the fluid from the stomach to keep her alive and going. I understand this but I don't want to do something if it is not the problem or necessary. Also, people for eggbound hens will go up inside and pop the egg so that it will hopefully come out. I don't know if this would be something I would feel comfortable doing knowing that I don't know what I am doing and could do more damage than good. I am sure that you know these facts but the reason I mention it is because I am conflicted with what to do or what would be ok to even try. I also wonder from what you said about your vet doing surgery why "she" didn't pop the egg the way others have mentioned on here. Do you think a vet would do this instead of surgery?

Ohhh, I am so confused!

 

[chickenlady08]

Did you see the picture of what the vet took out of my Trooper? It was 2 lbs of egg mass. Here is a picture and you will see why the vet couldn't just go in and pop the egg. Even when popping the egg you have to be extra careful to be sure that you get all the pieces of the shell out or you will have a whole other problem.

You can see 2 fully formed eggs, one had the shell and one did not. She said that the egg just got stuck so therefore that one and the others wouldln't come out.

If you can get her to a vet then I would do that ASAP to see what issue you have. Eggbound or internal laying.

Can you post a picture of your hen and her abdomen so we can see what it looks like? It does sound like internal laying to me. Mine waddled like a penguin. Oh and what breed of chicken is this or have I overlooked it?