Please Help! A large growth under chicken's vent!

[squeegeesflock]

Hello everyone, Big Fluff and I are in need of some assistance, she, my most favorite chicken, has a baseball sized growth under her vent (not on her breast/ belly)... it is red, with some gross looking scabs, feels warm to the touch, & has lost most of the feathers on it. It is a bit squishy and kind of firm in some spots. She looks & acts well otherwise...her eyes look clear and her red parts are red.

she is acting pretty normal: eating drinking pooping and im pretty sure laying?? the way i realized there was something going on with her is because there was a smear of blood on one eggshell a few days ago, so i caught and checked each of the chickens, which is when i found the sac on her...
As you can see she is quite fluffy so i didnt notice it before, and she wasnt acting weird except for keeping away from the flock (which isnt that odd of a behavior for her in general, some of the chickens are rude.)

I have given her a warm epsom sitz bath and cleaned the area as best i could. As i cleaned her i could feel that her upper breast felt a little soft and squishy too, not sure if this is another growth but i did try to take a picture in case it was helpful.

I have pictures but I don't know how to post them here, if seeing them would help you help me, I can send them to you.
I believe she is a Black Cochin, we adopted her from someone who rescued her... so not entirely sure.

Veterinary care for chickens is hard to come by / expensive in my area so whatever i can diy is much appreciated : )

Thank you!

 

[Lillith37]

Pictures would be good. You can comment to this thread and click attach files and upload them that way I think.

Hens when they age after they have been laying for awhile tend to get a big saggy in that area. Some also develop masses which can be several things — hernia, fat deposit, ascites (which is fluid build-up, caused by an underlying issue).

If it has scabs, is warm and she is losing feathers then it sounds more like an infected wound turned abscess, or fly strike or something along those lines.

The mass on her breast is probably her crop, which is the pouch where they store food. It fills up and empties throughout the day as they eat and digest. It should be full in the evening when they roost and empty in the morning when you let them out.

 

[Oob Child]

Pictures would help.

 

[Eggcessive]

Some hens get an enlarged lower belly which could be ascites/water belly, a tumor, internal laying, or hernia. Hard to know which. But it sounds like someone is pecking her and injuring her. Can you separate her inside a wire dog crate with food and water? Welcome to BYC.

 

[Thefallenfeather]

Are there any sores on the lump. cause I'm wondering if its liquid filled or puss-ey looking stuff filled. because if its puss then that would be a sign of infection.

 

[Thefallenfeather]

I have pictures but I don't know how to post them here, if seeing them would help you help me, I can send them to you.
I believe she is a Black Cochin, we adopted her from someone who rescued her... so not entirely sure.


Thank you!

you can attach photos as an attachment, its usually down the bottom of the page where you can put the photos, and I think you can copy and past them into the text area anyways.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Clicking here then in the drop image box should take you to your stored photos. click on the chosen photo then click done and it should load for you.

 

[Oob Child]

Clicking here then in the drop image box should take you to your stored photos. click on the chosen photo then click done and it should load for you.
View attachment 3609425

You could also click the 'attach files' button at the bottom.

 

[21hens-incharge]

You could also click the 'attach files' button at the bottom.

Yes. Both options should work.