possable egg bound

[sassy chickens]

OK i have a hen that has been acting weird for a while (a day or so) what do i do ????HELP

 

[Johnn]

***WARNING*** IN NO WAY is this intended to be complete or to be a medical diagnosis for your egg bound birds!! I make no claims that this is accurate or complete. I urge you to contact a veterinarian or a seasoned/time served keeper if you have concerns about Egg Bound chickens. This information is based on personal experience and what i did at that time.
What is Egg Bound?
Egg bound is when your hen can't pass or lay an egg. The pressure of the egg there at the vent may stop her from passing manure as well. undetected or left untreated it has a high fatality rate and the complications can lead to the hen having to be put down even if the egg is passed. it is important that an egg bound hen is recognized early and treated so here is a bit of information on the problem.
Some Factors that can lead upto egg binding and prevention:
Pullets starting to lay too young - Try and avoid exposing pullets to more than 14 hours of light per day or lengthening hours of light prior to 20 weeks of age. Obviously not possible at some times of the year for those who have their flocks in natural light.
Hens over weight
Watch the hens weight and reduce or remove high calorie treats like corn if necessary. Keep them fit, the more exercise they get the better. Hypocalcemia the lack of free calcium in the blood. Free calcium is needed for proper smooth muscle contraction and the lack of it can mean that she does not have the muscle power to expel the egg. Don’t confuse this with the calcium that she needs to create the egg shell. Hens with fine egg shell quality can still have a hypocalcemic crisis.
Egg too rough or egg too big
Hens that have not rested from laying can get chronic big rough eggs and have problems with them. Inducing a molt may help them as would extra calcium supplementation. All hens occasionally lay big or rough eggs and those can’t be prevented. Sometimes a hen ‘works up’ to being fully egg bound by having trouble passing an egg each day. Pain and swelling increases each time. Noticing the hen is in distress would be difficult but if you catch it before she gets fully eggbound treat her with Epsom Salts or similar in her water and Preparation H or similar in her vent. The hen often stands or moves in an odd way, usually with her tail held very low and her rear end tucked between her legs.
Sometimes they just sit around looking ruffled, but often it is obvious the bird is straining to pass an egg. If you feel her abdomen you may be able to feel the egg and palpate the egg and she may let you know that is the painful area.
Treatment
Begins with separating the hen to a quiet warm area. Sometimes a heat lamp over a makeshift nest box is all they need. Warmth relaxes the hen so that the vent can dilate more allowing the egg to pass. A warm water bath is an excellent option. Hens that are egg bound and placed in a sink of water will immerse themselves squatting down and look like they are nesting. This is helpful in diagnosis as an ill hen will usually stand in the water wondering why you put her there or try and get out. Whilest submerged in water.... swoosh warm water to the vent area and also massage the abdomen area where the egg can be felt, Also try and force gently or minipulate the egg to the exit of the vent if whole. Often by doing this the hen will pass the egg into the water. Make the water as warm/hot as you would like to take a long soak in. The hen can be given D3 Calcium Boost, It is a liquid calcium supplement. Give 1ml to a standard and half to a bantam by mouth. Add 1ml to each quart or litre of water that she has while in treatment. Even if the cause is not hypocalcemia in this hen’s case it will not hurt her to have more calcium. If in doubt as to if the hen is egg bound a few vet sites recommend separation, warmth, warm bath and calcium to all hens in lay that seem distressed. Since treatment is only successful if done early and none of these thing can harm her even if she is not egg bound up to this point it is better safe than sorry.
If treatment so far has not helped her out
You need to get some oil, mineral oil or vegetable oil, or a personal lubricant like KY jelly and liberally apply it to her vent and your finger and put the finger into her vent very gently and upward in direction. Downward would get you into the digestive tract. If you reach an egg try to get some of the lubricant into the area and sweep your finger past the egg and help the lubricant get all around the egg. Give the hen a rest and perhaps another chance to pass the egg herself depending on her condition. Hens go into profound cardiovascular collapse over being egg bound and she may not be able to put in the effort to try anymore. If not place your well lubed finger in there again and if you can get past the egg and sweep or pull it gently out. If you can’t do that the last resort is to gently break the end of the egg and allow the contents to pass and the shell to collapse. It is vital that all of the shell be removed from the hen. Be very gentle as she will get internal cuts from the egg shell. If you have to do this place the hen on antibiotics following removal if she survives. Egg perinonitus can be the infection if this happens. Following passing or removal of the egg keep the hen in a warm quiet area separate until she is out of shock and back eating and drinking well. If she seems fine you can if required put back with the other hens.
Complications from being egg bound
Can be swelling, bleeding or prolapse of the oviduct. Some swelling is normal and the hen can be given Epsom Salts or (Aspirin or acetylsalicylic acid) at the rate 1 teaspoon or 5 grains to each gallon of water. Preperation H can be placed in the vent as well. If the oviduct prolapsed gently wash it off and lube it up well with oil or KY and very gently place it back pushing inward and upward. There will be a lot of swelling after so add Preparation H to her vent. Bleeding that continues past that day should be treated with antibiotics.
Recurrence is common
Hens that have been egg bound often take a rest from laying and that healing time is important. If she does not take time off and seems to have continued problems you can induce a molt by keeping her in only dim light for less than 10 hours a day and darkness for the rest. Laying will shut down after 4 or 5 days and a molt in another 2 weeks. If you put her back in regular lighting conditions after the laying stops she may not go into a full molt and start laying in a week or 2. It is worth while trying to give the hen a rest and time to recover and this will prevent re-coourance.
Hen is fine
There maybe a good chance that the hen will successfully pass the egg herself without any help, If shes fine there is no point distressing her even more... Put her back in with the other hens and just keep an eye out on her.

