Pullet constipated/egg-bound?

[murphynhazel12]

One of my 20 week old pullets (who has not laid yet) has started to constantly be in "pushing out an egg" pose and I'm worried that maybe she has a blockage or she can't fit an egg out through her teeny body. She doesn't seem lethargic and is eating/drinking fine, but it's bizarre to see her pushing even as she's eating worms outside. I did see some poop (normal looking) come out earlier when she was pushing, however. She kept doing it even after the poop came out though. What do you think this is?

 

[coach723]

She may be getting ready to lay. I would just keep a close eye on her, unless something else happens and she looks ill. Sometimes they "practice" for a bit before they lay, usually by sitting in nest boxes. And sometimes they don't really quite know what's going on at first. If birds get egg bound they usually cannot poop and they will appear very ill. If she's behaving normally otherwise, I'd just keep a close eye on her.

 

[murphynhazel12]

She's now keeping her mouth open and kind of gasping/retching... I'm really worried, what is this?

 

[MKetter]

I had an egg bound bird. Her only real symptom was going in and out of the nest box but not laying. She still ate and drank. I followed the instructions in this link. I ended up getting the egg out her with my (gloved) finger after 10:00 pm.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/egg-binding-symptoms-treatment-and-prevention.66978/

 

[coach723]

Have you looked in her beak and throat to see if you can see anything abnormal? Is her crop empty, full, hard, soft and squishy, etc? Has she shown any respiratory symptoms, discharge from eyes, nares, beak, coughing, wheezing? Are her droppings still looking normal?
I'm going to tag a couple other educators to see if they have more to offer.
@Wyorp Rock
@Eggcessive

 

[Eggcessive]

I wonder if she has swallowed something that has gotten stuck. Please give us an update on her crop.

 

[murphynhazel12]

Have you looked in her beak and throat to see if you can see anything abnormal? Is her crop empty, full, hard, soft and squishy, etc? Has she shown any respiratory symptoms, discharge from eyes, nares, beak, coughing, wheezing? Are her droppings still looking normal?
I'm going to tag a couple other educators to see if they have more to offer.
@Wyorp Rock
@Eggcessive

Her crop felt normal, it was relatively empty but I offered her crumbles softened with water and she ate until her crop was full, but not so full it was impossible to palpate. She has been wheezing, a kind of crackly sound that happens when she is doing this open mouthed breathing. No discharge from the eyes or nares that I can see. Poop is still normal. I looked down her throat and it looks pretty normal to me, no obvious lesions/blockages.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would just check her crop each morning. Most chickens will adjust their crop occasionally, but if it happens repeatedly, they might have an impacted crop.

 

[coach723]

In addition to checking the crop (and feel around carefully to see if you feel anything that might be a foreign object), I would also, if you didn't do it before, have someone help hold her and use a flashlight and get a really good look in her throat, just to be safe. The wheezing and crackling could be something stuck, aspirated, or a respiratory disease that is causing a partial obstruction, maybe from swelling. If something is stuck, then often they can dislodge it with a bit of time. Other than that, if it persists with no other symptoms then vet care would probably be best, if that's an option.