Reproductive infection

[Chickenmama32]

Hello everyone. I have a hybrid hen that is about 3.5 years old. She hasn’t laid an egg in months. She had some abdominal swelling that presented a few months ago. I ended up giving her amoxicillin and it cleared up. Since then I’ve given her I think three doses of amoxicillin. The last round being a little over 2 months ago. That time I have her 14 days worth of the antibiotic. Cleared it up. She lives on my back porch and free ranges in the evenings with my flock bc they never accepted her back after she was initially sick. She started with lethargy and not eating a few days ago. I waited a few days to see if she got better. She did not so I have given her the initial day 250mg of amoxicillin and yesterday she got 500mg. She has since perked up. Has anyone else experienced a persistent reproductive infection? At some point the amoxicillin isn’t going to work I’m sure. Is there something else I could try? Thank you!

 

[Eggcessive]

It is nice that she has responded to the amoxicillin each time that you have treated her. You may want to get some enrofloxacin, a better antibiotic that treats more types of bacteria. It is not usually given to chickens by vets, but some may prescribe it quietly. You can get it from Jedds.com in tablet or 10% liquid. She may have salpingitis which can lead to coelomitis (egg yolk peritonitis.) Is her lower belly enlarged now, and if so, is it squishy or firm? Have you ever tried to drain her abdomen in case of ascites (water belly?) I usually don’t do that, since it is fatal eventually, but some do if there is labored breathing. Is her crop emptying overnight? Does she have any lice or mites on her?

 

[Susan Skylark]

I would not recommend ‘draining the belly’ as peritonitis is a very real danger and the fluid won’t be long in coming back. The problem may not be primarily bacterial, could be a tumor or something with secondary infection. If she is being treated by a vet, enroflaxacin or baytril can probably be prescribed if other drugs are not working and she is officially not a food producing animal (read pet), FDA gets very cranky when baytril is used off label in food producing animals. But if it is not primarily bacterial in nature no antibiotic will fix it, also there are not good and better antibiotics, there are only different types that treat specific bacteria types (and resistance varies widely) and that can penetrate various tissues or be given in various situations. You can’t say penicillin is a bad antibiotic because it won’t cure bird flu (a virus), when it doesn’t affect viruses or because you can’t give it orally in mature ruminants (breaks down in rumen). Interestingly, in beef world people have been using ‘better’ antibiotics lately and moving away from penicillin and sulfa (as resistance was common) and now those drugs are ‘working’ again as they haven’t been used in awhile and the resistance levels in the bacterial population have decreased while the ‘better’ antibiotics are now developing resistance. Please be very careful in giving out significant medical advice if you are not a trained professional.

 

[Eggcessive]

I am aware that vets are reluctant to prescribe enrofloxacin, since it is against FDA regs, but many of the more experienced folks here have been prescribed it or have used it on their own for many years. I usually warn them about this but aside from amoxicillin, there is little that can be used. Most of these hens have stopped laying eggs, and I give a long egg withdrawal time, at least a month, although in some studies the time is shorter. It is used in some other countries. I don’t advocate using any antibiotic unless you know what you are doing. The risk of antibiotic resistant bacteria is real.

 

[ChicNmom]

Has anyone else experienced a persistent reproductive infection?

I have an 11 year old hen that has had a few rounds of enrofloxacin when her abdomen starts to swell and she shows signs of reproductive infection. I have not had to drain her as the antibiotic works for her and the watery swelling subsides.

Since she isn't laying you don't have to worry about egg withdrawal unless she starts laying again

 

[Chickenmama32]

It is nice that she has responded to the amoxicillin each time that you have treated her. You may want to get some enrofloxacin, a better antibiotic that treats more types of bacteria. It is not usually given to chickens by vets, but some may prescribe it quietly. You can get it from Jedds.com in tablet or 10% liquid. She may have salpingitis which can lead to coelomitis (egg yolk peritonitis.) Is her lower belly enlarged now, and if so, is it squishy or firm? Have you ever tried to drain her abdomen in case of ascites (water belly?) I usually don’t do that, since it is fatal eventually, but some do if there is labored breathing. Is her crop emptying overnight? Does she have any lice or mites on her?

I did think about trying that but I wasn’t completely sure how it compares to the amoxicillin. Thankfully the first time was the only time her abdomen was enlarged. I thought I would have to drain it but it cleared up completely. It is not enlarged now. She just presents with mostly the same symptoms when she’s sick. She even went outside and free ranger today willingly. I usually order from bird pal but I’ll check Jedds as well. I have 7 days of the amoxicillin. It’ll take a few days to get the new meds. Should I do 7 days of the amoxicillin and then the enrofloxacin? If so how many days of it? Thank you so much. I’m going to keep trying to keep her alive for as long as I can.

 

[Eggcessive]

Amoxicillin dosage is 250 mg for a 5 pound chicken twice a day for 7-10 days, so I would see how she responds to it this time. If she still is struggling, use your own judgement. It has become hard to get amoxicillin OTC this year, but my vet just prescribed it recently for my dog. They sell a 20% amox for pigeons, but that is not strong enough.

 

[Chickenmama32]

Amoxicillin dosage is 250 mg for a 5 pound chicken twice a day for 7-10 days, so I would see how she responds to it this time. If she still is struggling, use your own judgement. It has become hard to get amoxicillin OTC this year, but my vet just prescribed it recently for my dog. They sell a 20% amox for pigeons, but that is not strong enough.

I found it online through tractor supply but then couldn’t find it again. Thankfully I’ve ordered it from bird pal with no problems. They have been great. I’ll order the other and hopefully not have to use it this go around.

 

[Eggcessive]

They sell 10mg tablets, but that is way too low a dosage. Most chickens should get 50-57 mg per pound twice a day.
https://birdpalproducts.com/product...CNzmGiNop06wazJouIP-hQPtf5jYQYCjAUYxwL2UtzC8B

 

[Sally PB]

I treated one of my chickens for salpingitis (lash egg) last March. She responded well to a course of amoxicillin, and I documented everything in this thread:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/soft-egg-shell-stuck-in-vent.1611362/

I can't get any more amoxicillin without a vet's prescription, so I also looked into an alternate treatment, lotus leaf extract. This is the post where I talk about that, with a link to the study where I found the information.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/soft-egg-shell-stuck-in-vent.1611362/page-3#post-27594857

Pip, the hen in question, hasn't laid an egg since the end of the thread (that I know for certain was hers, anyway), and is still here. She's nearly done with her molt, so she may start laying again next spring. Or not; either way, she is my little Pippy.