Yellow Urates in Otherwise Normal Poo

[arast]

Hi there- FYI- I live in Northeast Vermont. This is my first flock. I have five hens and they are almost a year old. One of my hens (I haven’t identified who) is pooping otherwise healthy looking poo, but the urates are yellow (I’ll post pictures). Available information on this topic is sparse. I read about Egg Yolk Peritonitis which may make the most sense. I say this because over the last week when I was cleaning my droppings board I found evidence of a failed egg. One day there was clear goo in the sawdust (maybe the egg white?), and one day I found a soft and bunched up eggshell. I have found soft-shelled eggs broken on my droppings board before so I didn’t give it much thought. Then came the yellow poo and so I went down the Google rabbit hole. Before I decide that one of my hens is going to die I thought I’d put it out to the group. Is this situation serious? Is one of my girls teetering on the edge? Or is yellow unrates a normal happening in the spring?

 

[topochico225]

Yellow urates usually indicate a liver problem. What do you feed, including any and all treats?

 

[Eggcessive]

Can you check her lower abdomen between her legs for any enlargement or swelling that might indicate ascites (water belly?) That can be a sign of liver disease from egg yolk peritonitis or cancer, and sometimes from heart failure. I have done necropsies on quite a few hens who had yellow urates and acites.

 

[arast]

I don’t know how to edit my post, but this is my first FLOCK, not my first CLOACA. Thank you autocorrect

 

[Eggcessive]

LOL. Just go back to the post and click on edit, and you can change it.

 

[arast]

Yellow urates usually indicate a liver problem. What do you feed, including any and all treats?

 

[arast]

Can you check her lower abdomen between her legs for any enlargement or swelling that might indicate ascites (water belly?) That can be a sign of liver disease from egg yolk peritonitis or cancer, and sometimes from heart failure. I have done necropsies on quite a few hens who had yellow urates and acites.

I did check all five abdomens (only had two eggs this morning, so three hens potentially still have eggs to lay) and two of them had swollen bellies. One was more watery feeling and more swollen than the other. That hen has also had problems with poop building up on her butt-feathers and I have to periodically clean it.

Yellow urates usually indicate a liver problem. What do you feed, including any and all treats?

I feed Poulin Feeds layer pellets, meal worms, scratch, bird seed, cantaloupes, cabbage, lettuce, and grapes. I also let them free range a little bit a few times a week-weather depending. They spend a lot of time in the woods scratching among the leaves.

 

[topochico225]

I did check all five abdomins (only had two eggs this morning, so three hens potentially still have eggs to lay) and two of them had swollen bellies. One was more watery feeling and more swollen than the other. That hen has also had problems with poop building up on her butt-feathers and I have to periodically clean it.

I feed Poulin Feeds layer pellets, meal worms, scratch, bird seed, cantaloupes, cabbage, lettuce, and grapes. I also let them free range a little bit a few times a week-weather depending. They spend a lot of time in the woods scratching among the leaves.

If you had to guess, what percentage of those foods other than layer pellets make up their daily feeding?

 

[arast]

If you had to guess, what percentage of those foods other than layer pellets make up their daily feeding?

Well, the have a feeder that I keep full so I honestly don’t know how much they eat from there. I give them a couple of handfuls of meal worms at night and sometimes to entice them to come back to the coop. I give them some sort of a treat probably 5 days a week which is typically one of the following: a half of a cantaloupe, a head of iceberg lettuce, 1/4-1/2 a cabbage or a bunch of grapes. The also get about 3-4 handfuls of scratch and an handful of birdseed almost every day. ...am I overdoing it...? . I’m used to feeding horses, not chickens...

 

[topochico225]

Well, the have a feeder that I keep full so I honestly don’t know how much they eat from there. I give them a couple of handfuls of meal worms at night and sometimes to entice them to come back to the coop. I give them some sort of a treat probably 5 days a week which is typically one of the following: a half of a cantaloupe, a head of iceberg lettuce, 1/4-1/2 a cabbage or a bunch of grapes. The also get about 3-4 handfuls of scratch and an handful of birdseed almost every day. ...am I overdoing it...? . I’m used to feeding horses, not chickens...

Unfortunately, the scratch, mealworms, and birdseed are being WAY overdone. I had a pullet die of Fatty Liver Hemorrhagic Syndrome because she got overfed mealworms. You can read about it here. For 5 hens, that's way too many treats. @Kiki , I know this is your level of expertise. Want to step in?