My chicken with a prolapse! PLEASE HELP

[Chicken Boy1234]

So, I recently got 6 new chickens, they all acted normal for the first day. I went to feed the chickens the following morning and everything was fine. I got 5 eggs. We then went down at about 3:30 to play with them. I noticed, when we were playing, one of the chickens had blood near its bottom, I knew this wasn't right so I picked it up and found that there was a prolapse. We went and got honey and anti bacterial liquid as we found out what to use on the internet! We picked her up and covered her head in a big red blanket, to calm her. We gently dabbed some antibacterial liquid onto the prolapse and then gently smothered the prolapse with honey. We successfully got it back in, we then looked away at the cockerel crowing and quickly looked back, there was a big squidgy egg now on the floor. We took the hen home in a cat carrier with some straw in it and gave her chick crumbs and fresh water. The next day (today) we looked at the prolapse and it had shrunk a little. Just now we have let her go free in the garage and cleaned it free of any poop, we also smothered it in honey. She appears lively and happy. What should we do next? I would be VERY grateful if you answer!

 

[Johnn]

Got you this off a group I am part of!:
By Danny Hardwick in The Poultry Pages (Files) · Edit doc

Chicken "Prolapse" & How to deal with it???

A "prolapse" is when part of the oviduct remains outside the vent of the hen.
When a hen is laying an egg the shell gland (which is at the lower part of the hens reproductive tract where the egg shell is formed) turns itself temporarily inside out along with the egg. This enables a hen to lay a clean egg. Occasionally the oviduct does not retract properly once the egg has been laid and this is known as a "prolapse". It usually looks like a red, bloody, mass of tissue hanging from the vent of the hen or as the two pictures illustrate this. If it is not seen by the keeper immediately the chances are the other chickens will peck away at it causing bleeding, infection and certain death. Sadly it is recommended that the hen be culled as once it has happened it will happen repeatedly and the risk of infection is very high every time it occurs. It is very often either the infection or other birds pecking at the prolapse that actually kills the bird and not the "prolapse" itself.

A Vet Can Help
It is more than worth mentioning that a vet can carry out an operation fitting a gause or stent to the affected area preventing the "prolapse" happening again. This should only really need considering if the "prolapse" keeps regularly occuring, However sometimes it can also be just a one-off and once rectifyed may not happen again but as stated above this is highly unlikely.

What Are The Causes? There can be several reasons why a "prolapse" can occur, here are just some of them.

Overweight: Birds are more at risk of "prolapse" due to general muscle weakness and a tendency for larger eggs being laid. Fat also accumulates around the reproductive tract.
Underweight: Birds that are underweight can also suffer "prolapses" if they start to lay before the reproductive tract is mature enough to cope. This can be caused by an incorrect diet while the bird is still young and growing.
Insufficient Calcium: Unbalanced feed will cause problems with the formation of egg shells and muscle weakness in the bird. If muscles are weak it can prevent the oviduct from retracting after laying.
Laying Double Yolked Eggs: The size of these eggs can can stretch and therefore weaken the cloacal muscles this means that the oviduct is exposed for a much longer period of time after the egg has been laid.
Light: Birds that are exposed to increasing day length before the reproductive tract has fully matured are more likely to "prolapse", because the reproductive tract may not be fully matured when they begin lay.
Space: Overcrowding, hens need space to scratch about and develop their muscles.

Prevention
The first sign that a prolapse may happen is blood streaked eggs being laid. The best way to try and avoid prolapses from occuring in your hens is to feed correctly with a commercial feed like Layers Mash/Pellets which contain all the nutrients in the correct amounts and not to feed corn based feeds or give treats in large amounts or too often. Layers Mash/Pellets should be in a feeder which is topped up daily and the chickens should be able to feed all day. Do ensure your hens have access to mixed poultry grit at all times as this aids digestion and helps towards egg shell formation. It is very important that birds have the correct feed from day old to adulthood so they grow at the correct rate and remain healthy.

Treating Yourself / Self Treatment.....
1. Isolate the bird
2. Put on some rubber gloves
3. Wash the area well with an antibacterial soap or baby shampoo… rinse well… put some white or brown vinegar in the final rinse water, you don’t need much, the vinegar removes all traces of soap on the skin and neutralizes any harmful ingredients that may be in the soap … vinegar is also a great disinfectant
4. You may find the skin in and around the vent has been damaged … check this while you are washing the bird
5. Dry the bird with towels, use a hair drying on low, and make sure you have a warm area to place the chicken. No drafts, if you have a heating pad to put the bird on the dry off this would be excellent, if not dry as much as you can with the hair dryer fluffing the feathers up as you do it
6. Do a final clean with warm water and betadine (iodine)
7. Push the prolapse back in with your finger, using pure honey… it has excellent healing properties and is an natural antibiotic … you will find any maggots that are inside the bird will back out
8. Treat the damaged area with Neosporin (antibiotic powder) … you may decided to pass on this if you use the honey method
9. Spray the area once cleaned with 'purple spray' same as used on sheep and horses
10. Keep the bird isolated until it has completely healed and also making it easier for you to watch the area and treat again if necessary
11. Feeding to heal…. 1 cup of dry mash, 2 cups of buttermilk, 1 tablespoon of yoghurt, mix well… the bird can drink the yoghurt mash mixture… restores the good bacteria in the gut… also feed its normal rations if it finishes this…
12. You may find the droppings become a bit wetter than normal. So make sure you keep the cage or isolation area really clean
13. Watering to heal - 2 litres of water, 20ml apple cider vinegar… don’t use the apple cider vinegar if you are going to use antibiotics the two clash and cancel each other out… make this the only source of water available for 5 days…. Helps to cut through any mucus that may have built up inside the bird due to low immunity.
14. You can apply vaseline on a daily basis to the vent, you will no if healing well as you should be able to see the vent moving/retracting.
15. Consult a vet if the prolapse re-occurs or keeps re-occuring

Backyard chicken-keepers should know that a "prolapse" is manageable.

 

[Chicken Boy1234]

Thank you so much I will try this right now, you have been a great help

 

[Johnn]

Thank you so much I will try this right now, you have been a great help

It's fine, happy I could help! Good Luck!

 

[Chicken Boy1234]

 

[Johnn]

Let me know how she gets on!

 

[Chicken Boy1234]

I will!

 

[ClaytonCoop]

I also want to thank you! Yesterday I noticed one of my girls has what looked like a bloody rump. I had to chase her around trying to catch her to get a better look. She had a large ball of poop stuck in the exposed vent. I was able to expel the poo and bring her in the house. She got cleaned up and the honey treatment. She spent the night in the bath tub and seems to be ok. Is there anything I can add to her diet to prevent this from happening again?

 

[Johnn]

I also want to thank you! Yesterday I noticed one of my girls has what looked like a bloody rump. I had to chase her around trying to catch her to get a better look. She had a large ball of poop stuck in the exposed vent. I was able to expel the poo and bring her in the house. She got cleaned up and the honey treatment. She spent the night in the bath tub and seems to be ok. Is there anything I can add to her diet to prevent this from happening again?

The only prevention I know is the one that is on my post. Sorry I couldn't be more help. Glad your girl is ok now

 

[ClaytonCoop]

She had lots of normal poos without incident so she is back outside with her friends. As soon as we got out the door they came running to welcome her back. Took the time to put a new band on her and have some one on one snuggles. Thanks for the info you and this site are awesome.