By Vicki -
A prolapsed vent on a
laying hen occurs when there is degeneration to the muscular system responsible
for laying - it is a form of herniation. There are a number of possible reasons
a hen can develop a prolapsed vent; it can occur when the shell of eggs is not
forming properly due to a lack of calcium. Soft shelled eggs are harder to pass
through the oviduct and can cause this strain injury. Hens can also be more
prone to this injury if they are being forced to continue laying beyond their
natural laying cycle (by using lamps to force laying in the sorter days of
winter). A hen may also have issues with her conformation that make her more
prone to develop a prolapse (pinched tail, wry tail and other bone or muscular
issues).
(Photo credit to armorfirelady)
To help prevent a prolapsed vent:
1)
Provide enough space for the hens to walk and scratch. This retains the muscle
health of the hen.
2)
Allow your flock to follow a natural laying cycle by not lighting the coop in
the winter.
3)
Provide a free-choice calcium supplement in its own container.
4)
I have also read that common weed, Shepherds Purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris), provides a
general boost to chicken health.
5)
Provide a good diet.
6)
Provide plenty of sunshine and fresh air.
However, if your chicken already has a prolapsed vent (signs: swollen red bottom, blood, egg oozing from cloaca, other hens pecking at her vent), you have to treat her.
However, if your chicken already has a prolapsed vent (signs: swollen red bottom, blood, egg oozing from cloaca, other hens pecking at her vent), you have to treat her.
(Photo credit to armorfirelady)
There are common and
effective ways to treat your hen. The first step is to remove the hen from the
flock to prevent cannibalization. Reduce the hens feed (or even don’t feed her
for one day) to interrupt laying. This will give her a much needed break in
laying. I never recommend adding lights to induce laying. If your birds are not
laying there is a reason.
(Photo credit to armorfirelady)
Effective herbal care:
Wash the protruding organ in lukewarm water and using a natural oil (linseed oil or sweet oil), gently press the vent back into the body. Repeat several times as needed. Then wipe the vent area with a cloth or cotton ball that has been soaked in witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana).
Witch hazel is an astringent and anti-inflammatory that tightens skin, soothes, reduces swelling. It is used, among other things, to relieve the pain of hemorrhoids and bruises.
Wash the protruding organ in lukewarm water and using a natural oil (linseed oil or sweet oil), gently press the vent back into the body. Repeat several times as needed. Then wipe the vent area with a cloth or cotton ball that has been soaked in witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana).
Witch hazel is an astringent and anti-inflammatory that tightens skin, soothes, reduces swelling. It is used, among other things, to relieve the pain of hemorrhoids and bruises.
Effective non-herbal care:
Wash the protruding organ in lukewarm water and using petroleum jelly, gently press the vent back into the body. Repeat several times as needed. Then treat the vent area with a combination of Preparation H and antibiotic ointment. Preparation-H reduces the swelling tissue and allows the tissue to recede.
Continue these steps until the hen is healed.
Wash the protruding organ in lukewarm water and using petroleum jelly, gently press the vent back into the body. Repeat several times as needed. Then treat the vent area with a combination of Preparation H and antibiotic ointment. Preparation-H reduces the swelling tissue and allows the tissue to recede.
Continue these steps until the hen is healed.
(Photo credit to Bee)
In the event of a severe prolapse
(if you truly do not wish to cull the
bird), a purse suture to the cloaca may be needed. Contact your local
veterinarian to find out if they can provide this procedure. If it happens a second time, I personally
would cull the as it will likely be a continuing problem for the life of the bird.
- Vicki
- Vicki
Thank you, again, for a very helpful article!
ReplyDeleteReally good article! Thanks for the pictures too for us visual learners.
ReplyDeletejust lost my best hen to a nasty prolapse, she had laid and prolapsed but then the egg had got stuck too, what an afternoon, a lovely speckled lady, tried everything, but the dam thing kept popping out, in the end she was in a bad way, only knew it was a prolapse because of the visual pics, thanks for the info,
ReplyDeleteoh well we just had a silkie lay her first egg but unfortunately it didn't go well it has prolapsed,the egg was out suspended in membrane etc we managed to get the egg out and pop it back in again but the prolapse is making its way back out again!its been 3 days now and shes fine but im worried about further egg laying etc with her is there any way of stopping her from ever laying as we would rather she stayed a pet than an egg layer? and what if it never goes back in properly but she remains fine,i feel this is just a waiting game that I don't really want to play as im scarred every time I check incase it has happened again and we have to repeat it allover it just isn't fair on the bird x
ReplyDeleteThere is no way to prevent chickens from laying eggs that I am aware of.
