*Update - Unsuccessful Spay. Anyone have experience with Suprelorin implant and/or spay? Egg yolk pe

[Luvmy9hens]

It is odd that Big Fatty's disposition has changed since the implant. It has been helpful that you have been keeping an eye on her and are aware of these changes. Maybe the vet would have some input as to what may be causing this. For the last few days, Ellie has been super hyper - much like her days as a young chick. Last night, I noticed that her comb was plump and flopped over again and was a bit concerned that she was once again on the decline. She seems more subdued today and not as perky. Her comb is very warm to the touch and she is holding her tail straight out. Right now, she is standing and shivering a little. I am thinking that she may have an egg forming in her system. It really knocks her out. I can always tell when she's getting ready to lay. I hope that she will be ok and that we don't have another emergency visit to the vet during the weekend.

I'd love to stay in touch! Keep me updated with Big Fatty's progress! She seems to have quite the personality! I loved reading about her antics!

 

[Luvmy9hens]

UPDATE: Ellie laid the egg sometime late last evening. I found it in her box this morning. It was small but double the size of the first egg that she laid on the 5th. It was perfectly formed and the shell was hard (normal). She is still not as perky and is now resting under her full-spectrum lamp. Last night before I put her in her box for the night, Ellie was drinking A LOT of water! This morning, she was more interested in food. Hopefully, all is well. I really do not want her laying every day. I will have to keep a log of how many times she lays and document her health in relation to the egg laying.

I read that the implant is placed in the neck. Is that correct? How much down time does the chicken experience and have you noticed any complications?

I was re-reading your earlier posts and something caught my eye. You had written, "On occasion I would add Mannapro Omega Egg Maker to their feed. I hope that didn't cause any of their issues!"

I bought the Manna-Pro Omega egg-maker a few days ago. I opened the bag. It smelled fresh and Ellie was eager to try some. I sat down and read the ingredients. I was horrified. There is a preservative in there called Ethoxyquin. This preservative has been banned in the EU and Australia. It cannot be used in foods for human consumption in the US. I immediately wrote to the company stating the information that I had found online and that those same articles state that there are safer, natural preservatives that can be used in place of Ethoxyquin. It seems that this preservative builds up and results in toxicity in the liver. A representative from Manna-Pro wrote back stating that she would pass my information on and that she would send me coupons for their organic layer feed which I use. This is an important lesson for me and that I will research what's IN the product before feeding to my hens. After all, WE are consuming what the animal is consuming!

 

[Wol1]

This has happened with my girls, too! What is going on? Two of them had soft shell eggs break inside. We also have found many soft shell/fragile eggs recently. My girls had an internal parasite infection, which I treated with Safeguard. I assume they weren't assimilating adequate nutrients due to the parasites and that caused the soft shell eggs. I took the first to a vet because her abdomen was very swollen and she looked miserable. She was "pooping" a hideous yellow, watery, curdled stuff.He thought she had a soft shell egg break inside her. He gave her a long-term anti-inflammatory and anti-biotic. She has improved considerably in the last week, and I took her back yesterday for a recheck. He didn't find any evidence of an egg in her, hard or soft and repeated the injections. The other was walking around looking odd and I noticed part of a soft shell egg hanging from her vent. Took her in and posted and researched what to do. I ended up with disposable gloves, lubed up, reaching in her to remove the rest of the egg. I found the rest adhered to the inside wall of her ? cloaca? Gently loosened and removed. There was a lot of egg residue in her, so used another method pointed out on the forums, a turkey baster, and cleaned her out. (It was a lot like a douche -sorry guys). I gave her penicillin shots. She is much better.

What feed are you using? I have been giving them Dumor layer pellets from Tractor Supply Co. They have calcium free choice and appear to have been consuming it. A few days ago I started giving them eggshells that I toasted in the oven and then crushed. They have been gobbling down a LOT of it. I think that form would be quick to be assimilated due to size. Egg production is still down. The two with the broken eggs have not laid eggs in over a week. I won't be calm until I see them lay a normal egg.

I appreciate the information about the implant. I feared the first had begun laying internally and that I would have to euthanize her. I'm glad to know there's a treatment available, as they are all individuals to me and I love them so much. If I'm down, I just spend a few minutes with them and they've got me smiling again. Priceless.

 

[Luvmy9hens]

This has happened with my girls, too! What is going on? Two of them had soft shell eggs break inside. We also have found many soft shell/fragile eggs recently. My girls had an internal parasite infection, which I treated with Safeguard. I assume they weren't assimilating adequate nutrients due to the parasites and that caused the soft shell eggs. I took the first to a vet because her abdomen was very swollen and she looked miserable. She was "pooping" a hideous yellow, watery, curdled stuff.He thought she had a soft shell egg break inside her. He gave her a long-term anti-inflammatory and anti-biotic. She has improved considerably in the last week, and I took her back yesterday for a recheck. He didn't find any evidence of an egg in her, hard or soft and repeated the injections. The other was walking around looking odd and I noticed part of a soft shell egg hanging from her vent. Took her in and posted and researched what to do. I ended up with disposable gloves, lubed up, reaching in her to remove the rest of the egg. I found the rest adhered to the inside wall of her ? cloaca? Gently loosened and removed. There was a lot of egg residue in her, so used another method pointed out on the forums, a turkey baster, and cleaned her out. (It was a lot like a douche -sorry guys). I gave her penicillin shots. She is much better.

