Hen looks overweight but has a well-defined keel ... ?

[DuckGirl77]

I was pretty sure that one of my hens was overweight; accordingly, I started taking her out of the pen every day to free range and get some exercise. I also stopped feeding all of them scratch grain. This was a few weeks ago.
However, recently, as in several days ago, I noticed that although her abdomen is large, the front of her keel bone is very well-defined, which I think signifies that the chicken is the opposite of fat? Correct me if I'm wrong. My other chickens feel differently, so I take it that this is not normal. It's not obvious by just looking at her, but if you feel the bone, it is easy to notice a difference. I know I am not starving her: they all have food available 24/7.
She is also inactive, generally keeps her head tucked in, has a little bit of trouble breathing, (especially after walking alot or being picked up) and often just sits around with her eyes closed. Not the picture of health. She does still go outside of her own accord and back in every day, and she occasionally suns herself and takes a dust bath, which surprised me because she has been pretty sluggish. Today she was a little more active than normal but still not acting like herself. I feel terrible and really wish I hadn't blinded myself by assuming she was merely overweight. My first thought was worms, but that doesn't explain her looking overweight. Her droppings (well, what I've seen of them) also look pretty normal, although I haven't looked at them super close, like under magnifying glass, yet. I also haven't had the chance to really have a good look at several dropping samples from her because I can't always figure out which ones are hers. Basically, I've seen what's stuck to her back end, and everything else I'm only guessing is hers.
I should add that I believe one of the reasons she doesn't like walking around is probably that her toes are horribly crooked. One of my other hens also has crooked toes almost as bad as hers, however, and is perfectly normal otherwise. I got her and her siblings as adult hens last year, and this is the first problem I've seen with any of them.
She has been both eating and drinking, but she doesn't care much for scraps anymore and doesn't chase after them at all like the other chickens do. She usually only eats her normal food and sometimes some green stuff while she's out foraging.
Thank you for any advice! If pictures would be helpful, I can try to upload some. It won't let me upload any right now, unfortunately. I'm still getting used to BYC's new look!

 

[PD-Riverman]

Is she laying? Does she feel a good bit heavier than the rest of the hens, Does she walk like a penguin? Does her abdomen feel hard or like a water balloon?

 

[DuckGirl77]

I'm not sure if she's laying, but I don't believe she is. I don't see her in the nestbox ever except at night (she sleeps in the nestbox; she can't sit on the roost.) She is much heavier than the rest of the hens. She does walk like a penguin, and her abdomen feels like a water balloon.

 

[rebrascora]

Unfortunately it sounds like she is probably laying internally. Eggs(yolks) released from the ovary fail to travel into the oviduct to become eggs as we know them, with a white and shell etc and instead drop into the abdominal cavity. The mass increases daily, as subsequent eggs follow the same course. Over a period of weeks and months these egg yolks become sort of "cooked" by the heat of the body but fluid often builds up around them. The fluid build up is usually referred to as ascites and sometimes the mass or the fluid becomes infected which is called egg yolk peritonitis.
The build up of fluid and the mass of yolk matter in the abdomen eventually puts pressure on the vital organs and the chicken can die of heart failure, respiratory problems or digestive impaction, as well as the previously mentioned risk from EYP infection. Unfortunately there is no cure once they start laying internally, and whilst draining some of the fluid can give significant short term relief it will almost certainly need to be repeated at regular intervals and each time there is s risk of infection setting in. Stopping the hen from ovulating prevents the condition from deteriorating and there is often some improvement in their condition. Unfortunately this currently involves expensive veterinary intervention in the form of spaying or hormonal implant. I have suggested in a recent post that stimulating a moult and keeping the bird with restricted daylight exposure may also help prevent ovulation but I'm not sure if it will work or not. This is based on my experience with a hen that was internally laying last summer and walking like a penguin and very full/distended abdomen, that noticeably improved through the winter but deteriorated in the spring when her comb became red and she clearly started ovulating again. Unfortunately my girl died before I came up with this idea.
Anyway, I would suggest draining her abdomen as a first course of action.... there are several You Tube videos about it if you feel able to do it yourself, or alternatively seek veterinary help. Then if there is notable improvement, look into preventing ovulation by whatever means you feel appropriate for your circumstances.

Of course it may also be possible that she has a tumour which is causing the problem in which case there is little hope.

