Water belly or normal hen belly?

[barkingdoginn]

We have a hen that was very obviously in discomfort from water belly- very large swollen belly which we were able to drain out a ton of clear yellow fluid. I am now not sure if other hens also have water belly to a lesser extent or I’m just paranoid!! I am wondering what should a regular hen belly feel like? Now that I have felt all my hens after dealing with the one with water belly all their bellies feel slightly round and squishy underneath. Is that normal? A description on what I should be feeling for in between their legs would be much appreciated.
Thank you!

 

[Lillith37]

You should be able to clearly feel the keel bone with muscle on either side.

Sometimes laying hens especially when they get older can get a little saggy/squishy under the vent area.

Are all your hens laying? How old are they?

Edit to add that I wouldn’t immediately start panicking. But what you can do moving forward is check everyone each week or so and that way you can see if anything changes. What’s “normal” for each hen will vary.

 

[barkingdoginn]

We have 9 hens and we get about 4 eggs a day so not everyone is lying daily, they’re just over 2 years old. They are columbian rock cross I think those are dual purpose and are generally on the larger side. I can feel the keel bone under their belly but near their back just under their vent feels water balloony. I guess I just never knew how a chicken should typically feel. I’ll keep an eye on them.

 

[Lillith37]

I have one hen with a definitive mass below her vent. It’s squishy. It’s usually the size of a tennis ball but has gotten as big as a cricket ball and when she was on the suprelorin contraceptive implant it shrunk to the size of a golf ball. Those masses are not uncommon and could be a hernia, fatty tissue, tumour or yes ascites. But if you check them regularly you can monitor for changes. Obviously if it gets worse and causes them discomfort, consider ascites. But otherwise if the mass just sits there and doesn’t cause them grief, it’s probably not going to be an issue. My hen with the mass lays every couple of days, she’s 4+. I have another younger hen who is a little saggy there too. They both get along just fine.