 

[cashela]

Ok is it possible to have two egg bound birds at the same time? My two older Bantam hens who knock on wood have never been egg bound that I know of have been hanging out in their coop for a the past two days. They haven't laid any eggs but they are erratic layers. They seem ok other then just chilling out in the coop. I'm wondering if it is because of the rain? I work during the day so they may be going out. I don't know. I might go soak em both in warm water for the heck of it.

 

[casportpony]

Ok is it possible to have two egg bound birds at the same time? My two older Bantam hens who knock on wood have never been egg bound that I know of have been hanging out in their coop for a the past two days. They haven't laid any eggs but they are erratic layers. They seem ok other then just chilling out in the coop. I'm wondering if it is because of the rain? I work during the day so they may be going out. I don't know. I might go soak em both in warm water for the heck of it.

Yes.

 

[casportpony]

 

[sassy chickens]

thank you so much for talking to me .... i have been trying to get help for 2 days now your the first one that has given me that much info ....... thank you ....

 

[casportpony]

When mine get sick, this is what I do:

• *Thorough* physical exam which includes inserting a gloved, lubed finger into the cloaca to check for an egg, check for cuts, bruising lumps, smells, etc.
• Dust for mites/lice with poultry dust even if I cannot see any. DE does not work.
• Weigh on digital kitchen scale (see avatar), record weight and weigh daily. any weight loss is bad.
• Place bird in a warm, quiet place on towel with food and water that it can't drown in.
• De-worm with Safeguard or Panacur, liquid or paste (fenbendazole 10%) 50mg/kg by mouth and repeat in 10 days. Warning - Safeguard/Panacur should not be used during a molt.
• Once warm, if not drinking and crop is empty, hydrate with warmed Pedialyte or lactated ringers with a feeding tube - 30ml/kg every 6-8 hours.
• If not eating after 24 hours and crop is empty, tube feed baby bird food mixed with Pedialyte
• Inspect poop.
• If I suspect a stuck egg, treat for egg binding.
• If I suspect a bacterial infection, treat with antibiotics.
• If I suspect a fungal infection, treat with Nystatin.
• If I suspect coccidiosis, treat with Corid (amprolium).
• If I suspect canker or histomoniaisis (blackhead), treat with Metronidazole.

From: http://www.harrisonsbirdfoods.com/avmed/cam/07_emergency_and_critical_care.pdf
Supportive Care
SICK-BIRD ENCLOSURES
Sick birds are often hypothermic and should be placed
in heated (brooder-type) enclosures


b (Fig 7.7) in a quiet
environment (see Chapter 1, Clinical Practice). A temperature
of 85° F (29° C) with 70% humidity is desirable
for most sick birds. If brooders are not equipped with a
humidity source, placing a small dish of water in the
enclosure will often supply adequate humidity. A moist
towel that is heated and placed on the bottom of a cage
or incubator rapidly humidifies the environment, as indicated​

by the fogging of the acrylic cage front.

FLUID THERAPY
Oral Administration
Oral administration is the ideal method of giving fluids.
This method is more commonly used in mildly dehydrated
birds or in conjunction with subcutaneous (SC)
or intravenous (IV) therapy. Oral rehydration (30 ml/kg
PO q 6-8 h) also may be used in larger birds (eg, waterfowl)
that are difficult to restrain for parenteral fluid​

therapy.

ORAL NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS
Below are listed some of the oral nutritional supplements
that can be gavage-fed to debilitated birds. Various
hand-feeding formulas are on the market and, as a
whole, are far superior to the homemade formulas used
decades ago that contained monkey biscuits, peanut butter
and ground seeds. Commercially available hand-feeding
formulas for baby birds are often utilized in the treatment
of sick and debilitated adult birds. The quantity
that can be fed at one time to a sick bird is greatly
reduced from that of baby birds. On the average, a baby
parrot can accommodate 10% of its body weight per
feeding due to the elasticity of the crop and its rapid
emptying. Adult birds have a greatly decreased crop
capacity, averaging 3% of their body weight. Additionally,
sick birds are less tolerant of food in the crop and care
must be taken to avoid regurgitation and/or aspiration.
A sick or debilitated bird should always have its
hydration corrected prior to attempting to initiate​

oral gavage-feeding.