I hope that has given you some food for thought and possible avenues to research.

Good luck with her.

Regards

Barbara

 

[DuckGirl77]

Thank you so much for your help! That definitely makes sense. I checked out a couple articles after reading your post, and the symptoms listed are the same as the ones she has. This information is extremely helpful.
One question: should I also change her diet? Is there a certain diet that makes chickens less likely to lay?
That's a really good idea about restricting daylight. It sounds like it would help, and since she is a little older, it might be enough to stop her laying altogether. That's so sad that your hen passed before you could try it with her.
Thanks again for your advice! I had heard of this condition, but it didn't even occur to me that it could be her problem.

 

[PD-Riverman]

Thank you so much for your help! That definitely makes sense. I checked out a couple articles after reading your post, and the symptoms listed are the same as the ones she has. This information is extremely helpful.
One question: should I also change her diet? Is there a certain diet that makes chickens less likely to lay?
That's a really good idea about restricting daylight. It sounds like it would help, and since she is a little older, it might be enough to stop her laying altogether. That's so sad that your hen passed before you could try it with her.
Thanks again for your advice! I had heard of this condition, but it didn't even occur to me that it could be her problem.

I for Sure am no vet, but I do not see how stopping her from laying would make it better----thinking maybe being it would maybe get no worse??? Lets say she is internal laying and say she has 40 egg yolks inside----they do not go any where---if she stopped laying---still in 2 months she would still have 40 eggs inside because she is not going to pass them??? I do not know??

 

[rebrascora]

A lower protein diet might help but you need to be careful with that because it's easy to replace the protein with carbohydrate and I have a gut feeling that carbohydrates from feeding too much mixed corn/scratch may be responsible for some of these issues in the first place... causing fatty liver syndrome etc. It may be easier just to restrict her diet to less of the normal feed and perhaps supplement with lots more veggies/grass and some fruit. If she isn't laying she doesn't need the extra calcium in layer feed either so probably a 16% protein flock raiser if you can get it and maybe ferment it as this will help her digestion and since her gut will be under some pressure from the build up in her abdomen, anything that aids it will be beneficial. You could then just give her a small dollop of fermented feed morning and night but no access to ad lib pellets, and plenty of veggies or grazing through the day to keep her occupied.... I'm really no expert on nutrition but obviously she does not need a high protein diet because that's what is required to produce eggs and even during moult, people give them extra protein treats to get them through their mould quickly and back into production, but you are going to want her to moult slow and steady, so don't be tempted to give her a boost then, unless she is feeling particularly scrawny. You are probably aiming to keep her just under good condition.
It might also help to weigh her each week and keep a record of those results. Obviously you are hoping for her abdomen to reduce in size and weight but you will also need to keep a check on her body condition by assessing the amount of flesh on her breast, which will be subjective of course although there is a chart somewhere to help you assess poultry body condition.(I think it may be angled towards meat birds but still might be useful if I can find it. I'm pretty sure @casportpony will have a link to it somewhere.)

Once you get her through the rest of the summer and into autumn and she is moulting then she should be fine with the other chickens' routine after that, until the days start getting longer and then you will probably have to restrict daylight and feed again starting mid January ish

 

[casportpony]

 

[rebrascora]

I for Sure am no vet, but I do not see how stopping her from laying would make it better----thinking maybe being it would maybe get no worse??? Lets say she is internal laying and say she has 40 egg yolks inside----they do not go any where---if she stopped laying---still in 2 months she would still have 40 eggs inside because she is not going to pass them??? I do not know??

I accept that, but it may be that the fluid from those eggs as they solidify can be reabsorbed by the body or drained. I certainly noticed an improvement in my hen during the autumn/winter. She had been walking like a penguin in the summer and her belly was distended, but she started to walk more normally and get about much better and generally look much happier and more comfortable during the winter time. Once she started ovulating in the spring, she started to swell again. Even if she was spayed or superlorin implants were used to prevent ovulation, the mass of egg yolks would still be there and the risks of surgery to remove them, let alone the cost would not be worthwhile. Restricting daylight and food intake is not going to cure her, just hopefully prolong life a little.

 

[rebrascora]

@casportpony.... I knew you would be able to help out with that.... many thanks.
Do you have any input on my suggestion of reducing daylight and feed to (hopefully) stop ovulation and thereby prevent the problem escalating?