In my last post I thought that Shadow was improving and then she went down hill again. I now think she is improving again and I am hoping that perhaps she is over the worst.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shadow had a really mucky bottom and the poop was cream coloured. I have been cleaning her bottom towards the end of each day. The day she got better then worse her mucky bottom had a very strong sickly smell. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This smell got stronger the next day and I could smell her as soon as I opened the chicken door to check on them at bedtime. I think that if she had an egg stuck or laid internally that the smell may have been due to infection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I have been doing research even though I have done so many times before and read that it is possible that an egg without a shell can be reabsorbed into the body but the egg is ideal for bacteria to thrive and therefore cause infection which needs antibiotic to treat it. This is why I feel the tylan is so important for Shadow. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I switched up to hand feeding and giving tylan water to her beak from once a day to twice a day from then. This seems to have boosted her. The poop around her bottom has now changed to a normal brown colour and the smell has become much weaker. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shadow squeaked every time she tried to poop and I knew it was hurting her. When I cleaned her yesterday afternoon I saw that she had a red spot on her bottom where the poop had made her sore. After cleaning her bottom I smeared vaseline on the skin around her vent to protect the skin. I will do this every time I clean her. Talk about up close and personal! <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yesterday Shadow briefly joined the flock in a dust bath which is a good sign and at bedtime I saw her eat a few pellets for the first time since she became unwell. These things make me hopeful that the worst may be over. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I have also read that if this happens to a hen once then it can happen again but I have to take this one step at a time and cross my bridges as I get to them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is the first time that this has happened without a soft shell that I have in the past been able to pull out. I can only surmise that this is what has happened by my research and my instincts. Either way the important thing is to do every thing I can to get Shadow well again. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Shadow is still struggling with pooping which isn’t good. She isn’t out of the woods yet but I am a little more hopeful than I was a few days ago and I am still keeping everything crossed for her.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In my last post I thought that Shadow was improving and then she went down hill again. I now think she is improving again and I am hoping that perhaps she is over the worst. Shadow had a really mucky … Continue reading ![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.carolschickens.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/shadow-having-some-tid-bits.jpg\")
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