Lucy seemed like herself this morning when I was cleaning, but this afternoon when I let her and the others free-range in our backyard I noticed she was standing very still, eyes mostly closed, and when I picked her up she didn't protest at all; I found a small amount of blood coming from her vent. I cleaned her up and checked her over - she was content to be held and closed her eyes; not like herself at all. When I finally put her down she was very still; I wound up putting her on the roost to keep her away from the other 3 hens. Here's the particulars:
1) What type of bird , age and weight. - BR, 1 1/2 years; normal? weight
2) What is the behavior, exactly. lethargic; very still; standing erect with tail up; vent pulsing
3) How long has the bird been exhibiting symptoms? I only noticed late this afternoon
4) Is there any bleeding, injury, broken bones or other sign of trauma. Small amount of blood from vent, followed by clear discharge
5) What happened, if anything that you know of, that may have caused the situation. She has been laying thin-shelled eggs on and off
6) What has the bird been eating and drinking, if at all. layer pellets; free choice oyster shell; mixed greens & vegs
7) How does the poop look? Normal? Bloody? Runny? etc. don't know - I haven't seen her poop since I discovered this
8) What has been the treatment you have administered so far? I washed the area around her vent (there were a bunch of fresh blood clots caught in the feathers)
9 ) What is your intent as far as treatment? For example, do you want to treat completely yourself, or do you need help in stabilizing the bird til you can get to a vet? I'd prefer to treat her myself if I can (depending on what needs to be done)
10) If you have a picture of the wound or condition, please post it. It may help. too late in the day to get any photos
11) Describe the housing/bedding in use fresh pine shavings in the house; sand in the run
My suspicion is that an egg broke inside her - but I think this is a first occurrence - is she likely to recover on her own? I don't know what more I can do to get her to consume enough calcium since there's already plenty of oyster shell along with the layer feed - the other 3 hens have been laying eggs with normal shells.
Hope someone can offer some insight - I hate the thought that she's in pain . . .
1) What type of bird , age and weight. - BR, 1 1/2 years; normal? weight
2) What is the behavior, exactly. lethargic; very still; standing erect with tail up; vent pulsing
3) How long has the bird been exhibiting symptoms? I only noticed late this afternoon
4) Is there any bleeding, injury, broken bones or other sign of trauma. Small amount of blood from vent, followed by clear discharge
5) What happened, if anything that you know of, that may have caused the situation. She has been laying thin-shelled eggs on and off
6) What has the bird been eating and drinking, if at all. layer pellets; free choice oyster shell; mixed greens & vegs
7) How does the poop look? Normal? Bloody? Runny? etc. don't know - I haven't seen her poop since I discovered this
8) What has been the treatment you have administered so far? I washed the area around her vent (there were a bunch of fresh blood clots caught in the feathers)
9 ) What is your intent as far as treatment? For example, do you want to treat completely yourself, or do you need help in stabilizing the bird til you can get to a vet? I'd prefer to treat her myself if I can (depending on what needs to be done)
10) If you have a picture of the wound or condition, please post it. It may help. too late in the day to get any photos
11) Describe the housing/bedding in use fresh pine shavings in the house; sand in the run
My suspicion is that an egg broke inside her - but I think this is a first occurrence - is she likely to recover on her own? I don't know what more I can do to get her to consume enough calcium since there's already plenty of oyster shell along with the layer feed - the other 3 hens have been laying eggs with normal shells.
Hope someone can offer some insight - I hate the thought that she's in pain . . .
