*edit*edit*
I came home today and she peered out of the box at me, tail perky. I took the screening off, and she jumped up onto the edge of the box. She wobbled there for a good long time before I picked her up and took her outside. She's about 80% her old self, she wanted to get going! I say 80%, because if it was 100%, when I set her down she would've made disapproving sounds at me before attacking my ankles.
I fed her a half cup or so of wheat berries slightly moistened. She's eating it very eagerly right now while making a soft sound I've never heard before. I can only describe it as 'happy chicken chortling'. I'm so glad! Maybe I can find a cheaper source of wheat berries, $1 a pound is kind of pricey.. I still hope someone can recommend food suggestions for an eggbound chicken on the mend.
*edit* Sorry, added the checklist to give a simple overview... details below that.
1) What type of bird , age and weight.White Easter Egger, 3 years old, trim, healthy weight.
2) What is the behavior, exactly.Disinterested in foot/water, quiet, not active, very passive- Most of the time the tail droops. Does not want to lie down.
3) How long has the bird been exhibiting symptoms? For 3 days now
4) Are other birds exhibiting the same symptoms?No
5) Is there any bleeding, injury, broken bones or other sign of trauma.No
6) What happened, if anything that you know of, that may have caused the situation.Seems to be eggbound - she passed a very large, chalky banded with sandy deposited egg on Friday afternoon, and today passed a shriveled up mishapen membrane.
7) What has the bird been eating and drinking, if at all. She is not interested in eating or drinking, though yesterday she did peck a little bit at her feed and some forage but it definitely wasn't really hearty eating. On Friday she refused to eat. Today she has not been fed.
8) How does the poop look? Normal? Bloody? Runny? etc.When she does poop, it's in very small amounts. It is generally white and runny looking sometimes with a miniscule amount of black
9) What has been the treatment you have administered so far? A warm soak Saturday, a warm soak Sunday noon and 5 pm noon (membrane like object passed after third soak)
10 ) What is your intent as far as treatment? For example, do you want to treat completely yourself, or do you need help in stabilizing the bird til you can get to a vet?If her condition worsens or does not improve soon, I will take her to the vet.
11) If you have a picture of the wound or condition, please post it. It may help.
12) Describe the housing/bedding in use Keeping her in a box indoors with aspen bedding and a bowl of water, and a 25 watt red bulb on one end.
My EE hen wasn't looking well on Friday morning when I fed the girls.
She was completely uninterested in food which immediately caused me concern since they're usually such piggies in the morning. Her tail was drooping and I suspected she was eggbound. When I came home from work in the afternoon though, she had laid an egg. It was ENORMOUS. She has always had a history of laying thin-shelled eggs (even when given oyster grit) with strange sandy deposite on them. This egg was discolored with a white chalky band on it and plenty of the sandy deposits along the band.
I thought all would be well, but the following day (yesterday), she was straining to poop and very little would be produced. She seemed a little better and was a little interested in foraging in the grass, but by late afternoon she still hadn't improved significantly (drooping tail, lethargic and not at all like her bossy dominant self. She always pecks at our ankles, but was quiet and preferred to stay in one spot). I was worried she must be still eggbound, so I gave her a 20 minute soak in warm water. She didn't mind this at all, or the blowdrying thereafter. After this she produced a very white watery poop with a little bit of black in it. Since then I've kept her in a box inside the house with a lower watt heat lamp on her (I'm in Southern California, and the house is just about room temp).
Today I have her a warm bath for a second time around noon, and a third bath at about 5 pm. After the third bath (and spraying the whole laundry room and myself with water when I made the mistake of not holding her as I added more water- she wanted out, which is difficult when a hen can't exactly climb/fly out of a steep water filled sink), she produced another very watery puddle of white with a speck of black AND THEN (when I wasn't looking) she produced a terribly alien looking prune shaped mass of what I suspect was egg. It looked like a deflated dried up balloon, the larger part was a dark grey, and the membrane tapered off like a stem. Part of this stem thing had a fragment of shell attached to it.
After passing this she seemed even worse, her eyes were closed, her tail dipped lower, and she looked neck less from tucking her head so far in.
I've put her back in her box and she seems to have improved, though the tail is still a little droopy. She is preening herself. I don't think she's interested in drinking water, and I have not fed her today as I'm worried she might keep producing eggs. If what she passed is hopefully what was bothering her, how long would it be until she perks up? Is it possible she might still have other eggs impacted inside her? I read this awful story that after someone's hen passed, they did an autopsy and found TEN eggs inside of her. She has not really laid for at least the past week, though her egg production in general has always been spotty compared to my other hen. Both were not laying much over the winter.
