Swollen Vent; Abscess???

[Casadolce]

We have a 1 yo Black Austrolorpe with a swollen vent--actually, it looks like she has an egg hanging out, but upon closer inspection it appears to be swollen tissue. I haven't gotten close enough to know if the lump is hard, hot, etc. I know she laid an egg today, and she's been perfectly active and happy; eating and drinking in our 99 degree weather here in central NC.

Any wisdom you can share will be most welcome!

 

[arlee453]

Do a search for 'prolapse and vent'

Sounds like she has a slight prolapse...

 

[Casadolce]

Thank you! Prolapse makes sense.

Wish me luck!

 

[Jenski]

The forum folks seem to have had relative success lately with warm "sitz-baths" for prolapses. If your hen is easy to handle, you might try that. That would be my first choice, as it not only relaxes the vent, it helps clean off any mess that has accumulated.

I would also keep the hen quiet and separated from the others until she is healed, to prevent pecking.

Good luck! Please keep us posted.


Jen in TN

 

[Casadolce]

I discovered the hen is actually a pullet, so I suspect she is egg-bound. Last night we isolated her and applied preparation H. This morning I gave her a 10 minute sitz-bath. Tonight she still has a sizeable bulge under the vent, but she was active during the day, eating and drinking. Except for the bulge she appears perfectly healthy and happy.

Thank you for your guidance; I'll keep you posted.

 

[Casadolce]

Good news! Pullet laid an enormous egg early this a.m. Poor thing; that had to have hurt; it's the size of an extra-large egg usually laid by my older hens. The sitz-bath seems to have worked wonders, but I'll be adding unsulphured molasses and extra oyster shell/ground up eggshell to try to prevent another episode. I've read hot weather can be a culprit, and we have plenty of that right now.

Thank you for your guidance!
Susan in Wake Forest, NC

 

[Jenski]

Glad to hear your hen is doing better. Sounds like you did all the right things!


Jen in TN