Hen passed blood clot & weird egg membrane

[Sondraa]

Aww. She is very fortunate. I love to see people who really love their animals. What is her name? Would you mind sharing a picture? I have never heard of implant option. I am going to look that up.

 

[Tailwise]

Her name is Pluisje ('little fuzzy' in Dutch, my native language). She's my favorite; she doesn't really like other chickens but loves spending time with me. I didn't know there were chickens who like to snuggle until I got her - she likes to crawl behind my neck and stretch herself out like she's sunbathing if she gets the chance.

The implant is called suprelorin. It releases hormones that temporarily halt the reproductive cycle. Some chickens with major reproductive issues get them for life (they have to be replaced about every six months) to stop them from laying eggs, such as in cases where they suffer from internal laying. They can also be helpful as a temporary measure to let a chicken recover after something like salpingitis.

I'm very lucky to have access to some really fantastic avian vets who try to think in solutions. If it wasn't Christmas I would have already gone to one of them instead of posting. They have taught me a lot of things the internet would tell you are unfixable in chickens might not always be. Hell, at one point one of the avian specialists actually got one of my hens into chemotherapy. It didn't work, ultimately, but I'm grateful she got the chance.

Anyway, here's Pluisje.

 

[Sondraa]

Aww. She's adorable!! I understand now...only no access because of timing. Got it. And the implant is birth control for chickens. Fascinating. You mentioned chemo...did one of your ladies have cancer or was it an experimental treatment for something else?

 

[Tailwise]

One of my girls developed a lymphoma in her leg that caused her to start limping. By the time the vet finally figured out what it was, it had already spread to her organs. The vet happened to have contacts within an animal hospital that does a lot of cancer research, so they agreed to try chemotherapy treatment. It was heartbreaking but also fascinating.

 

[Tailwise]

If you want to know more about her, I tried to detail it all here back then.

 

[Sondraa]

If you want to know more about her, I tried to detail it all here back then.

Thanks. I will take a look.

 

[Tailwise]

She has now laid a second normal, hard-shelled egg. Honestly a little closer to the previous one than I've seen from her this cycle. (I will stop reporting on this now unless something unusual happens.)

 

[Wyorp Rock]

She has now laid a second normal, hard-shelled egg. Honestly a little closer to the previous one than I've seen from her this cycle. (I will stop reporting on this now unless something unusual happens.)

This is good news!

Glad to hear she's doing well. Thank you for the update.

 

[Sondraa]

She has now laid a second normal, hard-shelled egg. Honestly a little closer to the previous one than I've seen from her this cycle. (I will stop reporting on this now unless something unusual happens.)

Before you stop...can you just clarify what you did that you think worked?

 

[Sondraa]

I am raising ducks again. I thought once they were older and settled into a routine that I would incubate chickens. I am a bit scared to after ready everything that can and does go wrong.