My pullet has protruding vent and odd body shape...Please Help!

[NewToThisFarmLife]

Hi there! I am new to the forum, however I have turned to your members very often for advice with my first batch of chicks and I thank everyone for those moments of advice over the past couple months.

I have an ongoing issue with one of my babies...she’s an approx. 10 week old Ameraucana and she has had problems with a pasty butt and/or protruding vent since the day we got her (as a “day old”). I believe (after careful observation and ongoing attempts to correct her problem) that the root of her problem is that her tail feathers have grown in a downward position and this keeps all the dirty stuff where it shouldn’t be. As a chick she always had enormous wings that seemed to hold the tail down (which we thought was helping protect her bum from pecking by the others) but as she’s grown up it has become obvious that something just isn’t “right” and the problem isn’t going to fix itself.

I need advice or suggestions on what to do now...I will try to upload photos of her odd body shape and the vent issue. I have tried every tip and trick thus far and now that I’ve come to terms with her tail being the main culprit I don’t know what to do. I’m terrified of what will happen to her when she reaches egg laying age. I appreciate ANY advice or wisdom!!!!

 

[Birdsong 82]

To me it looks like a prolapsed vent. How long has this been going on?

 

[NewToThisFarmLife]

To me it looks like a prolapsed vent. How long has this been going on?

This has been constant since we got her...so roughly 10 weeks. I pop it back in and sometimes it stays in for a bit before popping back out, other times it pops out as soon as we put her on the ground

 

[Birdsong 82]

I went through that with my chicken was much older. I had to pop it in twice a day for about a week straight. I also had to keep her in a dark spot alone so other chickens wouldn’t peck at it and to keep her from laying. My family stayed in after about a week and worked up enough nerve to push a little further in. Might be harder with her being smaller though. I’m going to have to do some thinking on why it would keep coming out. I’ve read several reasons for it. Sometimes excess Laying of extremely large eggs. Or first time laying in egg. I’ve also read it could be a calcium imbalance. I’m going to have to do some looking for that on why it keeps coming out. Are the other chickens messing with it

 

[Birdsong 82]

I looked up several slings online It’s a sling you can put around the chicken that you make from something like an ace bandage that will hold the prolapse in. My leg horn was much too flighty to where she couldn’t tolerate wearing it. And it could’ve been I put it on wrong because I’ve never had to put And Ace bandage around a chicken
Still trying to figure out why it would be going on so long

 

[Birdsong 82]

The picture is hard to see a little because it’s dark but it looks like there’s an odd shape above her tail. Is that just her feathers?

 

[NewToThisFarmLife]

The picture is hard to see a little because it’s dark but it looks like there’s an odd shape above her tail. Is that just her feathers?

Yes, that’s just her tail feathers...she was NOT happy about me taking this photo

 

[NewToThisFarmLife]

I looked up several slings online It’s a sling you can put around the chicken that you make from something like an ace bandage that will hold the prolapse in. My leg horn was much too flighty to where she couldn’t tolerate wearing it. And it could’ve been I put it on wrong because I’ve never had to put And Ace bandage around a chicken
Still trying to figure out why it would be going on so long

I’m not sure Patsy (my girl I need help with) would appreciate being wrapped up either. And wouldn’t the sling create more pasty butt issues? That’s the last thing she needs

 

[Birdsong 82]

I see your tail feathers are down. But I was talking about the shape of her back behind the tail feathers. Maybe it’s just her back feathers. My eyesight giving away on me now
@Eggcessive You helped me out a lot when I go out with prolapse. Any thing you know of why it keeps happening

 

[Birdsong 82]

The slings I looked at they put it on so perfectly to where she could still poop but also held in the prolapse. I’m just not skilled enough to put one of those together like those people did