Help! Is it a prolapsed vent?!!

[renthehen]

Help! Paisley was just hanging by the front door for a couple of hours and I realized she had blood and poop all stuck in her feathers. So I took her in and rinsed her real well. The photos aren’t great but basically the top opening to her vent is very enlarged and there seems to be some flesh material and like bloody stuff hanging from her vent.

I haven’t done my normal chicken first aid yet which includes wash with castille soap, peroxide and then an ointment of coconut oil, powders of turmeric, garlic, cinnamon, ginger and then some neem oil. But I don’t want to treat her before I get educated on the possibilities. I know it could be a prolapsed vent, or I have read that sometimes ducks will try to mate chickens so I don’t know if that may have happened? This is our first issue of this kind and I’m so worried about her!

I can post more photos if anyone needs a better look! I would appreciate any advice or tips anyone may be able to offer! And for now, paisley is in hotel bathtub until we figure out a treatment plan moving forward.

Warmly- Ren and hens

 

[Eggcessive]

Yes, her vent has prolapsed, and it looks like the other chickens have pecked and damaged her vent because they saw red. Hopefully, she can heal from this, but it depends how much damage has been done. You don’t need to put a bunch of herbs or soaps on it. Just soak her in saline or Epsom salts warm water at least once a day. Saline is 2 tsp of table salt dissolved in 1 quart of water. Then apply a non-toxic ointment (vaseline, Neosporin, hydrocortisone). or honey to the vent. Sugar mixed with a few drops of water to make a syrup is also good. The honey or sugar will help shrink a swollen tissue. Keep the prolapse moist at all times, and don’t let it dry out. Check for an egg that may have caused the prolapse. Keep her clean and let us know if she is passing droppings. Offer fluids, then food, egg, etc. Keep her separated and away from flies.

 

[renthehen]

Yes, her vent has prolapsed, and it looks like the other chickens have pecked and damaged her vent because they saw red. Hopefully, she can heal from this, but it depends how much damage has been done. You don’t need to put a bunch of herbs or soaps on it. Just soak her in saline or Epsom salts warm water at least once a day. Saline is 2 tsp of table salt dissolved in 1 quart of water. Then apply a non-toxic ointment (vaseline, Neosporin, hydrocortisone). or honey to the vent. Sugar mixed with a few drops of water to make a syrup is also good. The honey or sugar will help shrink a swollen tissue. Keep the prolapse moist at all times, and don’t let it dry out. Check for an egg that may have caused the prolapse. Keep her clean and let us know if she is passing droppings. Offer fluids, then food, egg, etc. Keep her separated and away from flies.

Thank you for your reply! She seems to be passing a kind of white runny poo, but she does keep flexing the muscles like she is trying to go.
I am doing the epsom bath now and will do honey and will isolate her in the house for a couple of days.
Also I forgot to mention, some chunks of what looks like fat came off of her when I rinsed… just one more thing that could maybe tell you how dire the situation is.
I’ll update if any developments.

 

[Eggcessive]

Let us know if she passes any normal droppings. Leaking white urates may not be a good sign. But hopefully, her droppings will improve. Vent pecking can lead to cannibalism. That is why having a prolapse can actually lead to death if the others peck the vent. They can pull out the bowel, and that leads to death. When the vent is damaged, it can lead to some problems when she begins to lay again. Since hens need about 12 hours of daylight to lay, you can limit daylight hours to try and stop her from laying.

 

[renthehen]

So, we’re a few days into the emergency calcium doses. She is egg bound as far as I can tell. I’m wondering what else can I do besides the calcium to help her pass the egg, today is day 3 of dosing once per day.
She is pooping plenty but not eating much at all and drinking somewhat. I’ve been bathing her in the epsom bath and coating the vent area with honey afterwards. I can not seem to get the prolapsed flesh back into her. Everytime I get it in, she poos and everything comes back out. So do I have to wait until she passes the egg to try to reinsert the flesh?
This is our first egg bound hen and I’m just hoping I can do something more to help her! She is very happy soaking in the salt bath for around 20 minutes, which is good. She seems happy enough in the bathtub but I don’t know what else to do!

 

[Jenbirdee]

I hope she heals well.
I dont have advice for that,
but wanted to say
Please,
if you have a drake or drakes with chicken hens
please separate them right away.

 

[Eggcessive]

So, we’re a few days into the emergency calcium doses. She is egg bound as far as I can tell. I’m wondering what else can I do besides the calcium to help her pass the egg, today is day 3 of dosing once per day.
She is pooping plenty but not eating much at all and drinking somewhat. I’ve been bathing her in the epsom bath and coating the vent area with honey afterwards. I can not seem to get the prolapsed flesh back into her. Everytime I get it in, she poos and everything comes back out. So do I have to wait until she passes the egg to try to reinsert the flesh?
This is our first egg bound hen and I’m just hoping I can do something more to help her! She is very happy soaking in the salt bath for around 20 minutes, which is good. She seems happy enough in the bathtub but I don’t know what else to do!

It can take up to a week sometimes for the prolapse to get back in. You could try to push it in, but it may come back out whenever she strains to poop or lay. Can you feel an egg inside the vent? If she is pooping, she is probably not egg bound. Has she been laying recently before the prolapse? I would watch her in case she does start to lay an egg, though, because the damage to her vent may make that difficult. Limiting daylight hours to about 8 hours a day might stop her laying temporarily, to heal.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would remove the ducks from the chickens area in case that is what caused the vent damage, but it probably was due to the prolapse attracting pecking.

 

[renthehen]

It can take up to a week sometimes for the prolapse to get back in. You could try to push it in, but it may come back out whenever she strains to poop or lay. Can you feel an egg inside the vent? If she is pooping, she is probably not egg bound. Has she been laying recently before the prolapse? I would watch her in case she does start to lay an egg, though, because the damage to her vent may make that difficult. Limiting daylight hours to about 8 hours a day might stop her laying temporarily, to heal.

So, an update and more questions I guess. She still has not laid an egg. It’s been over two weeks by now. I’m wondering if she’s just old? We got her as an adult and don’t know her age.
But now our problem is something else. She wasn’t eating or drinking and she stopped walking. So I brought her inside to bathe and I had been syringe feeding her at this point and I decided to offer some applesauce. She took it and ate so much and she took water! At this point I realize she is blind. So she is not walking and is blind.
I’ve got her in towels in the sink so I can feed her and bathe her a lot. But any ideas on what could have happened? Stroke? She doesn’t seem to be in physical pain and can move her legs and feet. She isn’t standing though. We’re going to try some physical therapy and see if she improves at all. I’m open to any suggestions as I am at the end of my rope with what to do to try to help her. Thanks

 

[Eggcessive]

Can you get a close up picture of each eye in good light?How does she look when she is lying down? Are her toes curled under on either foot? How long has she not been able to stand and walk? Have you ever known of her laying eggs? She could possibly have a mass inside her abdomen pressing on her leg nerves, but it is hard to know what exactly is going on with her. Do you know if she was vaccinated for Mareks disease?