Sick Hen..egg bound? Something else? What can I do?

[Dparish032]

Pepper was given to us so I’m not certain of her age. I’m guessing she’s about 4-5. I’ve never been certain what eggs are hers...

I’ve posted pictures of her bum. For the most part she is acting normal, just laying down more. Occasionally I’ve seen her with her tail feathers down.

What is her behavior like? Is she acting sick? Tail low and flat? What color is her poop? Runny? Normal? Has she had a history of egg issues? Soft shell eggs? Shell less eggs? Deformed eggs? When was the last tme she laid an egg?

How old is she? Does she have any discharge from her vent?

 

[Dparish032]

When she walks or stands, is her stance wide, legs apart? Waddle like a penguin?

 

[Dottypotty]

In my humble opinion she doesn't look egg bound to me, I could be wrong which I'm not afraid of being lol. I had a girl egg bound for weeks and her tail was always pointed down, walked as if she was like a penguin. Apart of me still thinks it's a micarcle she's still alive, the only thing that got her to finally lay weirdly was warm mashed potato with vitamin C crushed up added with poultry spice powder. No not tons of potato, just a little. Warm salty baths didn't help or anything, not even lubricating her. Hope this helps somewhat, just talking from my experience.

 

[azygous]

My money is on EYP. Egg yolk peritonitis. It's a chronic infection, and like salpingitis, doesn't always respond well to antibiotic treatment. It's not easy to tell from a two dimensional photo, but she could have ascites, too. That really just means she's on her way to organ failure as the infection overwhelms her system.

Unless she's a cherished favorite, treatment at this stage would be intense and involved, antibiotic and draining the abdominal fluid, and as @aart pointed out, it would only prolong suffering and put off the inevitable by a few weeks.

 

[Ebony Rose]

Sad to agree. Judging from these photos, and the added information that she's perhaps 4 or 5 years old (an old girl), prognosis is not good. Usually, by the time that a hen is this sick, it's much too late for them (no point in candy coating it). Sadly, they can go from seeming perfectly normal to deathly ill in the snap of your fingers. If she's a cherished member of your feathered family, I'd keep her as comfortable as possible and wash her bum to avoid fly strike... that's all she needs, another problem, right? You'll need to determine when her quality of life is so poor that it's simply not worth her suffering, and then do what must be done to ease that suffering.
Consider if you wish to do (or have done) a necropsy when she passes. The process is not much different than processing a bird for your dinner table, except that you pay much closer attention to what the condition of her internal organs are. The process has brought me comfort by having a much clearer understanding of what went wrong. I learned how to do this by watching youtube videos on the subject. I live in Panama. I have been unable to find a veterinarian that's willing to help chickens here even while living, (apparently a chicken is beneath contempt), so asking for a necropsy was out of the question.
I'm sorry that you and your girl are going through this. I will pray that she has more better days than bad.

 

[Dparish032]

Thank you all for your responses. She is walking around and hanging with her lady friends like she is ok, but her bum still looks so bad. This is after a warm soak and massage today. What else can I do for her!

 

[azygous]

It still appears to me to be a reproductive infection. The swelling and stretching of that area below the vent causes baldness in lots of cases. The nature of her poop would be a significant clue if you could post a photo of her stools.

 

[Dparish032]

Here are two recent pics. She also had one really watery with some blood in it.

Thank you all for your responses. She is walking around and hanging with her lady friends like she is ok, but her bum still looks so bad. This is after a warm soak and massage today.

 

[coach723]

Salpingitis, EYP, cancers, etc. can have very similar symptoms, but the prognosis is equally poor. The bloated abdomen, whether it is ascites, infectious matter building up, tumors/cysts, or a combination of those things, is generally a sign that her time left is limited. I've lost birds to all of those and often you don't know the definite answer until necropsy. If she is still eating and drinking and acting fairly normal, then I leave them with the flock. Once they go off food and water, isolate themselves, stop doing normal chicken things, are obviously feeling bad and uncomfortable, or are attacked by the flock, then I euthanize. For fluid build up in the abdomen, if you don't want to try draining (I honestly rarely drain due to risks and temporary nature of it) then you can try giving this:

This is a herbal liver detox liquid which I have found to give some relief sometimes in cases of ascites. It is also temporary, but less invasive and less risk of shock. It's available at health food stores and online, it has to be refrigerated once opened and is good for 6 months. Dose I use is 4 ml per day for up to 7 days. Once it's refrigerated then let your dose come to room temperature before giving it, don't give it cold. If it works and helps give some relief, then you can repeat if/when the ascites recur. I think it's very likely that your bird has pretty advanced illness, so nothing may really help. The pressure also makes it hard for them to push droppings out, so often birds with reproductive problems will have dirty vents or feathers below. It is also very uncomfortable for them when handled, so be gentle and try not to put pressure on the abdomen. There is also risk of an internal rupture from a fall or hard landing from the pressure inside. I'm so sorry.

 

[azygous]

@coach723 nails it.

From the appearance of her poop, she's still active and eating. Is that correct? She still has some living ahead of her, but I suggest you weigh her now for a benchmark. Then keep an eye on her weight, behavior and poop.

She will let you know she's finished living when she quits eating, loses weight, becomes lethargic, puffs herself up, and her poop is white and watery and has only green bile in it. At that point, she is asking you to end it for her.