Removal of an intra-abdominal egg from a chicken
Shield, C.F.
Veterinary Record 126(25): 624
1990
ISSN/ISBN: 0042-4900 PMID: 2378048 Document Number: 357968
A 3-year-old, 600 g female bantam with lethargy and inappetance was diagnosed as egg-bound. Treatment with oxytocin and calcium gluconate was unsuccessful. The bird was anaesthetised by an intramuscular injection of 36 mg/kg alphaxalone-alphadolone and maintained with halothane in oxygen. A midline incision cranial to the cloaca revealed a fully-shelled egg free in the intestinal peritoneal cavity. This may have occurred due to trauma or it may have been iatrogenic as a result of oviductal contractions caused by the administration of oxytocin and calcium. The egg was removed but the tear in the oviduct could not be located. After flushing out the abdomen it was closed and the bird recovered uneventfully. Injections of 15 mg proligestone were given into the pectoral muscles post operatively and at 3-month intervals to prevent further egg laying; there were no apparent ill effects other than a tendency to be broody.