Guinea Hen with diarrhea and soiled vent

[Sydney65]

Hi,
We have two Guinea Hens and for a couple of days one has been having watery poop and her vent feathers are badly soiled.
Her appetite is down, although it's a bit better today, and we cannot handle her to clean her up or check her physically to see if she might be egg bound, or have crop issues. I have not seen her straining in any way, but she does lay an egg infrequently, and hasn't in a few days. She also appeared to be poking her abdomen with her beak several times yesterday. I guess I am just hoping for any advice, as we don't have the option of taking her anywhere. I have added ACV to their water and probiotics as well. Also trying to feed easily digestible food like cooked peas and green beans, and apple. Any thoughts would be appreciated. I hate feeling helpless and don't want to lose her.

@ThePoultryDoc

 

[ThePoultryDoc]

What do her droppings look like today? Was she moved recently? Picking at her abdomen may be just normal preening behavior and if she hasn’t laid an egg in a few days isn’t completely out of the norm.

 

[ThePoultryDoc]

We're going to try and grab her today, but she's pretty fast. The roost is 7' off the ground so I can't grab her at night. She's acting pretty normal except for the filthy vent and watery poop. I looked this morning but I just don't see signs of an impacted crop, and if she was egg bound I would think she'd be sicker by now. I think this poop change has been coming on for a couple weeks, but I don't know what else to give her besides ACV and probiotics in the water. And both birds will be getting whatever I give. I can't find any info on benefits of antibiotics, and probably couldn't get them here anyway without a prescription.

Thank you again for the suggestions.

When evaluating droppings in birds, remember looking at two potential sources of water - fecal and urinary (poop vs. pee). The first pic looks to be relatively formed fecal material with excess water, which makes me think urinary. The second pic is harder to tell. Try holding off on the electrolytes. These are basically salts that could increase urinary water and in turn produce these watery droppings.

 

[Grojo111]

When evaluating droppings in birds, remember looking at two potential sources of water - fecal and urinary (poop vs. pee). The first pic looks to be relatively formed fecal material with excess water, which makes me think urinary. The second pic is harder to tell. Try holding off on the electrolytes. These are basically salts that could increase urinary water and in turn produce these watery droppings.

Thank you I'll try that. I'm leaning towards Ascites but it's hard to be sure.

 

[Grojo111]

What do her droppings look like today? Was she moved recently? Picking at her abdomen may be just normal preening behavior and if she hasn’t laid an egg in a few days isn’t completely out of the norm.

No, she's never done that before, and she was pecking pretty hard. I haven't seen her do that in about a week now, but she clearly has a distended belly. Water belly I presume. We cleaned her up and let her soak in an epsom bath for 20 minutes. The belly seems a bit bigger this time, which is a week later. These pics were taken today. You can see what looks like a string of mucous in #4. I'm just trying to figure out if I have any options that might help her. I appreciate your input. Thank you so much.

 

[ThePoultryDoc]

Is her abdomen symmetrical or lopsided? Ascites fluid is nearly the consistency of water and straw colored. This 'mucus' is clear and viscous, it appears to look like albumen. If you can palpate the abdomen, can you feel a firm mass, or is it soft?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Looks like Albumen leaking. She may have had a membrane break inside of her.

She may be having a hard time expelling material like Lash or just some soft shelled membrane, hard to know.

Guinea Fowl can suffer from similar reproductive disorders that Chicken Hens can have. So she may have Salpingitis, EYP, Cancer, etc.

What I normally suggest for Chickens with similar symptoms is to give a crisis dosage of Extra Calcium for 3-5days to see if they expel any material. You can find Calcium Citrate+D3 at stores like Walmart, CVS, etc. Give 1 tablet (300mg) once daily.

See that she's drinking well and eating. When you handled her did you note an external parasites (lice/mites)?

 

[Grojo111]

Is her abdomen symmetrical or lopsided? Ascites fluid is nearly the consistency of water and straw colored. This 'mucus' is clear and viscous, it appears to look like albumen. If you can palpate the abdomen, can you feel a firm mass, or is it soft?

