Help please! My hen has a large hole under vent, no signs of flystrike.

[Lillith37]

One of my hens has a bulge beneath her vent. It’s not the usually squishiness you feel there, it’s a definitive ball shaped bulge. It fluctuates from being small like a golf ball to as big as a cricket ball. It causes her no problems except that I have to trim her feathers a little to keep her clean down there. I’ve scoured the internet and these forums and also talked to a vet. It’s not an uncommon phenomena and a lot of people don’t notice because the feathers usually hide it. One of the things it could be is a hernia. People have reported having chickens with these bulges and it being fine and then one day finding the chicken with the bulge exploded and the guts visible. I’m wondering if that’s perhaps something similar has happened with your hen.

 

[SmiYa0126]

I wasn’t sure about the fecal matter in the wound until this morning. After her soak I let her wander around the yard a little to scratch and peck and be a chicken. She tried to jump up on a golf cart and didn’t quite make it. That caused her wound to hit against the golf cart and it EXPLODED with fecal matter. Now the middle of the wound has a constant leak of feces. She has been pooping from her vent but it’s clear mucus with yellow solids in it. Maybe that’s coming from her reproductive tract but she drops it as she’s walking around, just like it was poop.

I gave her the fishmox on some sardines and she ate it up. When I went out this afternoon she was standing over the food dish eating, which I haven’t been seeing.

Now, because her intestines are compromised does that mean she’ll not be able to recover? I’m happy to fight for her but I don’t want her to go through all of the treatments only to lose in the end. It just seems pretty terminal to me.

If she stops eating I would consider it, but if she still fighting I would help her, but that's just me. Whatever you decide to do isn't a wrong decision. This is so hard

 

[Smokey And Me]

Hey SmiYa0126, I am totally with you on that. I have a chicken that had a heart attack, severe water belly, and lost all her weight except for maybe 15 ounces. I thought she was going to die. She kept eating, so I kept feeding her. He comb had turned page white, and he waddles were like white thin chips, and her face so gaunt that she was sharp. I gave her anything she would eat. Pasta, beans, scrambled eggs. I had to keep her in the house during the hot days. I drain the water out of her belly every month or so, and she is a perfectly happy (and fat) hen, running around living the dream. Wow...I am still amazed she survived.

 

[azygous]

This doesn't look good. The fecal matter exploding from this wound could mean a perforated bowel. When that happens to a human, peritonitis develops and it's extremely difficult to treat. A lot of people don't survive it, even with hospital care and surgery.

Unless you have an avian vet who could see the hen and you have the means to afford it, I don't see how you can do any more than what you are already doing.

The antibiotic sounds like it's already working. Keep it up. You can easily push the pill into her beak and she will swallow. Giving the whole pill insures she gets the full dose. But the sardines do get some nourishment into her.

Prepare yourself for her to improve at first but be ready if she suddenly takes a turn for the worse. If that happens, then I would suggest it's time to euthanize.

 

[SmiYa0126]

Hey SmiYa0126, I am totally with you on that. I have a chicken that had a heart attack, severe water belly, and lost all her weight except for maybe 15 ounces. I thought she was going to die. She kept eating, so I kept feeding her. He comb had turned page white, and he waddles were like white thin chips, and her face so gaunt that she was sharp. I gave her anything she would eat. Pasta, beans, scrambled eggs. I had to keep her in the house during the hot days. I drain the water out of her belly every month or so, and she is a perfectly happy (and fat) hen, running around living the dream. Wow...I am still amazed she survived.

They're resilient! What a sweet story

 

[Chicksofthepines]

This doesn't look good. The fecal matter exploding from this wound could mean a perforated bowel. When that happens to a human, peritonitis develops and it's extremely difficult to treat. A lot of people don't survive it, even with hospital care and surgery.

Unless you have an avian vet who could see the hen and you have the means to afford it, I don't see how you can do any more than what you are already doing.

