Prolapse query

[Sue]

Well, I've now moved on to my next hen crisis!! My Wyandotte now has a prolapse. She seems well in herself, eating and scratching around as usual. I noticed it because she got very wet this morning out in the heavy rain and there seemed to be a lot of feathers stuck together around her bottom. I picked her up and noticed a small prolapse. I sat her in a bowl of warm water with baby shampoo and got off most of the droppings - they were all soft, so this must have only happened during the night or today. I was able to easily put the prolapse back in. After the bath and while I was clearing up she laid an egg in the outside run. This was a normal sized egg. This did not cause the prolapse to come back out, but there were some more droppings around the vent so I put her back in the bath. The prolapse has since come back out once and gone back in easily. I have now put her in a cage inside the main run with newspaper/food/water in an attempt to keep her clean and let her dry. What else should I do? Should I take her to a vet? Is she likely to survive this or is it a case of once it's happened, it doesn't get better?

 

[chrismahon]

Our Annie (Black Rock) had a bad prolapse. A semi-hard shelled egg broke inside her and collapsed trapping the duct. When she ejected the egg bits she ejected about 40mm of her insides as well. I disentangled the egg shell, pushed the prolapse back in with my thumb and rushed her to the vet. She had a good look, told me I had done exactly the right thing and if it comes out again just push it right back in again. Well it did and I did. Two days later she laid an egg and she was OK. That was two years ago and she is still OK -happy little girl in fact.
Important thing is to make sure she is cleaned and you have clean hands.

 

[Chuck]

The outcome is unpredictable. Sometimes it doesn't return and sometimes it gets worse. One of the biggest problems is that the other birds often attack and draw blood which can result in death.

 

[Sue]

I took her to the vet yesterday and he gave her an anti inflammatory and an antibiotic injection. She is fine this morning, the inflammation has gone done and no prolapse overnight. Obviously the test will be when she next lays. It was worth the £21 (very cheap I thought) used a different vet this time. It has been caught early, so hoping it will be ok. Thanks for your replies.

 

[foxy]

That's good news! 17 Sometimes a minor bacterial infection can cause a prolapse due to irritation and swelling.
Keep a close eye and although tempting but avoid treats and keep to a well balanced diet as soft shelled eggs are also a cause of prolapse due to calcium defiency or difficulty absorbing from the diet.

 

[victorias poultry]

Ah Sue, you are having a tough time with your girls, it can and will get better, offer still stands of help if you are ever up in my neck of the woods

Regards Sue

 

[Sue]

It's a good job I've got a good sense of humour!!!!! My Wyandotte who had the prolapse (who is fine by the way, laid an egg without any problems) has now decided to go broody AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!! It's been two weeks of normality, since she stopped being broody the last time. HELP!!!!!

 

[foxy]

It's a good job I've got a good sense of humour!!!!! My Wyandotte who had the prolapse (who is fine by the way, laid an egg without any problems) has now decided to go broody AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!! It's been two weeks of normality, since she stopped being broody the last time. HELP!!!!!

Well keep smiling! You know what? I wouldn't worry about her broodiness this time around, as it may be blessing in disguise. A broody hen stops laying, and takes a while to recommence so this will really help her prolapse heal properly.

 

[Sue]

Thanks Foxy, that's exactly what I thought. The only worry with this is that she is obviously an obsessive bird and, as you know, it took her 5-6 weeks to snap out of it last time and she almost starved herself to death. I'll let her go a couple of days and then start putting her in the cage again.