I e-mailed Terry from “The Hen Cam” for advice. She has dealt with two hens with prolapse, successfully. She said to wash her gently with water. Push the prolapse back in and smear with honey.
Honey is hydrophobic and sticky and she said it worked better than anything else she had tried. It’s also a natural antibiotic.
As soon as the shops opened my husband went out for the honey as we didn’t have any in. I soaked Rusty in a bowl of warm water and cleaned her as best I could. It was really difficult to get her clean. By the time I had done that the prolapse appeared to have gone back in so I just smeared it with honey. I dried her as best I could and put her in the cat box on a towel.
I gave her a dish of water and a dish with a little corn and a chopped grape. She ate some grape. Terry said to keep her on light food and water for a couple of days to reduce the poop and the straining.
My biggest worry now is that all this will have stressed her. I really hope I have done the right thing and am willing her to get better.
Rusty after her bath
I give her some chopped grape to help her recuperate
I will have to go out shortly to do my deliveries. When I get back I plan on letting her into the run for a poop and exercise then will put her back in the cat box. I will report back later.
Click here to see the history of my flock.
She doesn;t look so bad, front-end view, in the cat box.
She definitely looks better from the front! I intended to put her in the run at lunch time to poop and exercise thinking that if she went and sat in the nest box it would be better for her than the cat box.
She promptly took a dust bath! This shows she is feeling better but of course the dust is stuck to the honey. The prolapse has stayed in though which is good. I am leaving her in the run as she seems happier there. I have taken more photos and will update again at the end of the day.
I don;t think the dust should matter – it’ll be what the honey is doing internally that counts – and the prolapse staying in is a huge step forward. Delighted at the progress so far; I know you’ll be hugely worried, but so far, so good.
I asked Terry if I should worry about the dust sticking to the honey and she said the same. I also think that the fact that she isn’t going to the nest box means she is no longer wanting to push which is helping. I worried all night about her and felt sick with it this morning in case I was stressing her too much. I am feeling more hopeful now.
I hope she will be better tomorrow, it’s a good sign that she has stopped trying to lay
an egg, and give it time to heal.
It is really good that she has stopped pushing, she may have mistaken the feeling of the prolapse as an egg coming. She is looking better this afternoon and I am just writing the second half of today’s progress at the moment. I am just going to read it through then put it out.