The antibiotic sounds like it's already working. Keep it up. You can easily push the pill into her beak and she will swallow. Giving the whole pill insures she gets the full dose. But the sardines do get some nourishment into her.

Prepare yourself for her to improve at first but be ready if she suddenly takes a turn for the worse. If that happens, then I would suggest it's time to euthanize.

Thank you for giving it to me straight. I’ve had chickens for over 6 years and have lost many. I still have a really hard time caring for a sick chicken and having to be the one to say when enough is enough. If she takes a turn I’ll know what to do.

 

[Mrs Chicken Keep]

Hello, I realize this post is over a week old now and perhaps I’m chiming in too late, but I wanted to share my experience because it’s very similar to yours. About two months ago my three year old buff Orpington had a very similar looking lesion close to her vent on her stomach. She had lost a significant amount of weight, which I hadn’t noticed because of all of her feathers. I discovered this on a Thursday evening, and was unable to get her into a vet until the following week I gave her daily Epson salt baths and antibiotics I purchased from Tractor Supply through the weekend. Thankfully, I was able to get her into see a farm vet with an avian specialist on Monday. The vet said I had done all the right things, but it wasn’t what she needed because the lesion was likely cancer and while the antibiotics might help the infected area, it would not treat the underlying cause. The vet said she would probably live another 2 to 3 weeks maximum because of her significant weight loss. It was heartbreaking, but I chose to have her euthanized. RIP my sweet Maybelle.

The vet told me that many chickens live long lives of 8 to 10 years or more, but those who are prone to cancer usually die between ages 2-3 three years old. When I saw your post that your hen is a lavender Orpington with a very similar clinical presentation, I just wanted to share what I had learned. I hope this wasn’t the case for you, and that your hen recovered. It’s amazing how much we can love our sweet chickens.

 

[BabesDucks]

Thank you all! I have her separated from the flock in a rabbit cage, she is under a shelter away from the blazing sun and has a fan on her for comfort and to keep the flies away. I will soak her longer tomorrow, I’ve been doing 20 minutes and she seems to enjoy it. She’s not eating but still has a lot of vigor. I’m hoping she has enough fight to make it.

I’m no expert in m chickens but I am an expert on human wounds. This looks like it was possible an ebscess at one time? Either way it’s definitely an infection and the Epsom salt baths are great. I would also get chlorhexadine (off Amazon). Dilute it in water and spray it in her after her baths. It kills everything. Humans use it as a surgical scrub. I would dilute 10:1 water to chlorhexadine to start. Try it for at least 3 days and see if there is any improvement. If not, go another 3-5 days but I think you’ll see a change. A veterinarian would be the best option but o realize that’s not an option for everyone. Best of luck and please keep me posted!!!!

 

[BabesDucks]

Hello, I realize this post is over a week old now and perhaps I’m chiming in too late, but I wanted to share my experience because it’s very similar to yours. About two months ago my three year old buff Orpington had a very similar looking lesion close to her vent on her stomach. She had lost a significant amount of weight, which I hadn’t noticed because of all of her feathers. I discovered this on a Thursday evening, and was unable to get her into a vet until the following week I gave her daily Epson salt baths and antibiotics I purchased from Tractor Supply through the weekend. Thankfully, I was able to get her into see a farm vet with an avian specialist on Monday. The vet said I had done all the right things, but it wasn’t what she needed because the lesion was likely cancer and while the antibiotics might help the infected area, it would not treat the underlying cause. The vet said she would probably live another 2 to 3 weeks maximum because of her significant weight loss. It was heartbreaking, but I chose to have her euthanized. RIP my sweet Maybelle.

The vet told me that many chickens live long lives of 8 to 10 years or more, but those who are prone to cancer usually die between ages 2-3 three years old. When I saw your post that your hen is a lavender Orpington with a very similar clinical presentation, I just wanted to share what I had learned. I hope this wasn’t the case for you, and that your hen recovered. It’s amazing how much we can love our sweet chickens.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

@Chicksofthepines can you give an update?