Strange yellow mass below vent of Buff Orpington

greenNaugahyde

Hatching
May 13, 2019
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Hello.
This morning my family found our 4-year-old (estimate) Buff Orpington had a huge yellow mass below her vent. She had tons of maggots feeding off of the wound, which is obviously infected. She surprisingly wasn't very affected by this mass. She is breathing heavily and is pretty tired, though she had moments of energy throughout the day. We picked the wound clean of as many maggots as possible, and cannot currently find anymore. We are keeping her in a pet carrier in our garage with the blinds open to let in sunlight. We've fed her water with some vitamins, and sprayed the wound with this. We also gave her a bath in Epson salts. What should we do to get rid of the mass, what is it, is it vent prolapse? How should we prevent it from happening in the future?
 
Wow. That sounds nasty. Is it vent gleet that has been left and then caused the skin to become infected? By yellow, I assume you mean puss and not what might be yolk content (ie internal laying)?

Are you in the US? If so, you can get antibiotic ointment (I got some last year when I came over as we cannot get it here in the UK). This stuff works miracles as far as our experience goes. Works well on bumblefoot and any wounds that become infected.

I think you are doing everything right by cleaning it up and bathing. Don't know about the spray but if it is antisceptic/antibacterial, I don't find it as effective as the antibiotic stuff. We've only got half a tube left now, so we are using it carefully as I won't be back in the US until next Jan.

Good luck!
 
Welcome to BYC. You are describing flystrike, which happens during warm weather when dropppings are on the vent area, or flies have attacked a wound or injury. It can be deadly if the maggots become internalized. Maggots may hatch out for a day or two after discovery. Frequent baths in warm soapy water to remove the maggots, and using a disinfectant and plain Neosporin ointment on the area is best. Try to remove any dead tissue in the bath. Get the hen drinking some electrolytes or Poultry NutriDrench, and offer cooked egg and watery feed to get her strength up. Here is a good article to read:
https://the-chicken-chick.com/flystrike-in-backyard-chickens-causes/
 

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