DeleteHave you tried Preparation-H? and the steps above? If not, please try that first. If it continues happening and you really don't want to cull this Silkie, you will need to take her to the vet and have a stitch put in to prevent the vent from prolapsing again. Look for "Avian Specialists" near you as many vets don't work on birds.
Good luck with her!
There is now a way it is a implant originally designed for male dogs and it is called suprelorin and vets can put it in a chicken usually near the neck area or chest and this has been known to work and stop chickens from laying it costs around 60-70 pounds and last for up to a year. It is however not licensed for use in chickens as of yet.
DeleteI'm getting my girl implantwd due to a nasty prolapse
Hope this helps x
Thank you. That is good to know!
DeleteHey can anyone help me? I have a hen that haven't lay a egg over a year and she is 4 1/2years old. Her vent is hard an red also she having problem pooping. She have mites and she make a clicking noise in her beak i think.
ReplyDeleteplease help?
Many breeds of chickens do stop laying by 4 years of age, but if you don't plan on culling this hen, you do need to treat her for mites (wood ash rubbed in nice and deep beneath her feathers will do the trick) and treat any vent issues. Try Preparation-H and see if it helps. Otherwise, cull her if she seems to be suffering.
DeleteFor more information on getting rid of the mites, please see our "Article Index" page.
Interesting we have just had a chicken "come down" with this. We have been using a heat lamp to keep them warm at night, but after reading this I think we need to come up with another solution..
ReplyDeleteYes - unfortunately prolapses don't fix themselves. Best of luck with her!
DeleteYour site is very helpful. My 1.5 year old hen prolapsed after laying her second egg following her first molt. I gave her a bath and tried to push her vent back in, but it was too swollen. The vet cleaned the area with medical-grade dextrose and gave her .50 ml of Lupron, which is supposed to make her stop laying for a couple of weeks. The vet recommended that she sleep inside for about one week, but I take her outside for a few hours everyday because she was not eating while inside. For now, everything looks great. In the future, I will forgo a vet visit and just try pushing the vent back in myself with some lubricant and q-tips...now that I know how.
ReplyDeleteYes, you can try helping her at home, but be aware that it is not a good sign for a hen to develop a prolapse at such a young age. Are her eggs huge? If not, take a close look at her diet. Too much fat around the vent area can cause issues with prolapse even if the eggs are a normal size. If she is carrying too much fat, try cutting out all scratch and sunflower seeds and feed only a 15% protein feed for a while. This tends to be a bigger problem in birds that don't free range on a daily basis as there are limited ways for a hen to exercise in a pen. Good luck and let us know how she does!
Deletei would just use a gloved finger as q tips are small and could cause further injury.
DeleteOur 3 year old Bantam Mille Fleur is having prolapse issues. She didn't lay at all last year and hardly anything before that, and now all of a sudden she is trying every day. It seems she eventually lays one egg every 3 days or so, once she can get it out, but all the while her prolapse is hanging out. I have done every treatment I can find, from Prep H to sugar, to calcium supplements, etc. This is just repeating every time. She doesn't seem to be in too much pain, she is eating and drinking...but is this something they can live with? I would hate to put her down, because she is such a happy bird. Any advice? Once she lays the egg, (there is usually a little blood on it) her prolapse goes back in. :( I tried warm baths, witch hazel, I am just at a loss.
ReplyDeleteThanks ,
Lea
Lea - make sure none of your other chickens are pecking her prolapse. Chickens tend to be drawn to fleshy-looking parts and to blood. I suppose I would say that as long as you feel your hen is happy and otherwise healthy, wait and see. If she ever seems to be in pain or if the other chickens start pecking her... then it would be time to consider other options.
ReplyDeleteBest of luck with her!
Leigh
Thank you for your super fast response! I am watching her very closely. She seems to be ok for now, this goes away after laying, and then comes right back after a day, so I am hoping she stops soon. It's so weird to have a chicken start laying so late in life after never really being a layer at all. And she's so tiny too. Her eggs are good size but not overly large I don't think.
