Large Black Growth on bottom, under vent

[Don't know]

Hi, I've got an Isa Brown (about a year old and been a really good layer) that has a large black growth on it's bottom underneath the vent.
The first thing we noticed was large amounts of faeces clumping around it's back. I just grabbed it while I was wearing some gloves and pulled it off. A few weeks later it walked past me and I noticed it's butt was red and had more faeces. I thought I should do something about it but didn't get round to it.
Yesterday found it sitting in front of the coop looking very close to death. It's comb is shrunken and lost colour. And it's lost a lot of weight. It DOESN"T seem to be wheezing or having any trouble breathing. And again I saw what I thought was faeces. On closer inspection it seemed to be coming from it's vent and I thought it was all caked up inside. I chucked it in a bucket of warm water to let it soak and after about twenty minutes pulled it out, laid it on it's side and started to try to get the faeces out. It was then that I realized it WASN"T in it's vent. It's a monstrous growth just underneath its vent.

In the photo's you can see it's vent just above the growth. And on the second photo you can see that there are other, smaller growths starting up further up its body.

I'm pretty sure we're going to lose this chook, and that's fine, but if it's contagious it might move to the others.

I THINK it's a cancerous growth but I need to know. If it's something else then I need to get to the other chickens and make sure they're alright. Checked online and found nothing like it anywhere.

So ANY help would be greatly appreciated.
- 1 year old
- lost a lot of weight, but still jumped on food when we offered it.
- Not sure if it's still laying, but I'd be surprised given how weak it is
- Not wheezing, or having trouble breathing
- Faeces seems to be alright, little green, but not bright, and they're free-range and eat a lot of grass so I'm not TOO worried about that

Thanks a heap for any help you can offer
-

 

[sunflour]

IMO looks like Gangrenous Dermatitis - I would isolate her where you can keep a close eye on her and examine your others to be sure they are not infected, try broad spectrum antibiotics and TLC. I don't know the antibiotics best for this but hopefully someone will show up with specific advice for those.

I doubt neoplasm, cancers don't usually move this fast - but if so, there's nothing you can do about that.

So sorry about your gal, hope you find a way to save her

 

[Boonie Stomper]

One thin you can try that won't hurt and not expensive is turmeric. Can get bagged ground turmeric cheapest at Mediterranean type grocers.
1 tablespoon daily (mix in some mash or cooked cereal or yogurt)
Give 7 days.
I have witnessed tumors / growths on skin fall off with this.
Hamster and myself. Why not chicken too?

 

[Eggcessive]

I would consider putting her down.It looks like either a tumor has eaten through the skin, or a wound that has become infected and abscessed. I am not sure that you can help her yourself. You could try warm soaks in Epsom salts to try and wash away any gunk to get a better look at what is going on there. She may be in a lot of pain, so I would try to end her suffering since the wound or tumor looks so bad. I will follow this threa.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I would consider putting her down.It looks like either a tumor has eaten through the skin, or a wound that has become infected and abscessed. I am not sure that you can help her yourself. You could try warm soaks in Epsom salts to try and wash away any gunk to get a better look at what is going on there. She may be in a lot of pain, so I would try to end her suffering since the wound or tumor looks so bad. I will follow this threa.

I agree.

 

[Don't know]

Thanks for all your replies.
We're going to take her to the Vet, just waiting for it to open. I feel a bit ridiculous taking a chook to the vet but I want to know what this is and if I have to do anything about the others. Probably going to put her down either way, the wound is split and who knows what bacteria's got in there, but I guess we'll wait and see. Be nice to see her come good, but I'm not holding my breath.

I thought of Gangrenous Dermatitis but it just doesn't seem right. The lump is quite hard and there's no mucous or anything.

As for the tumeric I'll keep it in mind. It might be too late for this one but if, in the future, I find any others it's certainly worth a shot. Thanks

 

[Eggcessive]

Let us know what the vet thinks.

 

[Don't know]

Alright! Update, ....of sorts....

2 vets in town. First one told me he "Doesn't really do birds" and recommended seeing the other guy. The other guy only comes through town one day a week and that day is next Wednesday. Next closest is over an hours drive away.

I decided that it was too long to wait (she's having ragged breathing by now) so this morning I went out and bopped her on the head. Felt bad (I'm a guy who gave up fishing because he couldn't kill the fish! And then went vegetarian!) but waiting til next wednesday is just too long for a bird that's probably not going to come good anyway.

Today's task is to check all the other chooks over thoroughly (dust 'em while they're upside down) and then clean out the cage and drench it in disinfectant/fungicide for good measure.

I think that's a bit of overkill but better safe than sorry.

I looked her over after the job was done and I'm still pretty certain it's a cancer (that's one military grade cancer if it is!). Besides the black lump (which was smelling rotten by now) she had the other smaller growths going further up her underparts that you can see in the second photo, none of them are broken through. But she also had lump underneath the skin on her chest that ran alongside her chestbone and was the size of half a mango seed if you sliced it clean down the middle. Pretty decent size lump. This was completely under her skin and hung lower than her chest. Quite firm. So I'm still thinking it was just a really super aggressive cancer. It doesn't explain the poop on her tail at the very start but maybe she was just having trouble bending to the right angle to clear her feathers or maybe she was, for want of a better word, dribbling....Yum!

I'm sorry to anyone interested that I can't give a better explanation of what exactly we're looking at here. I just didn't want to wait for the vet.

I'll advise if I find it on any of the other chooks (and maybe THEY'LL get the trip to the vet on Wednesday).

Thanks for all your replies and help. Hopefull I won't have to come back with the NEXT chook that's got it.

One thin you can try that won't hurt and not expensive is turmeric.

P.S. That Turmeric comment from Boonie Stomper is fascinating. I've been googling it and seems there's quite a bit of academic research to back it up. That's one for the "Back of the Mind". Thanks!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry about your hen, but I feel you did the right thing. I know it's hard to let them go, but to end suffering is an act of kindness.

Thank you for sharing with us what you saw. I hope this was limited to just this girl and the rest of your flock remains happy and healthy.

 

[Boonie Stomper]

re turmeric i have direct evidence. But as my dear sweet grandmother always supported, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure