Sick Girl!! She's not Egg bound - so what's going on??

[CluckCluck18]

She's definitely broody and it can take awhile to break it. I tried everyone's suggestions on my Olive Egger and nothing really worked. I put Olive out of the box before and after work and several times a day when I was off so she could eat and walk around but she went back as soon as she could. In the end it took almost 3 months to break it! After that, the rest of the girls picked on her a lot....it's like they forgot who she was, they treated her like a new addition. The other funny thing is that she forgot how to go to roost.....I have to go out every night and put her up! I'm just hoping she never does it again.....what a pain! God bless our funny, silly, quirky chickens!
I hope things go OK for you and that it doesn't take as long as it did for me.

 

[casportpony]

...also, if she is just broody, but hasn't laid now for days, should i worry about that or is that part of the broody process?

I had just had one that was acting broody and even incubated a peahen egg for 7 days,but then she started getting on and off her nest, like something wasn't right, so I checked her and she had what felt like a soft-shelled egg, so I gave her a calcium pill and overnight, while on the nest, she laid an egg. She's still not acting right, so I'm going to worm her and keep giving the calcium.


-Kathy

 

[casportpony]

Have you done a cloacal exam yet? You know, glove, KY Jelly...

-Kathy

 

[jewel4one]

The only thing i am trying is manually getting her up and out of the nest box in the am and pm. I use a cat box with a cover for their nest box...so when she gets in, i take off the cover too...trying to get her to not be too comfy in it. She acts soooo normal after i take her out to eat/drink/poop...but then seems so anxious to get back to it. I think i might try the cool water bath next...anyone else try that? we did the wire cage thing the first two days, but with warm water cause we thought she might be egg bound...might have to try that again minus the water.

 

[jewel4one]

uhhh...no. ew. not sure i would be comfortable with that...dont want to hurt her!

 

[casportpony]

uhhh...no. ew. not sure i would be comfortable with that...dont want to hurt her!

No offense, but "ew"? Are you serious? For her sake I hope she is just broody. I wish you luck.

-Kathy

 

[realsis]

You really should do the vent exam. Right now is not a time to be squeamish. Forgive me if this sounds rude but she is counting on you and the only way to know if she's not bound is to do what was suggested to you regarding the vent exam.there is NOTHING ew or gross about it
Its simply doing a necessary exam on your bird. Be adult about this. Forgive me if this sounds harsh but there is no reason to be disgusted over a necessary vent exam. You won't hurt her doing it. I have a broody right now and first thing I checked for was egg binding. I do wish you the best and do hope she is only broody! Sometimes we have to do things out of our comfort zone to be helpful. Just a thought. If egg binding is still in question gently do the exam. I know you can do it! Trust me if I can do it anyone can do it. Good luck.

 

[jewel4one]

You really should do the vent exam. Right now is not a time to be squeamish. Forgive me if this sounds rude but she is counting on you and the only way to know if she's not bound is to do what was suggested to you regarding the vent exam.there is NOTHING ew or gross about it
Its simply doing a necessary exam on your bird. Be adult about this. Forgive me if this sounds harsh but there is no reason to be disgusted over a necessary vent exam. You won't hurt her doing it. I have a broody right now and first thing I checked for was egg binding. I do wish you the best and do hope she is only broody! Sometimes we have to do things out of our comfort zone to be helpful. Just a thought. If egg binding is still in question gently do the exam. I know you can do it! Trust me if I can do it anyone can do it. Good luck.

I dont mean ew..as in gross...i mean, i am a newbee when it comes to having chickens and am clueless in the Vent check territory. not even sure what to do or where to begin with that one. I live, eat and breathe these chickens, just ask my husband, and yes, want to do all i can for them. I am willing to do what she needs...i love my girls.. I have read a ton on being egg bound, including here on the forum, and i just dont think that is it. However, if someone can tell me step by step what to do, and what to look for, i am ready and able to do the vent check. As i stated earlier, when out of the box, she is alert, eating, pooping, drinking, preening...just like she normally would. no mites that i can see...she is losing weight though...she was my biggest girl, and now i can tell she is thinner. She just wants to sit in the nest box...their coop is safe - they have three huge parts to it, so one of the reasons im not freaked that she isnt roosting with the other two right now...going to try the cool water bath today...and the vent check...just please tell me what to do and what i am feeling for! Thank you!!!!

 

[casportpony]

What is the cool water bath for? There is no reason one should ever need to do that, IMNSHO... Warm water bath I could understand, people do those to help with egg binding, but they're warm, not cold! If she is acting broody, not roosting and losing weight, she is probably egg bound or has some other reproductive issue like cancer, EYP, ascites or a combo or them. If you can't take her to a vet, study the pictures I posted, get a glove, some KY Jelly and gently check her vent for oddities. If you want to know what a healthy hen feels like, do another hen first, then her.

She *has* the symptoms of reproductive problems, not sure why you think she doesn't.

-Kathy

 

[realsis]

Let us know how things go.its awful to have a sick bird I know I have one with wry neck right now.I really wish you the best and pray she feels better soon! Keep us posted on what you find out with her exam. Good luck and best wishes!