Sick Hen - Laying fatty strange material

[Littlegardenjoys]

Hello,

Our boss chicken, 'Racing Stripe', was found yesterday morning to be lethargic with a squishy crop and having soft to runny poops. She is a 3.5 year old golden comet and has been having issues with laying soft eggs for quite a while now. She doesn't like to eat eggshells or oyster shell. Yesterday she did pass a soft and twisted up piece of egg shell. In this situation, we would normally see the hen bounce back after finally passing a soft egg. Though she has not improved and today first passed a fatty piece of material that can be seen in the image that has the poop with it and then later passed the other material, which maybe looks a bit like lash egg (but not sure). This is a totally new symptom for us and was wondering if anyone could identify what it is or what might be going on with her?

She has not been eating or drinking. We were initially thinking a crop issue and she has been syringed some coconut oil along with a light crop massage. There are still some contents in the crop. The contents are soft, but not watery. She has had quite a few poops, with the last one being small, but didn't look too bad. Thank you and please share any insights!

 

[Sally PB]

then later passed the other material, which maybe looks a bit like lash egg

If you still have it, cut it in half. Lash eggs are actually pus, which for chickens is a solid, cheese-y like substance, often in visible layers.

If she's passing lash material, she has salpingitis. Search this site for information/treatment.

 

[Bawkbok]

Crop issues can occur with some reproductive issues. Red sex links are known for reproductive issues due to their breeding as prolific layers. The fact that yours is 3.5 years old is awesome.

Salpingitis is a bacterial or viral infection of the oviduct. This affects egg production such as lash eggs (which aren't really eggs), soft shelled eggs, and abnormal shaped eggs. There are many diseases that can cause this; MG, E.Coli, Salmonella, influenza and infectious bronchitis, to name a few.

Internal laying is where yolks are released into the abdomen vs down the reproductive tract. Fluid from the yolk builds up in the belly, eventually hardening and resulting in an Egg Yolk Peritonitis infection.

Check the body condition for weight loss. They tend to eat less, lose muscle tone and their keel bone becomes increasingly prominent.
Check the belly, the area below their vent and between their legs. You're checking for firmness or hardness that usually accompanies these two conditions.

Vent and Poop - what does it look like? Excessively watery, containing mucous, bright yellow or green poop are cause for concern. Dirty vents and feathers caked with goo can be caused by numerous issues but usually accompany EYP; at least in our experience with our Golden Comet who suffered for months before we realized what the cause was. Her behavior changed gradually until it became more consistent and apparent she was not feeling well (less chicken behavior of scratching, running).

How to treat? There is no cure for EYP but you can provide Amoxicillan to help with secondary infections, which might help them feel better but won't cure the underlying issue.

If she won't eat, you can try some scrambled egg or provide wet feed by adding water to make sort of a paste / mash. Many of them go crazy for the mash. We mix scrambled egg in the mash and it's gone in seconds.

Hope your girl feels better soon. You can provide electrolytes in the water to help with the lethargy. If she is not drinking at the community bowl, offer some on her beak a drop at a time or put her beak in a small bowl to get her to drink.

Let us know how she is doing.

 

[Littlegardenjoys]

I can tell that she has weight loss, though normally seems like an equally vigorous eater as the other girls. I don't notice any significant hardness in her belly. It does seem like she is a bit more swollen in that area compared to the other girls.

She is drinking on her own occasionally and is happy to have a little food. Yesterday she didn't mind some egg with mashed pellets, but today ate a small amount of dry pellets over the mashed or egg.

Her poop was more runny with yellow and brighter green in it at the start, but seems to be alternating between what looks like fairly normal but small poops now and then small puddles of white and slightly yellow mucous.

Her crop is getting smaller, but didn't fully empty overnight.

The vets we have been to in our area with chicken issues have been okay, but normally get recommendations from them that we would find online. Though, if we want antibiotics, have to take her in to get a prescription.

Thank you for the replies.

 

[Bawkbok]

Unfortunately, your last update doesn't sound good. The poops are concerning and her diminished food consumption makes sense if she is having crop issues. It does sound like she may have something reproductive going on. Your description is what we experienced with our Golden Comet who had EYP. We allowed her to be a chicken as long as possible until her bad days out numbered her good days, essentially, until every day was a bad day with diminishing interest in doing chicken things.

If her crop is not emptying, you can try bits of coconut oil. Put it directly in her mouth. It helps to have it cold and make small pill like sized bites. Or melt a teaspoon or so in her scrambled eggs and mash if she'll eat.

Watch her vent for messiness and clean as needed using mild soap (I prefer Dawn) and keep her clean. You don't want her bothered by insects or flies. If you think she'll tolerate or enjoy a bath, you can soak her in a warm epsom salt bath for about 5-10 minutes. Depending on the temperatures where you live you may need to dry her feathers vs. letting them air dry.
I personally don't bath the girls unless it is absolutely necessary as they don't seem to enjoy it and if they are sickly and not feeling well, it could further stress them out.

Many folks here order meds from the following:
https://jedds.com/collections/pigeon

You'll need to know your bird's weight. If you have a kitchen scale that would work or take your weight without holding the bird, then again with holding her and subtract the difference.

I hope she turns the corner for the better and she may for a short time, but if it's reproductive, the same symptoms may persist.