Water belly?

[Smileybans]

Symptoms- soft shelled eggs: fixed with calcium citrate
- bloated warm abdomen
- red skin on abdomen
- purplish comb: I attributed this to frost bite before but it’s warm now and it hasn’t improved
- some signs of diarrhea: this is worse on some days but not always. She will have poo stuck to her feathers worse on one day, get a bath then go a week without poo on her feathers.

She isn’t lethargic. Still eating and drinking. Still laying but the shells are always soft unless given calcium citrate 3x a week. Still let’s the roosters mate. She sleeps with three other hens and free ranges for six hours a day with my main flock. She’s fed flock raiser with oyster shells on the side, which I don’t think she eats. We have done oyster shells mixed in with wet feed for her but she hated eating away from her flock. Even though they could see each other. It stressed her to the point she wouldn’t eat.

Is this more than just a calcium deficiency? Does she have water belly? I know it’s a symptom of a bigger problem and I can drain her abdomen but I’ve never done that before and am scared to do so. I also don’t want to do it if it isn’t necessary. Any help is appreciated.

 

[M-H-Fielding]

If she isn't lethargic, it might not be water belly. I'm not an expert, but her comb looks fine.
If it gets much darker I would think it was a problem.

 

[Smileybans]

Thank you for your reply. As far as I can google ascites doesn’t have lethargy as a symptom. But if it’s something else I’m open to any suggestions. I’m just worried and don’t know if it’s something I should be worried about.

 

[M-H-Fielding]

My chickens always acted lethargic when they had it, but then again I've only had like two of them with it LOL!
Pretty hen, BTW.

 

[Smileybans]

Thank you. I was just going off of what google said. Do you think the redness of her skin is anything to worry about? Or should I just keep an eye on her?