ReplyDeleteI need help getting the egg out of the vent. My pullet has laid a few eggs but had problems before but not a prolapse. As its past midnight and we have been bathing, lubricanting and giving lots of tlc to our hen we dont have witch hazel or haemorrhoid cream in the house so I've followed the steps and the vent is almost in. Ive then put her in a dark room in the house hoping she'll relax enough to lay the egg but I've a terrible feeling she can't get the egg out for whatever reason and will almost certainly prolapse again. How can l help her pass this egg??? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
ReplyDeleteMany thanks
Vicky
Vicky - so sorry you're hen is having problems. At this point your best option may be to wait until morning and get some hemorrhoid cream or witch hazel. Are you certain she has not already laid the egg? Are you sure she is actually egg bound as well as prolapsed? Generally a prolapse occurs when they pass a large egg. She may have already passed the egg, and now you just need to get the swelling down.
DeleteIf you can fix the prolapse, give your hen a good once-over. Often it is over-weight hens that are susceptible to having this issue. If her breast is full and she is heavy, a diet would be a good option to help prolong her life. If she is not heavy, then please understand this could be a recurring thing for her, and continuous treatments may not be the most humane option.
Best wishes and best of luck! I do hope she recovers to live happily ever after!
Just lost my Australorpe to this a few hours ago. Been trying since Saturday with no luck staying back in .Read somewhere to hold in place for at least 5 minutes and it worked. Poor thing was so tired she fell asleep and started snoring. She then woke up startled so I held her close and she passed in my arms. Guessing it was shock/trauma.
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry for your loss! You did all you could for her. Sometimes a bird's medical issues are insurmountable.
Delete:(
I am sorry to hear that also. I have only had one BA. She was a great layer for the first season, but just after molt last year she got what appeared to be "internal laying" or one of the similar issues and just wouldn't get better. She was the first and only bird I've ever had any major health issues with and she had to be euthanized - though we waited much longer than we should have.
DeleteI have heard that BAs tend to have this kind of problem from other people as well. I'm sure you did everything you could for her.
Hello everyone! I am reading all the posts pertaining to prolapsed vent and have looked at pictures and sure enough, I have a hen with a prolapsed vent. I am reluctant to push it back in because there is some type of hardened growth attached to the whole thing. Quite honestly it has the appearance of a garden slug but it doesn't move and it's really stuck on the tissue. I don't know what it is or if I should try to remove it? There is also a lot of white substance excreting from the vent area. Is this normal with a prolapsed vent? I have been treating the prolapse with all the good advice from blogs like this, but I really don't know what to do since it appears a little more complicated than what I've read anywhere. I have dropped her food intake and provided vitamin water, an isolated and quiet pen, and general good care. Any feedback would be much appreciated!
ReplyDeletei just had a nice orp prolapse. the prolapse has hard crusty stuff which won't be easy to remove.suggestions please.
ReplyDeleteI'm chicken sitting for a friend and I found a chicken that I think has a prolapse. She has really hard and crusty poop stuck to her and even though she's been bathed twice for as long as she could handle it (approx 20 mins), it's still not come off. Suggestions for getting this caked on poop off would be welcomed.
ReplyDeleteCan a chicken quite laying eggs after prolapse vent?
ReplyDeleteI need help idk if my chicken has prolapsed I washed her bum there is like a soft half egg shell looking thing stuck to a bloody mucus looking bubble but looked like in the shell looking thing her little butthole was there
ReplyDeleteWhat a neat aid to help those who want to help their chooks. In regards to the shepherds purse, do I make a tincture and drop feed her or is it raw or just put some in her water?
ReplyDeletegood information about layer birds owners thanks
ReplyDeleteHope you're still checking these comments - I am fairly experienced w/chickens, but do not know what to do (if anything) about the hard, crusty stuff around the cloaca. Is it old poop? Flesh? I cut a small chunk off and saw tiny pricks of blood, giving the impression of a wart-like growth. Do you think it's best to leave her be or try to remove? I just want a happy hen (the other go in the pot, but she was our first - 6 years old now). thanks - Elizabeth
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry to hear about your hen's issues. It sounds like you need to start by giving her a nice, long soak in a warm bath. Add Epsom salt if you have some. After she has been soaking 5 - 10 minutes, start gently working on that mass around her vent. If it is poop, it should start to soften and dissolve a bit and with some gentle effort you should be able to get it all off.
DeleteIf it seems to be a growth... well... sometimes chickens to get odd tumors and growths. As long as she is still able to poop and lay (if she is still laying at her age) and as long as she is otherwise comfortable, let her live out her life as you see fit. If it gets to the point where it is causing pain or not allowing her to poop... you'll know when it's time.
