Help! My Silkie is acting strange... Are these Egg Bound symptoms?

[upmycreek]

I have a black silkie that acted very strange today. She would walk three steps and then lay down. I was throwing out treats to the flock (12 hens) and she was with them but she was laying down while she ate. Then tonight she couldn't get up the ramp to roost with the other hens. She barely got to the first step and just sat there flayling her wings as if she didn't know how to walk up the ramp. She's been walking up the ramp for months. She is just of age to lay eggs and her sister has been laying normal eggs for about a month. I checked her vent and it looks normal, but she is obviously not acting normal. I have only had chickens for about 7 months so I am new to any issues with hens when they begin laying for the first time. Any suggestions or maybe other problems that it could be. Thanks so much!

 

[upmycreek]

i did separated her and brought her inside tonight. I also soaked her bottom/vent in a warm bath. I am not an expert and just learned what and where the crop was last week... it felt semi-full tonight and she did drink a few sips of water while she was soaking and ate some freeze dried meal worms while she was drying. She doesn't seem to be able to walk well. She was walking just fine yesterday and had no problem running around. When she went up in the coop last night she was normal and didn't seem distressed in any way. She just sat in my lap on the couch while she was drying and just stared at the tv with me... we watched the Golden Girls.

I don't know what the vent is supposed to look like. here are two pictures that i tried to take after the bath.

 

[Dowie]

Her vent looks pretty normal to me. Hmmm. If you feel the abdomen, you should be able to determine if there is an egg stuck in there. DON'T under any circumstances try to poke around. Instead, put her in isolation for a little while and if there is something there she'll feel relaxed and safe enough to pass it. There's some excellent advice on this site - best advice is try not to get too freaked out and start poking inside the vent. You don't want to break the egg if she is egg bound.

You've done the best thing by giving her a warm bath.

Good luck!

 

[Knock Kneed Hen]

I'm new to chickens too so I can't help you with the egg bound question. I'd keep her separate from the others, warm and quiet. Hopefully someone will be able to give you some answers soon.

 

[JodyJo]

I lost a hen a few days ago, and have most likely figured it to be a broken egg inside her. She was acting weird also, wouldn't walk around, very lethargic...I hope your little one is ok, keep us posted.

 

[upmycreek]

Update:

Jemimah is worse today. She can't even stand now. She will try and walk and just flops on her face. I gave her a warm back today and tried to feel for an egg and couldn't feel anything. It did feel really warm inside when I did. Is that normal? I squirted 5cc of mineral oil in her last night and this morning. She has passed what appears to be normal looking stool. She will eat a little and drink a little. I dissolved tums and had her drink some of it. I also mixed up an olive oil layena crumble mixture which she ate tonight. How long does this last if she is egg bound? I am going to take her to the vet Monday if I can find one that sees parrots. How do I know if she is an internal layer? What are the signs?

 

[upmycreek]

Ok this is hard for me to even ask and I doubt that I will be able to do it, but is there a humane way to euthanize a chicken? I am really attached to this chicken, but I don't want her to suffer

I thought that having chickens was going to be fun, but this is not fun.

 

[the3ofus+oursixchicks]

Quote:
i am having problems also. my hen rosey finally started laying. her first egg was horrible. it didnt go through the shoot like it was supposed to it came out under her vent in its own sac and was hanging there. we had to take her to the vet to have it cut out. the same thing happened the next day. had to go back to the vet. now she is in the house limited to 4-6 hrs daylight a day. trying to break the egg cycle. i love this hen so much i have been tore to pieces since monday. i still dont know how it will be with her. i am so worried if she gets to much light she will try to lay and it will start all over again. and i hate she cant be outside all the time free ranging like she used to. its very hard right now. she is a wonderful girl. i sit down and she runs to jump in my lap and puts her head on my shoulder to rest. she looks straight at me like she knows how much i love her and understands what i say YEAH i know i m crazy. i am even checking into getting her spayed. i just read somewhere that the anestesis could kill a bird cause the way their respiratory system is set up. so what do i do its just a waiting period. maybe God wont let her lay anymore eggs

how wonderful that would be.

 

[Dowie]

Quote:
Hey, how's it going? The poor wee thing. There is a euthanising thread somewhere on here. I'd just take her to a vet, it's worth the money. Best of luck and so sorry the situation hasn't improved.