BuddingGardener
Songster
I’ve been hyperfixating and spiraling a little and would like … I don’t know, some reassurance that I’m approaching this the right way ahead of our veterinary follow up on Monday evening. I have a 3.5 year old black australorp hen (named Betsy), sweet as can be. She is a true cuddle chicken. However, she has a track record of laying difficulties during the transition between going in and out of lay for molting. In her entire life she has only gone through one transition infection-free; for the rest she has needed bactrim/smz-tmp antibiotics to clear up her reproductive infections. Her symptoms would be lethargy, blood in droppings, and bleeding with egg laying. Veterinary diagnoses were assumed early salpingitis, and I had been warned with each occurrence that it is highly likely to keep happening.
A couple of weeks ago she started showing signs of funky egg laying for her transition out of lay. At first it was tiny yolkless fairy eggs with a normal shell and she was passing them just fine. This transitioned to soft shelled eggs without a yolk, then deflated membranes full of whites in the shape of her oviduct. With the last instance, I noticed that she was refusing to eat much at all and started acting a little bit sedate, so I called a vet. I wanted her checked out ASAP since I knew she had a history of infection.
At her appointment last Thursday I was informed that her oviduct was definitely inflamed and the vet could feel a possible yolk deposited in her abdomen. We were given a course of smz-tmp again for seven days twice a day along with meloxicam. She seemed to be improving and returning to her normal self, clucking happily, active, and seeking affection. That changed Wednesday morning.
In her tray I spotted dropping with off-color urates, a bit of a yellow tint. Throughout the day I noticed she was still active but a little more subdued than normal; she ate less vigorously than normal too. I contacted her vet and he suggested a recheck, so I called and made the appointment as soon as possible — Monday evening.
Here are my concerns.
I was told at our Thursday appointment that the antibiotics may stop working for her since she is a breed with a higher rate of production and these problems tend to recur. When they stop working well, my options are limited. I could perform oviduct removal surgery but I understand that is incredibly risky for a weak hen, and I’m not feeling optimistic about her chances of a full recovery if she can make it through the spay. I asked about the hormone implant to stop laying and I was told that there is no way for chickens to receive the implant anymore and it is illegal to use. I know there’s Lupron injections but those costs rack up and they are not a guarantee that her yolk release will stop.
Is it giving up on my adorable, lovely, amazing girl to consider that we may need to euthanize her if this is our only option? Am I getting ahead of myself?
Truly I’m worried that the risks of this kind of surgery outweigh the benefits and I know recovery is very difficult. I could hope that there is another, less invasive way to treat her, but for now I’m spoiling her as much as possible and trying to keep her happy over the weekend ahead of the appointment; we finished her antibiotic course and she’s not as improved at the end of them as I would have liked. She's still eating and willing to be active, but she definitely slows down for extended periods during the day, opting to rest rather than forage. Her abdomen also feels full and distended.
I’m deeply sad about this and would like to hear any opinions, thoughts, or encouragement about this case.
I’ve attached photos of my Betsy girl and her droppings from the other night — the yellow tint is subtle but there, like a mucus coating, and there’s a tiny bit of blood on the underside. This morning her droppings were scarce and greasy, quite mucusy.
A couple of weeks ago she started showing signs of funky egg laying for her transition out of lay. At first it was tiny yolkless fairy eggs with a normal shell and she was passing them just fine. This transitioned to soft shelled eggs without a yolk, then deflated membranes full of whites in the shape of her oviduct. With the last instance, I noticed that she was refusing to eat much at all and started acting a little bit sedate, so I called a vet. I wanted her checked out ASAP since I knew she had a history of infection.
At her appointment last Thursday I was informed that her oviduct was definitely inflamed and the vet could feel a possible yolk deposited in her abdomen. We were given a course of smz-tmp again for seven days twice a day along with meloxicam. She seemed to be improving and returning to her normal self, clucking happily, active, and seeking affection. That changed Wednesday morning.
In her tray I spotted dropping with off-color urates, a bit of a yellow tint. Throughout the day I noticed she was still active but a little more subdued than normal; she ate less vigorously than normal too. I contacted her vet and he suggested a recheck, so I called and made the appointment as soon as possible — Monday evening.
Here are my concerns.
I was told at our Thursday appointment that the antibiotics may stop working for her since she is a breed with a higher rate of production and these problems tend to recur. When they stop working well, my options are limited. I could perform oviduct removal surgery but I understand that is incredibly risky for a weak hen, and I’m not feeling optimistic about her chances of a full recovery if she can make it through the spay. I asked about the hormone implant to stop laying and I was told that there is no way for chickens to receive the implant anymore and it is illegal to use. I know there’s Lupron injections but those costs rack up and they are not a guarantee that her yolk release will stop.
Is it giving up on my adorable, lovely, amazing girl to consider that we may need to euthanize her if this is our only option? Am I getting ahead of myself?
Truly I’m worried that the risks of this kind of surgery outweigh the benefits and I know recovery is very difficult. I could hope that there is another, less invasive way to treat her, but for now I’m spoiling her as much as possible and trying to keep her happy over the weekend ahead of the appointment; we finished her antibiotic course and she’s not as improved at the end of them as I would have liked. She's still eating and willing to be active, but she definitely slows down for extended periods during the day, opting to rest rather than forage. Her abdomen also feels full and distended.
I’m deeply sad about this and would like to hear any opinions, thoughts, or encouragement about this case.
I’ve attached photos of my Betsy girl and her droppings from the other night — the yellow tint is subtle but there, like a mucus coating, and there’s a tiny bit of blood on the underside. This morning her droppings were scarce and greasy, quite mucusy.
