My Very First Emergency: Egg Bound? Pictures Included

[kryptoniteqhs]

aww...i hope all is well with her now

 

[newduckie]

I know that this is an old forum, but it is maybe relevent to me. I was cleaning out the chicken house today..... nasty job..... one hen that has just started laying didn't run like the others. I got closer and she was sort of flopping around. I picked her up and she has yellowish stuff coming out her rear end. Continually. She is pulsating her rear like she is in labor.. that is what it looks like. opening and closing in sort of a pulsating way. I layed her to the side so I could get her a bed ready in the infirmery and looked and a rooster was on her doing his thing.. now this really made me mad.. how rude. get her while she is down. I got her in a room by herself in a hay nest and gave her some yogurt and scrambled egg. She didnt really eat any or drink anything. I figure she is goig to die, but I will be darned if the rooster is going to be screwing her as she goes. sorry if this is to crude, but that really burned me. Is there anything I should do?

 

[parmesan]

what happened with that?

 

[write2caroline]

I have had to bathe some of my girls - none of whom really enjoy being handled, the minute they are in the warm water - they relax and are easy to manage. They didn't mind the blow dry in the least. I use a deep sink in my laundry room and fill the water about 4 inches deep. I use dawn dish soap. (Dawn kills the fleas on my dogs too just an added bonus)

Hope she is better
Caroline

 

[rockymtnhi65]

I just had an egg-bound situation today-- my year-and-a-half old Golden Comet was lethargic this morning instead of her usual aggressively hungry self...then I noticed poop on her butt feathers. Took her inside to inspect--I held her backwards under one arm with her rear facing me, moved the feathers aside and found a reddish-pink bulge of mucous membranes sticking out where her vent was supposed to be. I haven't had any problems so far with my first set of three chickens so I had no idea what things were supposed to look like down there, but I know it wasn't supposed to look like THAT! I thought Pumpkin had some pine shavings stuck to her gooey bum, but I pulled gently on the thing sticking out of her and it was hard, like broken shell. Warning bells went off, and I quickly got my hands washed and used warm water to bathe her bottom and clean off all the goo...then I got some Vaseline, watered it down a bit, then slowly and carefully slid one finger into the vent to see (1) if I could push back the bulge and (2) if there was any remaining shell. There was some remaining shell inside, which I VERY gently and slowly tried to pull in my direction...but the vent tissue was stuck to the shell. More Vaseline and warm water...then I was able to ease the shell off and out. I felt that there was more but couldn't reach it. Pumpkin seemed better after trundling around in the kitchen for about 15 minutes so I let her back outside with her two buddies and they were all scratching happily in the leaves.

Later, I got a message from the helpful lady who sold me these delightful chickens over a year ago--- she said, "Egg bound!" and advised me to get calcium immediately into her in liquid form if possible and to leave a crushed oyster shell supplement out 24/7 in a separate bowl for the chickens (I confess: I have gotten slack with their oyster supplement these last couple of months. I post here NOW to advise you all---- don't forget your calcium supplements for your chickies!!). She said they could get toxic very quickly in this situation and death could also come very quickly. She advised me to keep a very close eye on Pumpkin. Complete panic---my husband and I then went out in the dark to peek in the coop window. We didn't see Pumpkin....we found her huddled OUTSIDE in the run, fluffed in a ball on the roosting branch, in the cold. I scooped her up immediately and felt her shivering. Got a warm bath going---I used a candy thermometer to check the temp. It was about 108 and felt quite nice--not too hot--and I gently put Pumpkin into the water and slowly swished at her bottom end to keep a small current on her backside. We stayed that way for about 10 or 15 minutes then I bundled her up in a towel and we sat on the couch together watching a movie for about 20 minutes. On to the bathroom where I draped a towel over the toilet lid, set her on it, then used a hair dryer to fluff the damp feathers. The warm air seemed to stimulate her to fluff and preen herself a little...and she eventually settled down like she wanted to go to sleep. I put a flameless (battery-operated) candle on the sink, turned off the light, turned the heat up a click and left her alone for a while. My daughter and I used the advice found on this website and crushed up 2 Tums tablets into 2 cups of water (the liquid calcium) and left it in a bowl nearby.

About an hour ago, I checked on Pumpkin and found that she had not only expelled the remaining chunk of crushed up egg shell, but she also laid a complete, soft, membranous egg! Her "chute" is working! I am so relieved. I had a quick look at her bottom--still looks a little "poked-out" to me---but WAY better than it was. Her feathers are mostly clean, she's pooping normally, and she was "talking"--like normal! I set her down on the floor and she happily enjoyed a snack from my palm, then guzzled quite a bit of Tums-water before walking around a little to inspect her surroundings. I set her back on the towel-covered toilet seat and she looked quite cozy as I shut out the light and left her in there. As a precaution, I think I will start a round of general water-soluble antibiotics in the morning just to be safe. She is tough little bird but I'm not taking chances. Needless to say, I will have my bowl of crushed-oyster shell out there DAILY, instead of just tossing in a handful when I am not in an early morning rush. My lesson: ALWAYS take the time....they are worth it.

 

[bufflucygirl]

i have a Buff Orp that was egg bound a week and 3 days ago. I got her inside and gave her a bath, did the mineral oil thing and she expelled a soft shell egg. I kept her in the house for 5 days letting her heal up and put her back outside in the coop with her roommates. She still has not laid a egg. I keep checking her every day to make sure she is not swollen/red/dirty and she looks just fine. Is this ok, or should I be worried? Any advice would be helpful!

 

[Three Cedars Silkies]

She should be fine now. I just had one have a soft shelled egg stuck just inside her vent. Gave her a bath, pulled it out and kept her in for about 4-5 days on an antibiotic just for safety sake. She is back out with the gang now and is doing fine.

 

[bufflucygirl]

How long before she laid another egg?

Quote:

 

[Three Cedars Silkies]

I'm really not sure because there are 6 black hens in with her. But I'm getting plenty of eggs a day and I am assuming she is back to laying now.

It may take several weeks.

 

[Michigan Transplant]

I went out to my chicken house this after noon and found one of my RIR girls just standing with her face to the corner. She would move if necessary and would drink but other than that she was acting funny. I brought her in the house and searched on here for egg bound and found this and other sites.
I did the warm bath but she just kept straining and nothing but runny poop came out. Her but was caked with runny poop. So I had read there as a last resort you need to break the egg. When I felt her you could feel from one hip to the other was a solid hard mass so knew she had at least two eggs in there.
Went and got a pair of tweezers since there was a egg at the vent "trying" to come out with every push but wouldn't. Took the tweezers and broke a small hole in the center of the part showing of the egg and the white started coming out. As she pushed, the egg broke and more and more started to slide out. The shell was intacked just "folded" in half. More kept coming out and I had to keep pulling it carefully with the tweezers till two smashed eggs and one whole egg popped out.
I have her wrapped up in a towel and wrapped in a blanket sitting beside me on my computer table while I write this. Her vent still is swollen but she is just resting and am keeping her warm. Will keep her warm and in my room with me tonight and might just keep her in the dogs crate and in the house for a week or so to make sure she is alright. Might have to make this one my pet.