Oh no....egg bound?

[pigsinmud]

Last week one of my chickens died quite suddenly - although had not laid a proper egg for months.

Last night I discovered another sick hen. I had noticed that she hadn't laid for 3 days and yesterday found one of her eggs laid on the run floor - very unusual for her. She was hunched up and straining to lay another egg. This morning I tried to give her a warm bath (she wasn't particularly co-operative) as i had read that could help - some said do it and some said not to. I tried to clean round the area as she has been leaking clear fluid. She looks red and swollen underneath her vent.

She is currently in the dog's crate looking very forlorn. She has drunk some water and ferociously pecked at a few tiny cubes of cheese, but when I take it away she just shuts her eyes again.

What do I do? Can the vet do anything? Do we just wait it out. She has produced some clear/white liquid, but just pumps her tail up and down as if she is trying to lay.

[Cuppachaplz]

Hi there,
poor you, and poor chook!
It does sound like egg binding is an issue.
In answer to your question, yes a vet can do plenty, but it is often worth checking that there is someone there who is happy to see chickens
(I am a vet, and have worked in many practices where other vets are have basic knowledge to say the least, and are usually more than happy to admit it)
Things that can help:
examine; sometimes there is a cause...
Any management causes may be identified to aoid recurrence or it happening in others (e.g. diet, grit etc)
pain relief and rehydration if necessary
oxytocin and come times calcium
a warm cloacal enema
metoclopramide (encourages gut movement, often gut stasis can be secondary to this)
treat any secondary sour crop (common once stop eating) with antibiotics and antifungals if necessary
Not all of the above are usually necessary...

Things you can do
you are right a warm bum bath can help to get things moving, but make sure she is warm and dry afterwards
separate from the others; they can peck at poor girls and stress them out to make things worse
if you have a syringe or similar (e.g. nurofen paediatric dispenser) at home, you can use this to gently squirt 1-2ml of liquid paraffin mixed with warm water into the vent to encourage passage.
feed/hydration; you can make up a kind of chicken lucozade (500ml water 1tbsp sugar 1tsp salt) and encourage to drink / gently spoon feed. You can syringe feed but take care that she can spit it out if she doesn't want it to avoid drowning/choking.

Sorry for the essay :/ hope it helps
(welcome to pm me of you want)

[pigsinmud]

Thank you so much for the advice. She is drinking well. After the bath I kept her indoors in the dog's crate (the dog was most put out!) until she was dry. She really did not like the bath and kept trying to flap her wings to get out. She will drink and has eaten some pellets mashed up with water.

She was desperate to get back in the coop and in the nesting box. I have been getting her out to drink and eat a bit of mash. She is safe from the other 2 in there - they are keen to peck at her red end. I will try your recipe for a pick me up. I will also give our vet ring and see if they treat chickens. I don't want to leave her looking like this all weekend.

[Cuppachaplz]

She still sounds fairly bright. A little bit of lube, or even just warm water up the cloaca can work wonders. Let me know how you get on

[pigsinmud]

Well, my vet doesn't treat chickens. She gave me the number of the nearest chicken vet and it's a 35 mins drive away. There is no way we are going to make it as they shut at 6pm and dh is not even home yet.

So, I now have her in a cardboard box, in the house, with paper and straw in it. She loves that water/sugar/salt combo, but is not interested in food at the moment. She has done a few normalish poos - rather liquidy, but looking like chicken poo. I feel like a bad owner, but just cannot get her to that vet.

[Cuppachaplz]

You don't need a specialist poultry vet for a backyard hen!
Any companion practice is theoretically capable as we tend to use normal small animal drugs, but some have more knowledge than others. I don't have directory at home or would offer to look for you. You could try any mixed practices in the area. I have never worked in either a poultry or an avian practice but have treated chickens nearly every day if my professional life, and it irritates me that someone can't be a bit more helpful.

[Cuppachaplz]

If she has been eating and is still drinking, tomorrow should be fine. Keep the hydration up. You could try a warm mash, she might be more likely to eat that.
Don't feel like a bad owner, you have sought advice, and kept her comfortable. You have also noticed she is poorly, you'd be amazed how many people don't!

[pigsinmud]

Thank you. I feel a bit stupid . She told me the nearest was the one she gave me. I have now looked at the British Hen Welfare Trust and discovered there is a recommended one in the next village along. A bit annoyed that my usual vet failed to tell me this!

[Cuppachaplz]

give them a call tomorrow, they should fit you in
Good luck

[pigsinmud]

Well, today she was first out the coop tucking in to food
On Saturday we never made it to the vet as she seemed a little brighter, but then seemed not so good in the afternoon - hunched over and hiding in the coop. Yesterday she was more alert and eating a few select bits of food - no longer in the coop and wouldn't let me pick her up her usual behaviour!

Today out and about - eating and drinking. Hopefully she'll carry on the right way. Thanks for your help.