Bantam rooster with GI issues

[Silly Indie]

About 3 weeks ago, I noticed one of our bantam roosters was acting off. His comb isn’t as bright as it usually is and he isn’t 100% of his perky self. He also seems to have trouble pooping. He’ll stand very upright and make strange noises while straining to poop, he does manage to get the poop out though. He still has a good appetite and drinks plenty of water, but he’s definitely a little lethargic. We finally caught him last night and had him sit in warm water and carefully picked the poop that was stuck to his feathers and skin off. When a piece of stuck poop was removed he shot poop everywhere. He was wrapped up in a towel until he was fully dried and then placed in a crate where he pooped again but without as much difficulty. The poop has kinda a sour smell to it. I’m not sure what’s causing this or how to go about treating it, hence why I came here after my research led to nothing. Any ideas? What can I do for the poor little guy?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Is his crop emptying overnight?
Photos of him and his poop may be helpful.

You mention that the poop smelled sour, does he have a pasty discharge coming from the vent?

I'd begin with working on hydration, get 1tsp coconut oil into him 2X a day. See that his crop is emptying. If you have a vet that will run a fecal float to rule out worms and coccidiosis that would be good.

Hard to know what's going on with him, sour crop and/or vent gleet, enteritis, Coccidiosis, worms, infection or some combination.

 

[Silly Indie]

I’ll try to get some pictures today. I’m pretty sure his crop is emptying overnight though I will check again.
He doesn’t seem to have any discharge coming from his vent.
How would you recommend getting the coconut oil into him? Would you just mix it with food or force feed it to him?
We wormed the entire flock in the fall but I could try worming him again just to clear out any parasites that might be in there.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I usually just put coconut oil in the fridge to harden it, then offer small chunks to eat. My birds love the taste of it. If he won't eat it on his own, then it can certainly be mixed into a small amount of food.

 

[Silly Indie]

These were the best pictures I could get of him since he wasn’t cooperating and trying to escape. His comb is quite a bit more red than it was previously. Appetite is still great, crop is emptying overnight, he’s drinking and talking back to me when I hang out with him. He really enjoyed being out in the old rabbit hutch today. I’ll try to get a poop picture tomorrow.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

How old is he?

Can you get some good clear photos of both his eyes?

I'm glad he's still hanging in there!

 

[Silly Indie]

He’s about 5 year old. I’ll try to get some better pictures of his eyes as soon as I can. I did get a picture of his poop as well as his vent area to show how irritated and sore it looks in case that helps. Despite all this he’s still a pretty cheerful guy, little bit lethargic but still waking the house up with his crowing every morning and scarfing down any treats he gets.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Poor Guy!

I'd try soaking his vent in a warm epsom salts bath. See if some of the crust around the vent will loosen and come off with the soaking.
Dry him off well. If it's cold, use a hair dryer to dry him so he doesn't get chilled.
Apply an anti-inflammatory cream to the vent if you have it. If you don't have that, you can use a little raw honey, coconut oil or even petroleum jelly. The vent looks raw.
Hard to tell if he's prolapsed at some point.
While you are tending to him, take note if there's any lice or mites.

When was the last time you dewormed?

Do you have any antibiotics on hand?

 

[Silly Indie]

I’ll give all those things a try. The last time all the chicken were dewormed was November I think. No antibiotics on hand.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

See how it goes with giving him a soak.

Encourage him to eat and drink well. I'd still give him the coconut oil at least once a day.

You may need to consider deworming again - what did you use in November?
It would be ideal to get a fecal float to see if worms are part of the problem, but that's not always possible.