urgent- lethargic chicken after bathing for poopy vent

[SunnyRue]

my 4 year old beatrice, female easter egger was acting lethargic today and yesterday, but still fairly active around the coop. today i found she had poop stuck to her vent, so i gave her a bath with epsom salts and cut away the feathers. now she is extremely lethargic, keeps falling asleep, and won’t eat or drink anything. i am trying to give her water with electrolytes. any advice would be appreciated! please help!

 

[Kiki]

Unfortunately bathing a sick chicken can make them worse. This info is too late for you but remember it for the future.


1. Do you know when the last time she laid an egg was?
2. What exactly have you been feeding her?

3. Are you willing to learn how to water hydrate her but tubing water in to her ctop?
4. Is a vet an option?

 

[SunnyRue]

Unfortunately bathing a sick chicken can make them worse. This info is too late for you but remember it for the future.


1. Do you know when the last time she laid an egg was?
2. What exactly have you been feeding her?

3. Are you willing to learn how to water hydrate her but tubing water in to her ctop?
4. Is a vet an option?

thanks for your response. i know bathing chickens isn’t always the best but the poop covering her vent seemed like it was maybe what was causing her to act strange and i wanted to get it off immediately. she’s under a heat lamp inside now drying off. i do not know when the last time she has laid an egg but i believe fairly recently. she is fed organic layer pellets, supplemented with scratch and peck and occasional mealworms. i would be willing to learn how to water hydrate but unfortunately don’t have supplies for anything complex. i have a syringe but i know that can be dangerous because of the risk of asphyxiation. vet would be an option tomorrow possibly however this is my parents chicken and i don’t know if they will want to pay for treatment. if you think it is severe i will push them for it.

 

[Kiki]

What's the temp under the heat lamp? Be careful to not over heat her. I'd encourage her to drink water as much as possible. Holding a spoon of water up to her beak might work.

If she won't drink or eat on her own I'm not sure what else you can do. She looks pretty sick.

 

[SunnyRue]

What's the temp under the heat lamp? Be careful to not over heat her. I'd encourage her to drink water as much as possible. Holding a spoon of water up to her beak might work.

If she won't drink or eat on her own I'm not sure what else you can do. She looks pretty sick.

the heat lamp temp isn’t too hot. i just want her to dry out, but will turn off overnight. she has been drinking a couple spoonfuls of electrolytes but is not interested in food. any recommendations of things i could feed her?

 

[PrettyCoolChicks]

You could try giving her some mashed boiled egg for food. I might try to mix the cooked yolk with water to offer it like as a kind of soup if solid egg doesn't work.

 

[SunnyRue]

she lasted through the night and is breathing fairly normally but she is still sleeping and won't get up. is there anything else i can do at this point besides take her to the vet? im very confused as to what might be the problem

 

[Eggcessive]

Hens can suffer from several things, like reproductive issues (salpingitis, EYP, soft egg shells, cancer,) crop problems, worms or other problems. Those can lead to diarrhea or soiled vents. Does she normally lay eggs anymore, and have her shells been normal? Is there any swelling or enlargement under her vent between the legs? Is her crop empty, full firm, sough like or squishy/puffy? Is she eating or drinking this am? What type of diet does she have?

 

[SunnyRue]

Hens can suffer from several things, like reproductive issues (salpingitis, EYP, soft egg shells, cancer,) crop problems, worms or other problems. Those can lead to diarrhea or soiled vents. Does she normally lay eggs anymore, and have her shells been normal? Is there any swelling or enlargement under her vent between the legs? Is her crop empty, full firm, sough like or squishy/puffy? Is she eating or drinking this am? What type of diet does she have?

she has been laying eggs recently although i am not sure when she laid her most recent one. all the shells have been normal though. there didnt seem to be any swelling in her vent area. her crop was completely empty yesterday and she hasn't eaten or drank anything today. it does seem like she is underweight though. she has had sour crop before so we know it isnt that. her normal diet is layer pellets with dark greens, mealworms, and seeds as treats. it is very strange as there aren't really any outward signs of illness which makes me think this might be a reproductive issue or cancer. right now it seems like she is going to pass and we are just keeping her inside until it happens as we don't think the vet would be able to do anything as it seems quite severe.

 

[Eggcessive]

Do you want to find out what was wrong with her when you lose her? Most state vet labs with perform a necropsy and can diagnose what was wrong. The body must be kept cold, not frozen and taken in or shipped overnight. Many people also do home necropsies, and it can be a good learning experience. If you do one, taking pictures of the organs may help us help you know what was wrong. I found cancer in one of my hens once. There are a handful of different cancers common in chickens, and in ovarian cancer, it can have a cauliflower appearance as this one: