Hen not eating since Suprelorin implant

[Kneedles]

One of my hens (a five-year-old black sex link) had a Suprelorin implant almost two weeks ago, because an x-ray by a vet revealed that the hen has a calcified lump inside her oviduct. The implant was necessary to prevent the hen from laying any more.
I was given ten Carprieve pills for pain relief and to prevent inflammation caused by the implant. I gave the hen one of these pills every day for ten days, and now I have run out of these pills.
The hen is not wilfully eating anything at the moment; not even raw eggs, which are usually irresistible to her. She is also lethargic and will not move much unless pressed.
I have had to force balls of brown bread down her throat, washed down with Pedialyte, which obviously isn't ideal.
Has anyone else here had a similar experience with a hen that received a hormone implant? What should I do?

 

[getaclue]

What were you feeding during that month? To be honest, when you said the x-ray revealed a calcified lump inside her oviduct, I almost asked if it could be a lash egg, and the hen might have salpingitis. Antibiotics sometimes help, with salpingitis.

As a general rule, sex links are bred for production. They are fantastic layers for 2-3 years, usually laying on a daily basis. Once laying slows down, more often than not, problems begin. While many breeds, especially heritage breeds, don't lay as much, they tend to have less problems when they slow down, and on a whole, tend to live longer. A 5 year old sex link is a testament to your good treatment of your birds.

 

[Eggcessive]

I am not sure that I can offer much help, since reproductive disorders are eventually terminal, and crop disorders can accompany them. But since you have been using antibiotics, I would make sure to give some buttermilk, plain yogurt with cultures, or other probiotics. Also vitamin B complex tablets for humans can be ground or crushed into feed, and they can sometimes help appetite.

 

[Kneedles]

The hen has a small ball of food in her crop this afternoon. Her crop was empty yesterday evening, so she is possibly starting to eat normally again.
I gave her about 25ml of kefir and half of a Go B Complex pill. I also have buttermilk on hand now.

 

[getaclue]

You might try pureed baby food. Choose a meat one, and mix with a jar of the sweet potato one. You can put that in a dosage syringe, and feed. Hold the head tilting it a little upward, squeeze a little food in, then relax the head, so the chicken can swallow. Repeat several times, and multiple times throughout the day. When facing the chicken, hold the dosage syringe to the left side of the chicken's mouth. Reverse that to the right side, if you are not facing the chicken. Do NOT get any down the center hole, as it is the air passage.

 

[aart]

She said to feed the hen less baby food and to watch whether that will encourage the hen to start eating normally again

That was my thought also.

 

[azygous]

Vitamins B are all water soluble, therefore they do not accumulate in the fat tissue of the body as some others do. You cannot overdose as the excess is excreted by the kidneys. On the flip side, you need to dose every day and not skip doses and not decrease doses in order for the B-complex to be of benefit.

That said, my practice is to use the entire B tablet, no matter the strength, and pop the tablet directly into the beak of the patient. The advantage of direct dosing over dissolving in food or water is that many chickens object to the taste and they don't get the full advantage of the vitamin. After improvement is achieved, you may discontinue the vitamin.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

@azygous @Wyorp Rock Do you guys know the vitamin b complex dose in case eggcessive is away?

Everyone will likely recommend a little different as you can see from the post @azygous just made.
I have not read the whole thread, so will focus more on your question, I did look at the OP's first line or 2 and see it's a 5yr old BSL. That age, personally I would give 1/2 tablet human B-Complex or if using the liquid one for cattle, then 1ml a day.

 

[casportpony]

If one has a catheter tip syringe you can soak the pellets in hot water. Once good and mushy, I use a stick blender and that seems to work okay.

A less expensive option to the Harrison's is Kaytee Exact baby bird food which you can get at Petsmart, petco, and some Walmarts

 

[getaclue]

I'd start with 4-5 ml for the very first feeding. Wait a couple hours then repeat. See if that helps boost her appetite.