Impacted crop, impacted gizard, sour crop.....differences in each?

[verlaj]

Fox - How is your hen? I am reading and reading, too, because I have a mother hen with 3 12-day old chicks that has a distended crop and green diarrhea. At first I was thinking sour crop, but now I'm thinking impacted crop. The chicks seem fine, but the mother hen is not strong. Did yours have diarrhea?

 

[Fox]

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Hi,

Yes, mine has diarrhea. It looks like clear liquid with white in it. I have given her vinegar water and oily bread. She didn't seem to eat the bread. I gave her yogurt mixed with some crumbles which she ate a tiny bit of today. I found a vet who prescribed Nystatin and have given it to her last night and today. So far, she still has a big crop, just soft. I can't feel anything hard in it now. I was given a tube and a giant syringe to help suction out the crop. I'm nervous to do it though. If she is not getting better I may have to empty it. I'd rather not make her vomit again.

Your Mother Hen may have overeaten since she's been on the nest for awhile. Sometimes they are just so hungry when they finally leave the nest. Is her crop really soft and liquid filled? Does it change size at all? Does she eat and drink still or not? If she will eat, and if you have some Poly-Vi-sol Iron free liquid vitamins, she might could use a dose of those. An easy way to do is to take a tiny piece of bread and put the drops on it, then feed the bread. But if she is not eating well, you can just drip a few drop into her beak, but don't flood it... If it is sour crop, then from what I've read, yogurt and Nystatin is the route to go. I wish I could be of more help, but this is my first time too. I am not sure what I am doing or if I can help my hen... but I'm sure trying. If yours is impacted crop, then from what I've read, giving oil oil and massaging the crop is very important. Massage gently and downward. Don't give any solid foods either... stick with oily bread at first... then yogurt and applesauce, and I think they said you can use mash, but not pellets, just make the mash soft... which is easy to do with yogurt. The idea is to break up the solid stuff in the crop so it can pass. I wish you the very best!!

 

[verlaj]

Thanks for the advice and concern. What was the dose of nystatin that your vet prescribed?

My hen's crop felt fluid filled this afternoon, but now it is more mushy and I it feels like larger particles than the chick starter, so I think she must have eaten hay or shavings, which is the bedding.

 

[verlaj]

Oh - I noticed today that the waterer trough was contaminated with food. The feeder is 1.5-2 ft away - must have been regurgitated in there by the hen. I don't know if she is eating. I will try her with something special in the morning - need to go to bed now!!

 

[Fox]

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He prescribed 1 ml twice daily

As to the crop, that it is changing is a good sign! They can eat hay and shavings, it's just when they eat too long of a piece or bunches all at once that it can get impacted. I was going around feeling crops today and some, if I were guessing, I'd say were impacted, but they were not large and of course the chickens have all been fine, so it was normal. I just haven't gone around squeezing crops. If you have other chickens, you might want to feel their crops so you can get an idea of normal, like I did. They will be different because they eat and drink at different times, but you'll get a range of what is right. My hen's crop is just huge though.... she looks like she has a massive tumor.

 

[Fox]

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Good luck!

 

[ninabeast]

Like I didn't have enough to worry about...new mam here. What makes a crop "distended"?

With my 9-day old chicks, I can see a little bump on their chest sometimes, soft and movable, but they're all happy eating, drinking and pooping. Should a crop never be noticeable? Should their chests always be smooth? Is any protrusion too much? Good lord; maybe I've bitten off more than I can chew...

If anyone has a photo of a crop that needs worrying about, for comparison, I would be most grateful.

 

[rivers2011]

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I echo this request! Help a new mama out please

 

[SuperChiks]

Having such a hard time with my Australorp. She has this issue. The first I noticed it it had a grassy feel to it. Then squishy - now a little harder and squishy. I have tried Olive Oil and massaging it. Its been 4 days now and it goes down a little bit then grows again. She is so hungry she is sticking her head out of the crate to eat sand. Most of her poop seems normal this morning it was watery with white. She is smaller than the other one I have and appears thin. I don't know what to do and when I should give up?

I don't want her to starve.

 

[spectakula]

I have a hen that had severe impacted crop. Yesterday after reading a web site me and my mother operated on her opening the crop about 2 cms and removing the contents. We followed all strict guide lines and streile environment, but today I am finding the wound is opening up and leaking, and atho I have my bouncing hen back this cant be good, what can i do to help close this up properly?