Dollyparthen
In the Brooder
- Oct 5, 2020
- 12
- 4
- 46
Hi!
So one of my hens, Bug, has been broody for over a month. I regularly remove her from the box but it didn't break her. One day I took her out and noticed her butt was really dirty so I showered her off with the hose and checked again the next day. On closer inspection, there was some poop stuck to her vent but it was impossible to remove, it was like it had grown into her somehow, really hard and I couldn't remove it?!
So I took her inside to the sick bay, cleaned her up, stuck some Neosporin around the vent. She can still poop - its normal although a little smaller than usual - and she is eating and drinking normally too.
It was no better this morning so I soaked her in Epsom for 30 mins and then got to work with olive oil and cotton buds. I managed to get a big chunk of the poop out of the vent, but she started bleeding a lot so I couldn't really see much else in there. I still think there's some stuck in there, though. I have covered the area in Neosporin and Betadine and put antibiotics in her water.
I'm not sure exactly how it happened or what is wrong with her - assuming possible hormonal changes due to brooding? Our nest boxes are clean and she had access to the whole garden when not in the box. I can only treat her myself as vets here don't treat chickens.
I'm really worried about her, even though she seems fine otherwise in herself. I'm thinking to repeat the process tomorrow and check again in her vent with the buds? But I'm also worried about leaving broken off bits inside her. Is there a way I can flush her out without going to a vet???
Thanks so much!
So one of my hens, Bug, has been broody for over a month. I regularly remove her from the box but it didn't break her. One day I took her out and noticed her butt was really dirty so I showered her off with the hose and checked again the next day. On closer inspection, there was some poop stuck to her vent but it was impossible to remove, it was like it had grown into her somehow, really hard and I couldn't remove it?!
So I took her inside to the sick bay, cleaned her up, stuck some Neosporin around the vent. She can still poop - its normal although a little smaller than usual - and she is eating and drinking normally too.
It was no better this morning so I soaked her in Epsom for 30 mins and then got to work with olive oil and cotton buds. I managed to get a big chunk of the poop out of the vent, but she started bleeding a lot so I couldn't really see much else in there. I still think there's some stuck in there, though. I have covered the area in Neosporin and Betadine and put antibiotics in her water.
I'm not sure exactly how it happened or what is wrong with her - assuming possible hormonal changes due to brooding? Our nest boxes are clean and she had access to the whole garden when not in the box. I can only treat her myself as vets here don't treat chickens.
I'm really worried about her, even though she seems fine otherwise in herself. I'm thinking to repeat the process tomorrow and check again in her vent with the buds? But I'm also worried about leaving broken off bits inside her. Is there a way I can flush her out without going to a vet???
Thanks so much!
