Sick chicken, cheesy poop, prolapse when pooping

[Jciarmom]

I need help! My 13 month old chicken, who I suspect does not normally lay eggs, has been sick. I noticed she was prolapsed when trying to poop a few days ago. I separated her, brought her inside and am keeping her in a dark cage. She isn't able to get much poop out (is straining, not being very successful), and when she does it was whitish/yellowish with greens. I have given her one to two Epsom salt baths per day, given her a little bit of scrambled egg to eat. This morning she seems to be breathing a bit heavy. I'll post a picture of her last night's poop if I can. Not eating much, she at least has been making those quiet cooing noises last night and this morning, but she was quieter in the beginning. Her belly is big and somewhat firm

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Do you have vet care?

Here's how to post PHOTOS

Are you able to keep the prolapse moist with an ointment - you can use an anti-inflammatory cream, hemorrhoid ointment or honey. Any exposed tissue need to be moist or it will dry up and die.
Can you feel is an egg is stuck inside the prolapse?

 

[Jciarmom]

 

[Jciarmom]

Thank you Wyorp Rock for responding. The couple of times I gently pushed IL the prolapse back in it was squishy, nothing hard inside that I felt. Would I need to insert my finger inside to check for eggshells? The prolapsed tissue always goes back in after she's done pushing, so I don't think I need to worry about it drying out. She's breathing a bit harder today. She ate a few peeled, cut up grapes today, but rejected the scrambled egg (she ate some of that yesterday). When she drinks, she makes a kind of coughing, chirping sound (started today) I don't have a vet, but I'm going to call around tomorrow. The husband doesn't want to spend a lot of money on this, though I'm wondering if the cheesy looking stuff is vent gleet, but I don't know what's causing the straining. BTW, this all started Friday, at least that's when I noticed a problem.

 

[Jciarmom]

 

[Wyorp Rock]

How does her abdomen feel - soft, hard, squishy, fluid filled, bloated, swollen, etc.?
Is she crop emptying overnight?

The poop I see quite a bit of urates and what could be a bit of egg matter - is that what you are calling cheesy?
If she has not been laying for quite a while, then she may be laying internally or have a reproductive disorder. Salpingitis, Egg Yolk Peritonitis, cancer or tumors are common in laying hens. Any of these can cause some of the symptoms you describe.

 

[rebrascora]

I agree with @Wyorp Rock in that it sounds like a reproductive issue that will unfortunately probably not end well. The fact that such a young bird has not been laying eggs regularly but clearly has a very red comb which indicates that she is ovulating means that either those eggs are being laid internally and dropping into her abdominal cavity or have become infected in her oviduct and are causing a blockage of "lash egg" material which she is straining to pass.
Can you tell us what you feed your flock including main feed (brand) and treats? Sometimes heavier breeds like Buff Orps are prone to becoming fat if their diet is just slightly too high in carbs and that can certainly lead to prolapse and other issues like internal laying or salpingitis and ascites (water belly) as well as Fatty Liver Haemorrhagic Syndrome and many of these conditions are fatal long term. It is very difficult to know that a bird is fat or obese because of all those feathers and most people don't even consider it can be a problem. I'm not saying your bird is carrying too much fat but it is something to be aware of with heavier breeds particularly and be very disciplined about keeping treats to a minimum.

 

[rebrascora]

The heavy breathing is often due to a build up of fluids (ascites) or a mass in the abdominal cavity putting pressure on the lungs and air sacs. If she has ascites, then draining her may give her some short term relief but whatever is causing the ascites will most likely eventually become fatal. If you cup your hand and feel between her legs and then compare to a similar breed healthy bird you should be able to feel if she has abdominal swelling. Ascites hangs low between the legs and they often start to walk with a wide stance. Salpingitis (infected impaction of the oviduct) tends to cause a more solid swelling just below the vent. The bird will usually exhibit soiled butt feathers because poop can no longer drop free of the body due to the swelling under the vent.

 

[Jciarmom]

The stuff in the poop does look eggy to me also. So, I haven't been feeding her much because she was straining when pooping and I was hoping she'd be able to empty out. So I'm not sure about emptying the crop. She has had Styrofoam in her crop for a very long time, fyi. Her abdomen does feel very full. She is smaller than one of her sisters, and the other two were about the same size as her before she became sick, but now she feels really skinny. I feed them Nutrena Nature Wise Hearty Hen 18 %. They get some table scraps, but not much lately because they've been able to forage more often. Also get seed/scratch when they go back to their pen as a reward, but not a lot. I have to go out now, I'll try to answer more questions when I get back. Thanks for the responses!

 

[Jciarmom]

So I found a reasonable vet and took Luna there today. They removed 150 cc's of fluid from her abdomen, and her breathing is easier now. Vet says it's likely cancer or broken/internally laid or some other egg issue, neither has a good prognosis. When my 11 year old daughter, a cancer survivor, heard cancer as a possibility, she said through tears "you didn't give up on me when I had cancer". How could I put her down after that? So we are giving antibiotics and hoping that she will get better. If she doesn't, I'll bring her back to the vet, as I don't want her to suffer needlessly.