What feed are you using? I have been giving them Dumor layer pellets from Tractor Supply Co. They have calcium free choice and appear to have been consuming it. A few days ago I started giving them eggshells that I toasted in the oven and then crushed. They have been gobbling down a LOT of it. I think that form would be quick to be assimilated due to size. Egg production is still down. The two with the broken eggs have not laid eggs in over a week. I won't be calm until I see them lay a normal egg.

I appreciate the information about the implant. I feared the first had begun laying internally and that I would have to euthanize her. I'm glad to know there's a treatment available, as they are all individuals to me and I love them so much. If I'm down, I just spend a few minutes with them and they've got me smiling again. Priceless.

Just remember not to eat the eggs for a while after the hens have been treated with antibiotics. It will remain in their systems so you do not want to be consuming the eggs of those treated. I am using PURELY organic and GMO feeds now and hope to see an improvement. You can get Nature's Best and Manna-Pro organics at Tractor Supply. Many times it is in stock but not on the shelf. You have to ask.

 

[mg15]

So very sorry about Zelda. It is a hard surgery, my vet told me that too.
I have Austrolorps and I love their eyes. Big brown eyes and with such a nice demeanor.
Sorry.
mg

 

[rides2far]

Some people would think you are crazy to spend so much $ on a chicken, but I can certainly understand! We haven't had any medical issues yet, but I can tell you we spent $2500 on an old pit bull that had a rattlesnake bite, & I'm not even going to tell you what I spent on my endurance horse when he foundered. My babies are only 12 weeks old, & I can't believe how attached I am. Good luck to you all with your sick ones.

 

[kculbert]

Interesting. I haven't used the Manna-Pro Omega Egg Maker in a while. I am going to throw it away and just keep them on as natural diet as I can. There. was no down time on the implant. They gave her anesthesia, placed it in her neck and I waited there until she was ready to go home. I let her out with the other girls as soon as we got home.

 

[Luvmy9hens]

This has happened with my girls, too! What is going on? Two of them had soft shell eggs break inside. We also have found many soft shell/fragile eggs recently. My girls had an internal parasite infection, which I treated with Safeguard. I assume they weren't assimilating adequate nutrients due to the parasites and that caused the soft shell eggs. I took the first to a vet because her abdomen was very swollen and she looked miserable. She was "pooping" a hideous yellow, watery, curdled stuff.He thought she had a soft shell egg break inside her. He gave her a long-term anti-inflammatory and anti-biotic. She has improved considerably in the last week, and I took her back yesterday for a recheck. He didn't find any evidence of an egg in her, hard or soft and repeated the injections. The other was walking around looking odd and I noticed part of a soft shell egg hanging from her vent. Took her in and posted and researched what to do. I ended up with disposable gloves, lubed up, reaching in her to remove the rest of the egg. I found the rest adhered to the inside wall of her ? cloaca? Gently loosened and removed. There was a lot of egg residue in her, so used another method pointed out on the forums, a turkey baster, and cleaned her out. (It was a lot like a douche -sorry guys). I gave her penicillin shots. She is much better.

What feed are you using? I have been giving them Dumor layer pellets from Tractor Supply Co. They have calcium free choice and appear to have been consuming it. A few days ago I started giving them eggshells that I toasted in the oven and then crushed. They have been gobbling down a LOT of it. I think that form would be quick to be assimilated due to size. Egg production is still down. The two with the broken eggs have not laid eggs in over a week. I won't be calm until I see them lay a normal egg.

I appreciate the information about the implant. I feared the first had begun laying internally and that I would have to euthanize her. I'm glad to know there's a treatment available, as they are all individuals to me and I love them so much. If I'm down, I just spend a few minutes with them and they've got me smiling again. Priceless.

I HAD been using Purina Layena with Omega - 3. I did not notice any harmful preservatives listed but the main ingredients are vague: "Grain products, Grain by-products, and plant protein products" - the remaining ingredients are the supplements. I switched to Manna-Pro organic.

 

[kculbert]

Thank you mg15. I love Australorp eyes too!

Rides2far, my pets are part of the reason I'm still waiting on a kitchen remodel 14 years after moving into our house! Oh well...

Wol1, sorry you are going through this too. I have a third hen starting to lay weird eggs. I am wondering if it's their age. Only 2 1/2 but I have read that egg production starts to decline between 2-3 years. I can live without their eggs but sure would like to avoid the health issues.

 

[Luvmy9hens]

Marianne,

I give them berries, boss, some scratch and mealworms as treats. I even have my own mealworm farm but sometimes supplement with Happy Hen dried mealworms.

I like the idea of raising my own mealworms for the hens. How do you do it?

I was listening to the weather reports and heard that there is severe flooding in and around Houston. I hope you, your family and pets are OK.

My husband came home mid day and found a baby chick on the coop floor. Its eyes were closed and it was on its back. The poor thing apparently hatched either overnight or some time early this morning and was either pushed out or fell out of the nesting box which was elevated about 18 inches. He sent me a text stating that I was a momma. Since I was still at work, I was confused. He then told me about the little chick and that it was very weak. He brought it inside, made up a box, filled it with pine shavings, found the heat lamp and set that up, then he hand fed the chick some water. It did drink as the temperature outside was 91 degrees today. He could not tell if the chick had been trampled by the other hens or rooster. After he had everything secure, he left for work.

On the way home, he bought 4 different brands of chick starter because he did not know which one I would prefer. We arrived home at the same time and he immediately picked up the chick and held it for a while... so cute. I am glad that he cares for the chickens as much as I do.