Hen has white stuff coming from vent (pic included)

[rmrhebron]

The other day my hen seemed to be having trouble either laying an egg or pooping, don't know which. Either way she seemed to act as if she wanted to be left alone and went into a corner of the the run. The weather is starting to get a little warmer here in Wisconsin so I let them run around the yard. She did this for a while and would stop from time to time as if she was going to "drop" something. I could only think of constipation or being in labor. Now the next day I checked on her again and she seemed to be okay except for her butt was a bit swollen. Today I checked and she is moving around with the others but I noticed this white milky stuff coming from her (in the pic) that I am not sure about. I am not sure of her age as I got them from a farmer that got them from his friend after they were being beaten up by his roosters/hen. So I took them on so they wouldn't be pecked all the time. Anyway, if you have an idea of what she is going through that would be great. By the way, I did find an egg the day I checked, don't know if she did one today yet or not as it is still early. I have 10 hens all mixed, I don't even know what kind she is. Thanks in advance for your advice.

 

[Eggcessive]

Welcome to BYC. You need to get her vent area cleaned up so that you can see exactly what is happening. She could have vent gleet, a prolapsed vent, there could be egg contents, or maybe she could be egg bound. If it is just dripping whitish poo soiling the vent it may just be vent gleet. Here is a link: http://www.tillysnest.com/2012/12/vent-gleet-prevention-and-treatment.html

 

[slivercove]

She might be having a prolapse do you have a vet you might be able to show her to

 

[rmrhebron]

I will give your suggestions a try before considering the Vet run. I thank you for your ideas and quick reply.

 

[Eggcessive]

If there is no redness or white patches on the skin around the vent, it may just be that she needs to have her feathers trimmed, and some probiotics in her diet (buttermilk and plain yogurt are also good.) I seem to have a couple whose bottoms look like this, and I just try to keep them trimmed. Worming with SafeGuard or Valbazen may also help.

 

[rmrhebron]

Okay, I cleaned her up, that was fun (not). I had to hold her so she wouldn't try to fly/jump out and still clean her butt. after about an hour I finally got it cleaned and then put her in an old dog cage to let her do what she needs to while I used a hair dryer on low to dry her feathers lightly. I also took a couple more pictures so you guys can see. Her butt puckers as if she is trying to lay but just the white stuff comes out, I was hoping the warm water would have helped relax some of her muscles some. I am going to leave her in the cage and give her some yogurt so that she doesn't have to go back outside in the cold till she is calmer and hopefully drops an egg if that is what she's trying to do. What do you think?





Thanks a bunch for all the tips.

 

[slivercove]

Okay, I cleaned her up, that was fun (not). I had to hold her so she wouldn't try to fly/jump out and still clean her butt. after about an hour I finally got it cleaned and then put her in an old dog cage to let her do what she needs to while I used a hair dryer on low to dry her feathers lightly. I also took a couple more pictures so you guys can see. Her butt puckers as if she is trying to lay but just the white stuff comes out, I was hoping the warm water would have helped relax some of her muscles some. I am going to leave her in the cage and give her some yogurt so that she doesn't have to go back outside in the cold till she is calmer and hopefully drops an egg if that is what she's trying to do. What do you think? Thanks a bunch for all the tips.

Feel her vent and see if she is trying to pass a egg and if she is try to kinda help her out

 

[pdirt]

Feel her vent and see if she is trying to pass a egg and if she is try to kinda help her out

By helping her out, slivercove means to put a glove on your hand, lube it up and gently stick a finger in her vent. If you feel an egg, slowly and gently try to help her pass it. The egg may have become broken and you want to be very careful to not allow broken egg shell to cut her internally, as this could kill her. Search on BYC here as there are lots of threads on how to do this, but those are the basic instructions.

 

[slivercove]

By helping her out, slivercove means to put a glove on your hand, lube it up and gently stick a finger in her vent. If you feel an egg, slowly and gently try to help her pass it. The egg may have become broken and you want to be very careful to not allow broken egg shell to cut her internally, as this could kill her. Search on BYC here as there are lots of threads on how to do this, but those are the basic instructions.

Yes we had a hen who was trying to pass a egg and it's got stuck and she died because the egg cracked and killed her

 

[rmrhebron]

Thanks for all the advice. I've learned a lot as a newbie on this. As an update to her condition. I did what I could and she (I think) passed an egg as it had blood on it and when I saw her she had a bloody vent. I have now confined her to a cage away from the others as I saw some of them going after it. I will try and make her comfortable while she hopefully heals but from what I have been reading it's not looking like it is in her favor. Again I am not sure of her age as the birds I have were all full grown. Thanks again.