Best wishes and best of luck with your hen.
Please help! I just noticed a very large amount of white goo like substance coming from my chickens vent. I'm not sure what it is. It's as big as a banana slug except it's white.
ReplyDeleteOK - I'm thinking one of two things -
DeleteFirst - Does it look a bit like cottage cheese? Vent Gleet - basically a yeast infection. This can be treated with the same medication used in women with a yeast infection... put on the rubber gloves and gently rub the cream just inside and then around the outside of the vent for a few days.
Second - Does it look more like egg white? An egg could have broken inside your hen. Sometimes they can get over this on their own... and sometimes... it can cause an infection. The best way to start is by soaking your hen in a shallow bath with Epsom Salt - You can use a plastic container or your sink to do this. Soak her for 15+ minutes and see if anything else will come out when you gently massage her abdomen. (Be sure she is fully dry before putting her outside again if it is cold.)
Best of luck and best wishes with your chicken!
Leigh
I have been minding two Silkies and this morning one was found dead with a lot of entrails outside her vent she felt very heavy for a small chook and had been passing large droppings. Can a prolapse happen suddenly like this as she was 1year old and had laid eggs in the past. Could there be another reason for this, I could not find any other sign of injury. Her mate seems healthy.
ReplyDeleteOh dear - I'm so sorry. Yes - these issues can happen quickly sometimes. I'm very sorry for your loss!
DeleteI just found our faverolle tonight w/ a prolapsed vent about the size of a golf ball - it is bad. She has been acting odd for about a week and I did not even think to check her vent, so I think his has been going on for a while. We soaked her and cleaned her up, we tried to put it back in place with no luck - we have used honey and preparation H. She is very lethargic and breathing is slow. I have her in a kennel in the basement with electrolytes but she is not drinking. Last time I checked on her a bit ago she now has a white, somewhat bloody discharge leaking. I feel so bad and don't want her to be suffering. Is there anything else I can do at this point? By what I could tell there is not an egg bound in there - we couldn't feel anything. Thanks so much for any suggestions! This is a first for us.
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry to hear about your hen. From what you describe about her behavior, it doesn't sound very good, I'm afraid. If there is blood coming out, chances are she has a tear inside her oviduct - and if you are unable to push the protruding parts back in...
DeleteI'm very sorry. Even if she were able to recover from this, her future would be very uncertain at best. :(
NO PETROLEUM BASED PRODUCTS !! USE WATER SOLUBLE PRODUCTS LIKE K-Y JELLY.
ReplyDeleteI also use Melissa......the ALCOHOL FREE version....it is lemon balm and acts
like a pain anesthetic when it makes contact to the prolapes.
NO PETROLEUM !!!
Hello,
ReplyDeleteI just found my little polish chickadee who has a white coloured 4cm-5cm long protrusion hanging out of her cloaca. The tube like sack is hard and looks very painful. She's acting very carefully, slowly, not very active and standing on one leg at most times. After researching I thought it may be a prolapsed vent but none of the pictures I could find had this white tube extremity hanging out but just red raw cloacas. So I was just asking with much fear and hope as to whether anybody knew whether it was a prolapsed vent or something more serious. I'm very willing and able to treat a prolapsed vent but a little too unsure as to whether that is what I should be treating. It almost looks like it could be the lining of an egg without the shell hanging out but it's hard to touch and not sure what to do, she's also not tucking her wings back properly and are slightly lowered and pointed to the ground and her tail pointed more upward than usual. I hope to hear from anyone soon. kindest regards,
Miles the freaking out chicken lover.
Miles - get her into a warm bath to soak for at least 20 minutes, and then try to gently tug the white piece out. It may well be a broken egg in there with a piece of the membrane sticking out.
DeleteBest wishes! I hope she recovers.
How long do I have to treat a prolapse chic?
ReplyDeleteContinue treatment until the hen is better, or until you decide if she should be culled if she's not getting better.
DeleteI had this happen to my chicken, and I was able to treat her. However, now she always lays eggs with a large amount of poo on them. She is able to take a normal poo, however, she typically has poo running down her rear end. Can I help her? Is her vent twisted somehow?
ReplyDeleteJust like a woman who has delivered a very large baby vaginally and pees a bit when she laughs or sneezes, your hen may always have a bit of poo on her eggs.Be glad that she is otherwise OK and that her lady parts are staying where they belong. The poo just goes with the territory on this one.
Delete