I know there's alot of info out there on this, but I wanted to run this by you. I have a hen with what I think is a prolapsed vent. The rooster has been relentless with her though so her back and wing feathers are a mess and she just looked awful. I've put her in a seperate pen to give her a break from the rooster, and the hens that started picking at her.
From what I've read, a prolapse in a young hen can be from poor nutrition, and she has been on alot of corn this winter since it was so bitterly cold. But I've also read that when you have a hen in this condition you want to limit her nutrition so she doesn't lay eggs. It seems conflicting to me. But since she hasn't been laying since the last cold snap anyway, I decided to put give her some cooked oatmeal and a very small amount of layer mash each day, it seems she needs good nutrition to heal, right? Also some apple cider vinegar in her water.
So it's been 2 days since I've put her in "quarantine" and she is looking much better, she doesn't walk around fluffed up with her head tucked in anymore and I don't see anymore blood on her rear, her "bottom" feathers are starting to fluff up again too so no more drainage?
My question is, do I need to use Prep H, or manually reinsert the prolapse, or by leaving it alone can it heal itself? I don't see that much is "out", but it does look a little swollen. Is it possible something else was wrong?
From what I've read, a prolapse in a young hen can be from poor nutrition, and she has been on alot of corn this winter since it was so bitterly cold. But I've also read that when you have a hen in this condition you want to limit her nutrition so she doesn't lay eggs. It seems conflicting to me. But since she hasn't been laying since the last cold snap anyway, I decided to put give her some cooked oatmeal and a very small amount of layer mash each day, it seems she needs good nutrition to heal, right? Also some apple cider vinegar in her water.
So it's been 2 days since I've put her in "quarantine" and she is looking much better, she doesn't walk around fluffed up with her head tucked in anymore and I don't see anymore blood on her rear, her "bottom" feathers are starting to fluff up again too so no more drainage?
My question is, do I need to use Prep H, or manually reinsert the prolapse, or by leaving it alone can it heal itself? I don't see that much is "out", but it does look a little swollen. Is it possible something else was wrong?
