vent prolapse

[valegal74]

Hi everyone - my barred rock (about 10 months old) has been a little quieter these days and not eating as much, mostly standing (not sitting) on a perch in the run. Initially I thought it was because it we're going through a cold snap, but today upon inspection, noticed she actually has a vent prolapse. I only figured this out via Google, so I'm a total newbie.

I've been reading about giving them a warm bath, etc but given that it is so cold outside (-10C/14F), do I bring her inside instead? I'm just not sure that the sudden temperature change is necessarily a good thing. I did use some warm water on some paper towels and tried to press it back in, and it did seem to shrink in a bit. Any other suggestions? She has been laying eggs about every other day, even in this cold weather. The last time she laid an egg was on Friday.

 

[staceyj]

It would be best if you could post a good photo so people can help you with suggestions.

Prolapses are serious but can really run the gamut as far as degrees of protrusion.
Regardless of the weather, She needs to come inside for at least a day or two.

Dog crate, box, laundry basket ...in a warm, semi dark, quiet place.

If you don’t and she has flock mates, the risk of a horrible pecking injury or even canablization is very likely.
You’ll need to:
First, with lubricant on your finger, do an internal check to see if she’s eggbound.

Give her a nice warm soak with a fistful of Epsom salts if you have it.

Give her a dose of human oral calcium like caltrate if you have it, or Tums If you don’t. You can smash them up and add it to yogert, scrambled eggs etc.

preparation H or hydrocortisone cream in and on the vent will sometimes take the swelling down significantly. Gently push the protrusion back in. You might need to bind her vent temporarily to encourage it to stay inside her body.

That tissue can dry up and die if left out in the air so it is very important that it be kept moist with whatever you have on hand , even antibiotic ointment, personal lubricant, or cooking oil.

 

[staceyj]

A photo of her posture from the side would help tell the story as well as a good photo of the actual prolapse.

 

[Eggcessive]

Great info by @staceyj
I agree with bringing her inside for a warm soak and a calium tablet. You may also just take a whole egg, shell and all, cooked or raw, and process it in a food processor or blender for calcium and vitamin D. Warm mild soapy water is fine if you don’t have Epsom salts. Here are a couple of good links with pictures and more info:

https://the-chicken-chick.com/prolapse-vent-causes-treatment-graphic/

https://www.beautyofbirds.com/Prolapse.htm

 

[valegal74]

Ok thanks. I'll get the basement bathroom set up and put her in there. She only has two other flockmates and they're too afraid of her to actually bother her... so far anyway!

As for calcium, I don't have any of the aforementioned items, but I do have crushed oyster shell. Would that be ok?

 

[Eggcessive]

My chickens will eat crushed egg shell before they will eat oyster shell. If you use either, give a bit of cooked egg yolk for the vitamin D. Eggs with shells on have calcium and the yolk has vitamin D which helps the calcium become utilized. Tums and Rolaids also have calcium.

 

[valegal74]

Okay, here are a couple of photos after I gave her a quick bath with Epsom salt. I had cut her feathers around her vent as they had quite a bit of poop around them. I should mention that she had a relatively "normal" looking poop soon after I gave her a bath.

Thanks in advance for all of your advice so far!

 

[Eggcessive]

She has the upright, tail down stance of possibly being egg bound or having a reproductive disorder. I would feel an inch inside her vent with one finger, in case she is egg bound.

 

[valegal74]

Ok, I'll have to get some gloves and a lubricant, but I'll give her another soak in a bit. She devoured the shell of the one egg I had, and she had a few shreds of spinach greens, so I'm happy about that.

 

[MissChick@dee]

Keep soaking her. It will help.
Justa FYI spinach can interfere with the hens ability to absorb calcium as she digests it. So I think another type of greens would be a good idea.