Help! Hen's vent covered in maggots. Treatment?

[Xiao Casa]

It definitely has! I needed to treat my Buff Orpington for the same condition... it's gross but at least I know from this thread that it's curable. I will be picking up a Ivermectin injection tomorrow.

 

[gusmudry]

Hi,
I am dealing with a similar problem. Once you have cleaned her up try SWAT to cover the wound.
I use it on horses to keep flies off their wounds and it is good for sores. It is heavy and sticky, so it will not fall off or wear out too soon. It repels flies.

Keep her away from flies as best you can anyway and keep checking her.

gusmudry

 

[bevbuzz]

I know this is an old post, but I know when I have troubles reading any related posts helps, so I thought this might help others. I also found my hen's vent covered in maggots. At 1st I just saw she had loose poop stuck to her. Gave her a quick hose. A few days later, not moving much. A day of isolation with vinegar in water, & some kefir. Next morning wanted out to run around. 5 good days (still poopy) later, at night not roosting. Picked her up to clean her & was shocked to see vent covered in maggots going in & out. Gave her rear end a soak in salty water 15 minutes. Then put her in soapy water & scrubbed all the poop & maggots off. Absolutely disgusting & I'm a hardened nature teacher & farmer who does my own slaughtering. Yuck. Dried her with towels & blow dryer. Put her in nice cage with fresh straw. In morning, she was sad & not moving at all. I gave her vinegar water & yogurt mixed w/usual grain. That night, poopy & filled with maggots again. They must have been hiding out inside her. Next morning she was dead. Moral of the story (most of these everyone, including me, know, but hard to stop the world to take care of things): When something's wrong with a chicken, immediately 1) isolate her & keep her isolated til know it's not contagious, 2) don gloves & give her a thorough exam, 3) immediately do the research & take action. Lastly, I couldn't find photos on the internet that really showed this, so I'm posting it so others can ID Flystrike:

This post just FYI in hopes it helps someone doing research sometime.

 

[TalkALittle]

I know this is an old post, but I know when I have troubles reading any related posts helps, so I thought this might help others...
This post just FYI in hopes it helps someone doing research sometime.

Thanks for your story. That's a perfect way to add to an old thread. I like it when people post follow up stories or add what might be current and important information to old threads. As a curtesy to other readers, it would be great if people just check the date of the thread they are responding to and try to refrain from continuing a conversation that clearly ended years ago. The way you responded and included a comment about the age of the thread in your first line was excellent. Much appreciated.

I truly enjoy helping people--even internet strangers. It is very discouraging to realize that I've spent a considerable amount of time typing a long and detailed response to a 5 year old thread because someone else dug it up, dusted it off, and replied to it as if it were posted just yesterday.

 

[Miss Farmer]

One of my hens had maggots so I have been bathing her in Epson Salt every day. It has been about four days now and the maggots are gone. She is still bleeding so I plan to try Neosporin without bathing her first to help the wound heal. I will let you know how it works.

 

[Eggcessive]

One of my hens had maggots so I have been bathing her in Epson Salt every day. It has been about four days now and the maggots are gone. She is still bleeding so I plan to try Neosporin without bathing her first to help the wound heal. I will let you know how it works.

Welcome to BYC. Sorry about your hen. I hope you can save her.

 

[Miss Farmer]

Miss Farmer here! After several days of giving my hen Epson Salts baths to get rid of the maggots, the maggots were gone. She was still bleeding though. I squeezed out a tube of Neosporin and applied it to the area. It has been several days since applying the Neosporin and she is doing fine. She is eating and drinking just like the others. She is no longer bleeding.

 

[ladyearth]

didnt you pick them off? was this a wound? just curious
My Goldie had flystrike. I couldnt rest till I got all of them off with tweezers carefully.. Discovered them at roost time that July evening.got the rest hours later.....
soaked her a few times. prob should have did for soaks
sprayed her with saline solution helped a LOT.Kept her in the bathroom...she was such a good paient. then rest time in a bright sunny spot in front of walkout basement doors.......i believe she knew we were helping her.
Later 20 plus days let her back out.. what an ordeal....
I call her Goldie girl... the special girl.....

 

[Miss Farmer]

No, I didn't use tweezers to pick them all off. The Epson Salt got rid of them eventually. I could see them in the water. When I first saw the maggots, I noticed a large bulb of something in the general area. After the baths and when I put the Neosporin on, I noticed that the large bulb had broken. I have no idea what it was, but it was soft. As I said, she is doing well and acting like her usual self.