It seems to be lopsided. Right side if looking from the back. We bathed her a week ago, and I thought it was soft. A week later it seems larger and a bit more firm, although you can palpate it. Are you thinking internal laying? She was laying for a while but did stop about a month ago, which kind of coincides with the beginning of this.
One morning she wasn't interested in her food, and she was walking around with her wings low. She ate later in the day, but didn't fly up to the roost for a couple of nights. Then she seemed better and resumed roosting, but I noticed that her feathers were poopy by her vent, and that's what prompted the bath which led us to the swelling.
Thanks again for trying to help. We've grown attached to them and want to do what we can.

 

[Sydney65]

"The combination of an inflamed, open vent with a draining albumin-like substance and an distended abdomen could indicate several serious health issues, including vent gleet, egg peritonitis, or ascites. It's crucial to seek veterinary advice immediately as these conditions can be life-threatening if left untreated.

Possible Issues:

• Vent Gleet:
  This condition involves inflammation and discharge around the vent, often caused by Candida albicans or herpes virus. Symptoms can include swelling, discharge, and changes in posture or droppings.
  
  
• Egg Peritonitis (Yolk Peritonitis):
  This occurs when an egg yolk escapes the ovary and enters the abdomen, causing inflammation and infection. Signs include lethargy, a hard, distended abdomen, and reduced egg production.
  
  
• Ascites (Water Belly):
  This is a condition where fluid accumulates in the abdomen, often due to underlying heart or respiratory problems. Affected chickens may show distended abdomens, increased respiratory rate, and dullness.
  
  Other Infections:
  It's also possible there's another bacterial or fungal infection that is causing the inflammation and discharge. "
  You haven't mentioned respiratory issues, you initially were concerned about the droppings. She quit roosting, that could be regarded as posture or weakness.
  Any chance you'd consider seeing a vet? Any chance you have a vet around who sees birds? -technically there are none around here, but I have an older vet w/"farm" experience. When he realized how serious I was abt my birds he agreed to help as he could (mild injuries, testing, referral.)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

 

[Grojo111]

"The combination of an inflamed, open vent with a draining albumin-like substance and an distended abdomen could indicate several serious health issues, including vent gleet, egg peritonitis, or ascites. It's crucial to seek veterinary advice immediately as these conditions can be life-threatening if left untreated.

Possible Issues:

• Vent Gleet:
  This condition involves inflammation and discharge around the vent, often caused by Candida albicans or herpes virus. Symptoms can include swelling, discharge, and changes in posture or droppings.
  
  
• Egg Peritonitis (Yolk Peritonitis):
  This occurs when an egg yolk escapes the ovary and enters the abdomen, causing inflammation and infection. Signs include lethargy, a hard, distended abdomen, and reduced egg production.
  
  
• Ascites (Water Belly):
  This is a condition where fluid accumulates in the abdomen, often due to underlying heart or respiratory problems. Affected chickens may show distended abdomens, increased respiratory rate, and dullness.
  
  Other Infections:
  It's also possible there's another bacterial or fungal infection that is causing the inflammation and discharge. "
  You haven't mentioned respiratory issues, you initially were concerned about the droppings. She quit roosting, that could be regarded as posture or weakness.
  Any chance you'd consider seeing a vet? Any chance you have a vet around who sees birds? -technically there are none around here, but I have an older vet w/"farm" experience. When he realized how serious I was abt my birds he agreed to help as he could (mild injuries, testing, referral.)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

We live in San Diego County, and I don't think many vets treat game birds her. She's essentially wild, so even if I could find someone, I'm not sure she would travel well. I am going to try again to find a mobil vet, but I haven't heard of one who treats Guineas. We live in a rural area, so I thought there would be some, but I might be on my own. Being in California, taking a sick bird to a vet might trigger all kinds of issues, as we are over regulated in every way. I don't want to try and drain her until I'm sure it's water belly, which I was leaning towards but now I'm uncertain. Any meds I might give her would have to be mixed with their food or water, and both would get it, as well as the many other critters that dine at their feed bowl.
Thank you so much for responding. I really appreciate it.