I have 3 hens right now that are having some sort of issue. Two are two years old, the other is three. They are in varying stages, one is barely noticeable, one is pretty obvious, the other seems severe. I can’t really get a clear picture because of feathers covering their butts, but I’m going to try to describe it.
I first discovered it last night on my most severe hen, and checking the rest tonight noticed it on two more. While searching for swollen areas and pictures of egg bound chickens, I came across info on ascites/waterbelly and some threads on here talking about internal hernias. The worst case has a ball basically the size of a baseball, quite squishy but holds its form, so I sort of ruled out water belly as it seems that that is more of a total swelling of the underbelly. I also don’t think they are egg bound as I have received eggs from all of them recently and the bulges are not hard. I assumed it was an internal hernia… but now I’m wondering about vent gleet. The worst case, we had to trim up her butt feathers a few months ago because a lot of poop got stuck in her feathers… she’s a Cochin, so quite fluffy. The vent is clear of feathers, but the bulge is very covered. The skin does not appear red, and none of the three hens have any sign of discharge. None are lethargic, they are all acting quite normally.
We are a butchering home, and all three were in the lineup of birds we were planning to butcher at the end of October. Are there any measures I should take to try and diagnose these issues further? Should I try to treat any of them? Does this issue seem familiar to anyone? I want to help these hens if we can to give them a good quality of life in their remaining months, but we are totally willing to cull them rather than continue to let them suffer in discomfort. I can try to get pictures tomorrow, at least of the worst case hen…
I first discovered it last night on my most severe hen, and checking the rest tonight noticed it on two more. While searching for swollen areas and pictures of egg bound chickens, I came across info on ascites/waterbelly and some threads on here talking about internal hernias. The worst case has a ball basically the size of a baseball, quite squishy but holds its form, so I sort of ruled out water belly as it seems that that is more of a total swelling of the underbelly. I also don’t think they are egg bound as I have received eggs from all of them recently and the bulges are not hard. I assumed it was an internal hernia… but now I’m wondering about vent gleet. The worst case, we had to trim up her butt feathers a few months ago because a lot of poop got stuck in her feathers… she’s a Cochin, so quite fluffy. The vent is clear of feathers, but the bulge is very covered. The skin does not appear red, and none of the three hens have any sign of discharge. None are lethargic, they are all acting quite normally.
We are a butchering home, and all three were in the lineup of birds we were planning to butcher at the end of October. Are there any measures I should take to try and diagnose these issues further? Should I try to treat any of them? Does this issue seem familiar to anyone? I want to help these hens if we can to give them a good quality of life in their remaining months, but we are totally willing to cull them rather than continue to let them suffer in discomfort. I can try to get pictures tomorrow, at least of the worst case hen…