I'm going to buy her some wheat grains from the bulk bins at whole foods for her to eat, would anyone recommend other foods for her at this point, and how much I should offer her? Thanks so much,
-Mary
I came home today and she peered out of the box at me, tail perky. I took the screening off, and she jumped up onto the edge of the box. She wobbled there for a good long time before I picked her up and took her outside. She's about 80% her old self, she wanted to get going! I say 80%, because if it was 100%, when I set her down she would've made disapproving sounds at me before attacking my ankles.
I fed her a half cup or so of wheat berries slightly moistened. She's eating it very eagerly right now while making a soft sound I've never heard before. I can only describe it as 'happy chicken chortling'. I'm so glad! Maybe I can find a cheaper source of wheat berries, $1 a pound is kind of pricey.. I still hope someone can recommend food suggestions for an eggbound chicken on the mend.
*edit* Sorry, added the checklist to give a simple overview... details below that.
1) What type of bird , age and weight.White Easter Egger, 3 years old, trim, healthy weight.
2) What is the behavior, exactly.Disinterested in foot/water, quiet, not active, very passive- Most of the time the tail droops. Does not want to lie down.
3) How long has the bird been exhibiting symptoms? For 3 days now
4) Are other birds exhibiting the same symptoms?No
5) Is there any bleeding, injury, broken bones or other sign of trauma.No
6) What happened, if anything that you know of, that may have caused the situation.Seems to be eggbound - she passed a very large, chalky banded with sandy deposited egg on Friday afternoon, and today passed a shriveled up mishapen membrane.
7) What has the bird been eating and drinking, if at all. She is not interested in eating or drinking, though yesterday she did peck a little bit at her feed and some forage but it definitely wasn't really hearty eating. On Friday she refused to eat. Today she has not been fed.
8) How does the poop look? Normal? Bloody? Runny? etc.When she does poop, it's in very small amounts. It is generally white and runny looking sometimes with a miniscule amount of black
9) What has been the treatment you have administered so far? A warm soak Saturday, a warm soak Sunday noon and 5 pm noon (membrane like object passed after third soak)
10 ) What is your intent as far as treatment? For example, do you want to treat completely yourself, or do you need help in stabilizing the bird til you can get to a vet?If her condition worsens or does not improve soon, I will take her to the vet.
11) If you have a picture of the wound or condition, please post it. It may help.
12) Describe the housing/bedding in use Keeping her in a box indoors with aspen bedding and a bowl of water, and a 25 watt red bulb on one end.
My EE hen wasn't looking well on Friday morning when I fed the girls.
She was completely uninterested in food which immediately caused me concern since they're usually such piggies in the morning. Her tail was drooping and I suspected she was eggbound. When I came home from work in the afternoon though, she had laid an egg. It was ENORMOUS. She has always had a history of laying thin-shelled eggs (even when given oyster grit) with strange sandy deposite on them. This egg was discolored with a white chalky band on it and plenty of the sandy deposits along the band.
I thought all would be well, but the following day (yesterday), she was straining to poop and very little would be produced. She seemed a little better and was a little interested in foraging in the grass, but by late afternoon she still hadn't improved significantly (drooping tail, lethargic and not at all like her bossy dominant self. She always pecks at our ankles, but was quiet and preferred to stay in one spot). I was worried she must be still eggbound, so I gave her a 20 minute soak in warm water. She didn't mind this at all, or the blowdrying thereafter. After this she produced a very white watery poop with a little bit of black in it. Since then I've kept her in a box inside the house with a lower watt heat lamp on her (I'm in Southern California, and the house is just about room temp).
Today I have her a warm bath for a second time around noon, and a third bath at about 5 pm. After the third bath (and spraying the whole laundry room and myself with water when I made the mistake of not holding her as I added more water- she wanted out, which is difficult when a hen can't exactly climb/fly out of a steep water filled sink), she produced another very watery puddle of white with a speck of black AND THEN (when I wasn't looking) she produced a terribly alien looking prune shaped mass of what I suspect was egg. It looked like a deflated dried up balloon, the larger part was a dark grey, and the membrane tapered off like a stem. Part of this stem thing had a fragment of shell attached to it.
After passing this she seemed even worse, her eyes were closed, her tail dipped lower, and she looked neck less from tucking her head so far in.
I've put her back in her box and she seems to have improved, though the tail is still a little droopy. She is preening herself. I don't think she's interested in drinking water, and I have not fed her today as I'm worried she might keep producing eggs. If what she passed is hopefully what was bothering her, how long would it be until she perks up? Is it possible she might still have other eggs impacted inside her? I read this awful story that after someone's hen passed, they did an autopsy and found TEN eggs inside of her. She has not really laid for at least the past week, though her egg production in general has always been spotty compared to my other hen. Both were not laying much over the winter.
I'm going to buy her some wheat grains from the bulk bins at whole foods for her to eat, would anyone recommend other foods for her at this point, and how much I should offer her? Thanks so much,
-Mary
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