 

[daisyduke]

After some more research I've found this appears to be Flystrike. Helpful information on how to treat:


Flystrike


Is a condition affecting mainly sheep, deer and rabbits, but is not uncommon in poultry.


This article deals with Flystrike in hens.


It occurs when flies lay eggs in the dirty feathers, usually those contaminated with faeces around the vent.


The emerging maggots burrow into the flesh of the hen, particularly if there is an existing wound, and eat the hen alive.


It might not be immediately obvious, so for that reason, regular examination of the hen is crucial, as once Flystrike takes hold, the bird will succumb very quickly.


Signs and symptoms:

Very sick hen with open wound, usually around vent, which is crawling with maggots.


The hen will be lethargic, off its food, and is likely to be pecked by its companions.


This condition needs urgent treatment.


~ Sit hen in bowl of warm saline and keep her in it for 10 -15 minutes. This will give the wound an initial cleaning and will drown many of the maggots. Change the saline solution a couple of times. You may find that the maggots will thrash about in the saline bath.


~ Carefully trim the feathers around the wound with blunt ended scissors and then remove as many maggots as you can with a pair of tweezers,


~ With a syringe, flush the wound thoroughly with fresh saline solution.


~ Pat dry. Do not use anything that will leave linty bits in the wound.


~ Isolate hen. Keep her warm and encourage her to drink, syringing water into her beak if she is reluctant to drink of her own accord.


~ Repeat the above two or three times a day till there are no maggots left.


~ After the first soak, you could give an initial flush out with a weak hydrogen peroxide solution, but dont use this too often as it is rather harsh and over use will interfere with the formation of granulation tissue.


~ Another option is to use a weak iodine solution, with just enough added to water so that it looks like milkless tea.


~ If using a saline solution, sea salt is a better option than table salt, as it has not been refined.


~ It is best to keep the wound open and dry, so that the air can get down into it. Most of the harmful wound bacteria are anaerobic and they thrive in closed conditions.


~ Avoid using wet ointments as flies find the wound and lay their eggs deep in the ointment.


~ It is essential that all maggots are removed, as they will eat healthy flesh as well as dead tissue.These are not the specially bred and clinically reared maggots used in the healing and debridement of gangrene or necrotic tissue etc in clinical situations.The maggots are full of bacteria and secrete toxins which are largely responsible for the death of affected hens.


Further care:


~ Isolation of affected hen is essential as its wound will be pecked, and hen will be very weak.


~ Keep hen well hydrated.


~ Avipro, Rescue Remedy, Electrolytes.all are useful additions to the hens diet.


~ Feed hen with good quality layers pellets, and extra protein when hen recovering.



** NB If there is no improvement, or a deterioration after the initial cleaning and first few flushings, or if the wound is extensive in the first place, the advice of a vet should be sought.


Picture of Flystrike in a hen. Maggots Circled in red. **Warningnot pleasant.

http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h13/Egluntine/Flystrike-maggots.jpg

Discovered this terrible gross situation on my 7 year old girl last week! Used alcohol and quips and tweezers to remove -gag me- hundreds of maggots .took her to get get to euthanize in am. She was so bad. But she began to eat before I took her. He said soak 3x day in Epsom salts kind of deep water to cover area, give clamavox--I forgot about how long for withdrawal for eggs---keep dry. As necrotic tissue loosens gently pull off. She had big bulgy round area just like in previous photo-- he pulled out egg yolk when he put needles in....huh. We soaked and dried for a few days. Well I gave her a little time outside. with her sisters in the sun since she was looking so depressed.....which turned into over night cuz I couldn't reach her on the perch. She is in charge and spent time pecking everyone's heads lest they forgot! But I did retrieve her. Soaking her last night revealed the necrotic black scab like tissue was somewhat remove able! Wow! We're on our way to healing!
About the maggots..... Cat vet told me in emergency situations the only thing that actually kills the darn maggots is of all things starter fluid! Of course you have to wash off with say Dawn.
Also be sure to soak in Epsom salts a lot since there can be tiny newer maggots there they sink to bottom of soaking dishpan they look like tiny threads. Keep checking for hidden maggots for a few days.
I think lifecycle is only 4 days but I can't bear the thought of one of those suckers crawling around in the edges of the necrotic areas!
Soak until most all falls off and Epsom helps to dry it out. Good luck!
God bless my husband who performed the removal while I held dear Molly!