Chicken Health | PROLAPSE

What is Prolapsed Oviduct?

A prolapsed oviduct is when the lower part of a hen's oviduct turns inside out and is left hanging outside of her vent. This condition is most common in young hens that have started laying too soon but can be due to other contributing factors include obesity, calcium deficiency, age, hormonal imbalances, unbalanced nutrition, and over-lighting.

Symptoms

• Usually the first indication of a prolapse problem is the presence of blood-streaked eggs
• Red tissue hanging out of the chicken's vent
• Other chickens pecking at the prolapse (they are attracted to the moist, glistering texture of the oviduct )

Causes

Poor skeletal development during rearing can cause prolapse during egg production. Therefore, it is important to maintain good body condition especially between pullets are 4 to 8 weeks of age. We cannot emphasize the importance of feeding young pullets properly right through to POL.
Do not do them hard!

• Overweight or underweight birds: Overweight birds are more susceptible to prolapse as a result of general muscle weakness and larger eggs laying tendency. Too much deposition of fat around reproductive organs exposes birds to prolapse.
• Poor quality, unbalanced feed: Insufficient calcium in the diet will bring challenges with eggshell formation but can also lead to muscle tone. Calcium is important for proper muscle tone, and weak muscles may take it hard to bring the oviduct back into the body, increasing the amount of time the oviduct is exposed.
• Avoid feeding layer pellets too early. High-calcium pre-lay diets fed prematurely strain hens' kidneys. Also, sudden, imbalanced dietary changes at the onset of egg production negatively affect liver and bone metabolism. Early calcium intake can cause lasting kidney damage.
• Double-yolked egg laying hens: the excessive size of these eggs will stretch and possibly weaken cloacal muscles.
• Oviduct prolapse in laying hens can begin during the growth and development stage if the pelvic girdle is underdeveloped. Additionally, high energy or fat content in feed can lead to prolapse. Excessive energy, particularly carbohydrates, contributes to the issue, as does high fat, which can cause abdominal fat accumulation, narrowing the egg passage and leading to straining.
• Avoid too much light: Under high light intensity conditions, birds are more likely to see and be attracted to the everted oviduct and thus pecking occurs and cause damage. Keep nest boxes dark.

Things to Consider

• Avoid using photo-stimulation (lighting) to get your hens to lay
• Always feed the correct layer feed  (nutritionally balanced for laying hens)
• Keep an eye on any 'double yolker hens' as they are more prone to prolapse
• Keep an eye out for vent pecking behaviour
• Suppliement flock with Vitamin C

Treatment

You must separate the hen from the rest of the flock immediately before the other hens start to peck at her. The tissue may recede back in by itself, however in most cases it will need some help from you. Take your hen and place her in warm water and try to gently wash off any dirt or poo that is around her vent or on the tissue. Using petroleum jelly gently push the tissue back inside her vent. Spray the area with an antiseptic like Wound Care Plus. You will need to keep the hen isolated for a couple of days. It is recommended to keep her in semi-darkness, so she doesn’t lay any eggs to give her oviduct a rest. To encourage your hen to stop laying, and give the vent time to recover we also recommend removing all pellets and feeding a mixed grain diet only. 
After a few days of rest, she can return to the flock, but you will need to keep a close eye on her to see if she prolapses again.
If you don’t feel comfortable treating a prolapsed hen yourself, you should take her to the vet.