Two weeks eggbound, getting very thin

[ecocheapomom]

I have a 9 month old NHR that has been eggbound for about two weeks now. I have her on antibiotics, in the garage, heat lamp, with a nice friend and she has been holding pretty steady. She is still up and moving around and goes in the makeshift nesting box and seems to be trying desperately to lay her egg. She is actually less bloated than she was before and sometimes I think I can feel the egg in there. She does seem to be getting very thin and I don't see her eating very much. How long can she go like this? If she took a turn for the worse I would probably put her down, but I wish there was more I could do to help her. We have tried soaking her in warm water and all that, but not sure what else to do. Any advice?

 

[gsim]

I am a rookie to poultry but someone on this forum will step up and have an answer. You are making her as comfy as you can and that is important. I had to put one pullet down with a leg ailment that had her to where she could not stand. I think it was a midair collision with another chook. It was a sad thing for me to do being that she had never lived anywhere but a box in my garage.

 

[ecocheapomom]

She is still eating a bit here and there and I am wondering if there is something else I should be feeding her to help keep her going. Right now she has her regular feed and I have been giving her a mix of yogurt and applesauce every few days. She only takes a few pecks and then walks away. She is really being such a trooper, but I don't want her to suffer.

 

[oberhaslikid]

The last hen I had that was eggbound I got some corn oil and mixed in her mash so it was pretty wet and even poured in her water.The oil sat on top so that when she drank she would consume the oil after 24 hours she passed the egg.I had tried putting her in the bath tub in warm water to see if she would relax enough to pass it and it didnt work so I was desperate to help her and the corn oil worked.

 

[Oopoo]

I think I saw something somewhere that the person with a hen, same problem, actually broke the eggshell. They said something about having to be very careful so as to not cut the insides of the chicken. I would guess that there is something better though

 

[artsyrobin]

I had a problem with one of my banties last week with eggbinding, gave her a warm bath, then i used vaseline to lubricate her vent, massage her and gave her warm oatmeal. I have heard of giving them a crushed tums in their food, gives them extra calcium that helps relax them, haven't tried that- anyway, she laid her egg about an hour later- maybe that might help?

 

[loralei]

The poor darling! That must be terribly uncomfortable! Lots of good suggestions. I would try the oil in food and water suggestion. I've heard olive oil works well too. She'll need as much protein as you can get in her so she has the strength to push the egg out. I would offer her a scrambled egg.

I hope it passes soon!

 

[purpletree23]

If the above suggestion don't work (many of them do) I would take her to a vet to get her treated or humanly put her down. She will die a slow death unless you help her.

 

[loralei]

Hey ecocheapomom I just wanted to check in and see how your gal is doing? Has she passed that bad ol' egg yet? Been thinking about ya!

 

[ecocheapomom]

Hey Loralei! Thanks for thinking of us. No egg from my girl in the garage yet and I am beginning to wonder if it is eggbinding at all. I have tried all the suggestions and there never seems to be a change. The lump that I can feel seems to be less like a egg (smaller and not as hard). She is still holding steady. I see her eating and drinking and she is up and about. My main concerns are just how thin she is and that she just isn't laying. So I am just taking a wait and see stance for now. If she seems to take a dive I will probably put her down although I have never had to do this before and I'm not sure how I will feel should the time come. She is keeping my best girl, Bertha, company as she is regrowing feathers that she lost when the others began pecking her too much. I am concerned about reintroducing them to the flock, but I'll cross that bridge later.
In any event she and Bertha are comfy in the garage while to rest of the flock has to brave the snow so I know we are treating them to quite a vacation. I will update if there are any changes. Thanks!