Is this vent gleet? (warning: pretty groddy picture)

[casportpony]

I better knock on wood then!

Do you vaccinate yearly now?

No I don't... way too many birds and it's not worth the hassle.

-Kathy

 

[brettzim]

Thank you for the prompt feedback. I forgot to mention - I did check internally for broken eggs and didn't feel anything. I can check again to be certain though. I may be able to get her into the vet but I don't have a poultry-specific vet here so in the past it's been guesses pretty similar to what I've been able to gather through knowledgeable people on forums. I do have antibiotics on hand that I can give her. I did notice it was quite red below her vent - it looks very inflamed. I palpated it after soaking her and didn't feel anything hard or any sort of masses.

 

[casportpony]

What antibiotics do you have?

-Kathy

 

[brettzim]

amoxicillin, tylan 50, bio-mycin 200, cephalexin, tetracycline hydrochloride, terramyacin, sulmet. I also have nolvasan, betadine and quartermaster for topical application.

 

[casportpony]

amoxicillin, tylan 50, bio-mycin 200, cephalexin, tetracycline hydrochloride, terramyacin, sulmet. I also have nolvasan, betadine and quartermaster for topical application.

You might wan to start by removing the pus and seeing if it extends into her vent. For cleaning I like nolvasan the best. Antibiotics? Hmmm, not sure what I would try first, maybe the amoxicillin at 125mg per 2.2 pounds twice a day?

-Kathy

 

[rancher hicks]

My hens are relatively self sufficient. I feel bad for not catching this sooner but we snagged a couple gals to put into a chicken tractor to do some tilling. When we were carrying one over we noticed she smelled terrible - like rotten terrible. So I turned her over and she has yellow crust/ooze on her vent. I soaked her in epsom salts and then snapped a couple pictures to get help IDing the problem. From what I have read this could likely be vent gleet. But, I don't want to avoid antibiotics if it's a bacterial infection and I don't want to give them if its fungal. Also, this is post butt-soaking so that's why her feathers are super special. Thanks for your help. And, any suggestions on how to deal with this are greatly appreciated. I already give my flock apple cider vinegar in their water and recently did an epsom flush for everyone when I switched them to a new coop/area (my old coop had mold in it that I worried was impacting their health).

Well now here's one thing I hear alot. I give them ACV in the water. ALL the time. ACV organic isn't something you put in the water all the time. On occasion is okay. Organic is best.

I will ask what are you feeding them? Just feed or other things. Like you if you eat lots of prunes you're going to be running.

Chickens need a balanced diet. Over do the greens, corn, scratch, pasta and they're going to get sick.

I would, one back off on anything but commercial feed and water. No ACV. Check them and the coop for mites. I'm not familiar with Epsom Salt flushes. Don't do anything unless you know what you're doing. Some of the treatments being advised here are quackers. I've read plenty in periodicals and books and some of the stuff being recommended here is crazy. You don't know the folks who come on here. They might be nutters.

As for the Vet advice? Don't take your chickens to a vet unless they are certified in Avian treatments. You'll just be wasting your money. Unless of course you're rich or have money to throw away. Some vets are strictly Cat and Dog.

Do you know I've a book in which it mentions old time treatments and one is to squirt kerosene down the birds nostrils? If you wouldn't give yourself an Olive oil enema, something someone asked about here, don't do it to your chickens. The public library is a great place to find resources on poultry and livestock. Subscribe to magazines about poultry. For $19 a year you'll learn a lot. My favorite is Practical Poultry though it is expensive.

I wish you well,

Rancher

 

[casportpony]

Any cat/dog/horse/cow/sheep vet could do a smear and see if it's bacteria, fungal or something like canker.

-Kathy

 

[rancher hicks]

Any cat/dog/horse/cow/sheep vet could do a smear and see if it's bacteria, fungal or something like canker.

-Kathy

Well it won't be much help if they don't know how to treat it!

 

[casportpony]

Quote: But they will know how to treat it, 'cause it doesn't matter what type of vet they are, they *will* know how to treat the different types of infections (gram negative, gram positive, yeast or even something like trichomoniasis, aka canker). They all have books that they can refer to, right

?

-Kathy

-Kathy

 

[brettzim]

My chickens don't have a very complicated diet - it's all purpose poultry feed (currently have youngsters in the mix so holding off on layer feed until they are of age) and access to oyster shells and clean water. I recently moved them from a run to a pasture but the pasture is pretty much dead right now so there isn't a lot of fresh greens (and the move was after I noticed this hen's illness). We feed veggie scraps as they are available but not in huge quantities. I give ACV in the water maybe once a week. The epsom salt was because I was concerned I had a fungal problem due to the mold in the coop. The gals were given epsom salt in a mash and then probiotics afterwards.

Regarding the amoxicillin - do you know what the dosing is for a hen? I've tried to look on the vet sources I have bookmarked but I'm unclear as the delivery form. I have access to 500mg pills that were perscribed for my dog (I keep all unused drugs in case of emergencies) and I have 250mg liquid amoxicillin that we give to our cat. Not sure how to adjust for dosing poultry compared to mammals but the cat is about twice her weight and gets .75mg.