Hen laying every 7-10 days HUUUUUGE eggs

[azygous]

Where is the egg? Is it within touch of your finger?

There is no cecal poop because the ceca are blocked by the egg. While no one could possibly yearn for that smelly, improbably durable staining puddles of vile malevolence, the ceca are crucial for distributing fluids to the tissues. So, your hen is at risk of dehydration.

Dehydration further complicates the situation because dry tissues are not as flexible, and this could be drawing out this crisis. It may be time for a vet.

Meanwhile. You need to try to get her hydrated. From both ends. I would tube fluids at this point. Can you get some plastic tubing, oxygen tubing, aquarium tubing? And a feeding syringe to fit it? This is something I urge you to try to obtain. You can get tubing kits from a vet or make your own. I made a kit from discarded oxygen tubing a friend gave me, then found a syringe to fit.

That's the top half. To hydrate the lower part, you need warm water and a smaller syringe. You want to slip only the tip of the syringe inside the cloaca and squirt the warm water just inside to hydrate those tissues. Do this at frequent intervals, maybe each hour. This is not an enema. We don't want to force fecal material up into the oviduct, just moisten the tissues just inside.

 

[IndigoAngel]

The egg is literally just a fingertip in, no more than (and I think less than) an inch. I do have O2 tubing that I kept for just this type of situation and may even have the odd syringe that will fit it, as well as one that will work for lower hydration. What are we talking re: amounts of fluids at one time?

 

[azygous]

Have you tube fed before? It's simple and pretty fool proof. Here's a diagram where to put the tube in. You want to put a fourth of a cup of water with electrolytes in at a time. Then again in an hour.

 

[IndigoAngel]

I cannot thank you enough for your help!
I did try drenching but I have not been able to get much down her; even with another set of hands this girl is feisty. She has very healthy poops; when i give her a little rinse, she gives me a veritable shower of poo. As she is still drinking on her own, would it harm the rest of the harem if I put electrolytes in all the water? I plan to do so this week as it is supposed to be hotter than blue blazes, but is there harm in starting now?
I underestimated the position of the egg; it is nearly 1.5" in and I cannot actually touch the egg due to a film of tissue between finger and egg.

 

[azygous]

You can give everyone electrolytes for a few days.

The emergency procedure for an intact egg being stuck for days is to poke a hole in the egg with the tip of a syringe and then to suck out the egg contents. This is a very risky procedure best done by a vet who has done it before. The shell will then collapse, but there's no guarantee it will be any easier for her to push out.

If things get critical, though, the hen declining with exhaustion, you might be more willing to risk it. I don't feel comfortable advising you to do this. I prefer you find a vet to do it.

 

[IndigoAngel]

The emergency procedure for an intact egg being stuck for days is to poke a hole in the egg with the tip of a syringe and then to suck out the egg contents. This is a very risky procedure best done by a vet who has done it before. The shell will then collapse, but there's no guarantee it will be any easier for her to push out.

If things get critical, though, the hen declining with exhaustion, you might be more willing to risk it. I don't feel comfortable advising you to do this. I prefer you find a vet to do it.

I was reading some papers from a veterinary site yesterday that were describing this procedure and I definitely do not feel comfortable doing this. That said, I cannot find a poultry vet anywhere remotely near me (as I myself am somewhat remotely located). I had a problem with a hen before and my vet said that she has very little experience with chickens but she was willing to give it a shot (that hen passed before I could even think about getting her there). I'm not sure that is a better option than doing it myself.
I will try to get a video of my Raven so you can get eyes on her; I tell you she is acting so normal that I've started to wonder if she isn't secretly laying and eating her eggs!

 

[azygous]

That's good news she is still behaving normally. That tells us almost everything we need to know about how critical she might be. Often, what kills a hen in a situation such as this is the poop gets backed up because the egg blocks it. It sounds like the egg is back up the oviduct far enough to allow the poop to get by. That alone buys your hen time, and it's a blessing.

So you can take your time and figure out the best way to resolve this. A vet's help would really be useful.

 

[IndigoAngel]

I got the name of a vet that might be experienced with poultry; calling in the morning.
My gal went into a nesting box tonight and I got all excited but nothing happened. I'm still bathing and giving the calcium, hydrating both ends. Praying this vet can see her and help without breaking the bank

 

[azygous]

I hope this works out. It's been going on way too long, and it's a miracle she's held on without going into crisis mode.

 

[IndigoAngel]

Well, my last hope for a vet was a bust. It would appear that the general attitude is "it's just a chicken; euthanize her and get another one".
Today is the first day that she has shown signs of distress. She did not come out of the coop with the others; just stood in the doorway looking out. I am so sad. I honestly do not think she can get that egg to move.