Low weight after vent gleet

[hanneke]

I have a hen that gets mild vent gleet on and off. I always treat her as soon as I see her feathers being dirty. But over time she lost a lot of weight.
What would be a good method to fatten her up? I hope I can give her some strength to get through the coming winter. She’s 2 years old.

 

[Tookie]

High protein food such as meat, eggs, and fish are all good. Giving chick starter with at least 20% protein will help too. I would try those things and see how it goes.
If you aren’t giving it already some good yogurt will help with the vent gleet and help her gut.

 

[hanneke]

l guess to get optimal results I would separate her right?
I’ve separated her during treatments and she seems to eat less if I do.

 

[Eggcessive]

Do you have a picture of her vent? Most chickens like to remain with their flocks for most of the day. If she eats less when separated, I would keep her with them. But you can medicate her with an antifungal medication twice a day such as 1/2 inch Monistat cream or 1/3 suppository given orally or Medistatin powder in a little water given orally. Does she have feather loss and soiling on her vent area often, and a bad odor? In hot weather flies can lay maggot eggs on soiled vents, so keep checking her often.

Most hens will eat some wet chicken feed, scrambled egg or tuna, and some plain yogurt with live cultures is good for her. Make sure that she is not getting any moldy feed spills on the ground. Fresh clean water each day as well.

 

[nuthatched]

What's the gleet look like? Have you ever wormed?

 

[hanneke]

Do you have a picture of her vent? Most chickens like to remain with their flocks for most of the day. If she eats less when separated, I would keep her with them. But you can medicate her with an antifungal medication twice a day such as 1/2 inch Monistat cream or 1/3 suppository given orally or Medistatin powder in a little water given orally. Does she have feather loss and soiling on her vent area often, and a bad odor? In hot weather flies can lay maggot eggs on soiled vents, so keep checking her often.

Most hens will eat some wet chicken feed, scrambled egg or tuna, and some plain yogurt with live cultures is good for her. Make sure that she is not getting any moldy feed spills on the ground. Fresh clean water each day as well.

I have been given her anti fungal, medistati. I put anti fungal cream on her vent too. She had a acidified copper cure but it always comes back.

My chickens get fermented feed in the morning as well. This hen seems to struggle. She does eat well but her weight stays the same. Her comb is also pale and sagging.

 

[hanneke]

What's the gleet look like? Have you ever wormed?

No I have not wormed her. I’ve never seen worms. But I can do that for sure. What would you recommend? I have poor over ivermectin and some other things I can’t remember now.

 

[Eggcessive]

For worming fenbendazole 10% or safeguard liquid goat wormer 1/4 ml per pound for 5 consecutive days is good. Ivermectin has a ling egg withdrawal time, and although it can treat mites, it no longer is best for worms. I know a lot of people are doing fermented feed, but after trying it for about 8 months years ago, I found it was very messy and I worried about mold fungus in warm weather, so I stopped. I might try just using dry crumbles or pellet feed again, or wetting a bit of it daily with a bit of water. Some hens just have messy vents, especially if the lower belly is enlarged or if they have any vent damage from pecking, laying to large of an egg, or prolapse. If all others are doing well, it may just be her own problem.

 

[hanneke]

Fir worming fenbendazole 10% or safeguard liquid goat wormer 1/4 ml per pound for 5 consecutive days is good. Ivermectin has a ling egg withdrawal time, and although it can treat mites, it no longer is best for worms. I know a lot of people are doing fermented feed, but after trying it for about 8 months years ago, I found it was very messy and I worried about mold fungus in warm weather, so I stopped. I might try just using dry crumbles or pellet feed again, or wetting a bit of it daily with a bit of water. Some hens just have messy vents, especially if the lower belly is enlarged or if they have any vent damage from pecking, laying to large of an egg, or prolapse. If all others are doing well, it may just be her own problem.

Good points. I do live in a very dry high desert climate. They just get some in the morning but the rest of the day they either freeze range and/or have unlimited access to regular dry crumbles.

 

[Eggcessive]

Here are a couple of good articles on vent gleet (cloacitis)
https://www.tillysnest.com/2012/12/vent-gleet-prevention-and-treatment-html/

https://ruralveterinaryoutreach.org/2022/02/10/vent-gleet-cloacitis/