I have a pullet black sex link that has been laying for several months. She had not layed for several days, and this morning, I found her straining. I gave her about 1/2 hour or so and checked back on her, this time picking her up and turning her over. To my horror, about one and a half inches of her insides were stretched around an egg outside her vent. I took her inside and rinsed her off a little and loosened the opening through which the egg was protruding slightly. Then I grasped the bloody part just above the egg and gave it a little squeeze to milk the egg out. It popped right out and the bloody part mostly withdrew back into the hen. She is acting pretty normal at this point. I have her separated from other chickens so they don't peck her to death.

So my question is, can she recover from this type of thing and go on to be a productive egg-layer again, or should I cut my losses and make chicken soup right away instead of waiting for her to die from infection or another egg mishap? Has anyone else had this happen?

-- Laura Jensen (lrjensen@nwlink.com), August 04, 2001

Answers

I've had this happen and I made chicken soup, but I've since heard that hens can recover from prolapses. However, chicken soup is good and is a sure thing!

-- Sheryl in Me (radams@sacoriver.net), August 04, 2001.

Prolapse:

http://www.webusers.warwick.net/~u1015576/page6.html

-- ~Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), August 06, 2001.

I had a hen that this happened to. I tried to care for her and hoped that she would recover, but in the end, she had to be butchered. She would have died from the stress or the other chickens picking her.

-- R. (thor610@yahoo.com), August 06, 2001.