Laying hens with "water belly" or "ascites"?

[chicknmania]

When I was little, our neighbor had an old cat. He was on the TV show called "That's Incredible", because he lived to be 32 years old. He had failing kidneys and was always filling up with fluid. Our neighbor took him to the vet every couple of months, as I remember, to have him drained. Obviously, it paid off for him. Point being, it doesn't really hurt them to drain them repeatedly, and it can help them live a more or less normal life for a while. Bitsy seems to be doing fine, she's been going outside every day, to freerange. I'm still giving her the Milkthistle, once a day, and Zyfend every couple of months.

 

[Shabana]

Oh my gosh ! 32 !! That's amazing. It just shows you what can be achieved.
My motto is smile!!!.... While you still have teeth !

 

[chicknmania]

Oh my gosh ! 32 !! That's amazing. It just shows you what can be achieved.
My motto is smile!!!.... While you still have teeth !

 

[parlor93]

Goldie is 2years old she's funny and always busy and happy. I noticed she was walking strange. Later she was moving slower and slower. Walking deft and wider. Full molt at this time. I kept feeling her and she was soo tight. Last night I brought her inside and soaed her in a warm bath. She seemed to love it ,breathing very labored. Looked up all kinds of articles and found the acutis . Loked up the pictures on what to do before she exploded. Picked up a syringe at tsc today along with some antibotics. Came home put 3 punctures. Drew out loads of water. Color came back to her comb,it was turning purple, put her by herself with the antibiotic water. All day I checked her and water was dripping out. Amazing. Nightime, decided I would soak her in warm epsom bath, figured it would also cleanse the area. She loved it. Used the blow dryer, so she would not chill. Thought, maybe since she doesn't seem to have been eating well and I'm not sure how much antibiotic water she really drank. I made some oatmeal with the water,added maple syrup. She ate the whole serving. Crop was full and put her to bed nice and warm. We will see how she is in the morning. Goldie is a golden comet.

 

[Shabana]

Sorry to hear about goldie.
Sounds like you've done everything right for her.
Because ascites has an underlying cause like heart or liver problems for example , you will most likely find that the fluid will return over time.
I was prescribed frusol for my hen. She is a bantam and has 0.2ml every day. It might be called something else in the US. It works brilliantly and keeps all the fluid away completely.
Other people have had success with milk thistle everyday, dandelion root made into a tea, and zyfend.
You may have to drain her periodically with these though.

Hopefully she will feel loads better and relief from all that pressure.
Good luck and love to you both

 

[parlor93]

Sorry to hear about goldie.
Sounds like you've done everything right for her.
Because ascites has an underlying cause like heart or liver problems for example , you will most likely find that the fluid will return over time.
I was prescribed frusol for my hen. She is a bantam and has 0.2ml every day. It might be called something else in the US. It works brilliantly and keeps all the fluid away completely.
Other people have had success with milk thistle everyday, dandelion root made into a tea, and zyfend.
You may have to drain her periodically with these though.

Hopefully she will feel loads better and relief from all that pressure.
Good luck and love to you both

 

[parlor93]

So with your chicken taking frusol you haven't drained again? And does she move around a lot or just sit?

 

[Shabana]

Nope I've never had to drain her again and shes back to normal personality wise. When she was at her worst she just stood, immobile like a cowboy - feet apart and she felt so full. She had stopped eating, head and tail down. She was generally very ill and miserable. After I drained her it only took 2/3 weeks before the fluid started to return so I took her to the vet and they did me a 6 month repeated prescription and consultation for under £40. She's been on frusol now for the best part of six months and never looked back.

She's 8 so she's quite old but now you'll generally find her in the thick of things. She's remained high up in the pecking order and will sort out disputes and tell other younger hens off. She's quick off the blocks if there are treats on offer. She's as she was before all this started.
The frusol gets rid of the fluid completely and the vet said 0.1 to 0.3 ml. I started on 0.3 but dropped it to 0.2 and that seems to be fine for her. She's only a little sablepoot so she's pretty small. She lays about 2/3 eggs a week which we discard because of the medication.

They thought it might be related to her heart but to be honest I dont think they really know.
For her it's been well worth the cost. She is very used to her medicine and comes when called because she's not daft and knows there's a treat once she's taken it !
Hope this info helps and that your little lady is doing ok.

Best wishes x

 

[chickendreams24]

I was thinking my nearly six month old Isa Brown pullet/hen, Lily, might have this but now I'm not so sure. This is our first time with chickens and I'm not sure exactly what I'm looking for. She acts almost normal but I'm not sure she's been laying. Of course it had to be my favorite girl. She's pretty high on the pecking order and about a week or two ago had a slow crop for a day but massages worked that out. They free range all day so I think she got into something that didn't agree with her. On the second day after her slow crop she was completely normal. Anyway I saw her yesterday in the nest box for over an hour and she even changed nest boxes but never layed after four hours. We of course looked her over suspecting her egg bound and I felt nothing egg like but I did feel what I thought was a fluid filled abdomen. Not huge but there's definitely squishyness under her vent but this is our first possible illness and I'm an over protective Momma. Idk because when comparing her to my other Isa browns, we have three others, I almost feel a little squishy on them but not like hers. She's always had a wider stance than them though. But then I felt of a couple of our silver laced wyandottes, 4 of them too, and one of them is a pretty big bird also high on the pecking order and felt kinda squishy too. Felt a buff Orpington too. So now idk if all my birds are fat lol and she's fine or if km right and she's ill. Please help if you can of course I would prefer that I'm a fool and she's having a good laugh at my expense. How do I know if she could be internally laying? Or have eyp? She seems some bigger than the other girls and may not be as perky as usual but has a good appetite and drinks a ton. And has bright eyes and her comb seemed okay today. I just don't want her to get bad before I treat it. That is if she needs treatment. Sadly we haven't the money for a vet and there aren't any I know of around here that would see a chicken. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks so much.

 

[4chickens3dogs]

I've had chickens for several years & have had great results with a couple of tips I've run across over the years. For crop issues such as coughing/wheezing, as if something is stuck, I soak some pieces of bread in olive oil & give it to the chicken with the issue.

I've had multiple issues with EYP & have given Epsom salt baths whenever the swelling gets bad or hen is looking lethargic. This was the site I referenced: http://hencam.com/faq/the-spa-treatment/
This helped loosen the "ick" for elimination. After helping remove a piece of broken egg hanging out, one hen had been severely swollen with red & hot abdomen & greenish poo indicating infection. TLC & several Epsom salt baths later she started to recover. Month or so later, she even started laying eggs again. Another hen had egg quality issues & then soft shell issues. She has had infection issues multiple times, but mostly she looks happy & healthy with the flock. The few times she started looking wore down, her abdomen was hot & swollen & poo started looking "off". Epsom salt baths have helped her pull out of those times. She hasn't laid in over a year, but frequents the hen house to sit as if she is. As long as she seems healthy & happy, I'll continue this approach.

No idea why I've had this issue with several of my hens. Feed is quality layer, they free range & get lots of garden & other treats. I provide oyster shell & crushed egg shells. They don't really care for oyster, but egg shells disappear over time. They get several handfuls of BOSS/scratch/meal worms throughout the day. Try not to give too much. They are healthy, but not sure at what point they are considered obese as I have read that could be a possible reason for egg issues. Any ideas or suggestions?