how to help impacted crop

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boykin2010

Crowing
12 Years
Sep 26, 2010
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South Georgia
i think that my cornish hen has an impacted crop.

how did she get this? how can i help her. she is acting normal and everything is ok but i dont want anything to happen. i have lost 3 hens lately and i dont want anything else to happen to this one.
 
First, I would determine if it is an impacted crop (hard) or sour crop (like a water balloon). If it is an impacted crop, try giving her bread soaked in oil to try to loosen it up. For sour crop, separate her and withhold food. Give her water with ACV and regularly massage the crop in a downward motion (upward can cause her to aspirate if liquid comes up and goes into her lungs). The ACV will help to kill the yeast that causes sour crop and withholding food helps prevent more food from spoiling in the crop.


Oh...and it is semi-hard and feels like a bean bag, she is probably fine and just ate a lot. If she is fine, you will tell by her crop being normal in the morning before she starts to eat much again.
 
Last edited:
If the crop is impacted, it will be hard. MASSAGE HER CROP CONSTANTLY! Don't stop massaging! Give her some olive oil soaked bread as well, or just get some olive oil down her throat.


How can you be sure this isn't some kind of disease? You said you lost other hens as well.
 
i think the others that died died of somethings that was different. one had yellow liquid coming out of its mouth then suddenly died. one was being really lethargic and it slowly died. the other died and i didnt c any symptoms of anything in it. i am pretty sure it is an impacted or sour crop because i looked up pics of that on google images and it looks exactly like a sour or impacted crop. she is acting normal as far as i know. i spend a lot of time with my chickens and she acts just like all the other hens. the only odd thing is that she has had this " impacted crop" i am assuming, for probably over a month or longer. as i said in the beggining i am not sure how long she has had it because i just noticed it about a week ago but i have this particular hen for about 4 months.
 
You can't really tell an impacted crop by looking at it. The best way to tell is to put her in a kennel overnight without food and water. If the crop is flat in the morning - it is NOT impacted.

Usually when it's impacted the bird isn't pooping normally, loses weight because it's not absorbing nutrients, the crop is full at all times even after withholding food/water, and the bird starts making weird neck moves as if trying to force food down.
 
Quote:
If the hen was "puking", then it has SOUR CROP - and it would have killed her if not treated.

The second could have been either, as lethargy is a symptom after a portion of time after onset. The third there is no clue. It sounds like your birds have some sort of underlying infection that is making them susceptible to these things.... it would probably help to put them on a broad spectrum antibiotic.

Feel of the hens crop. If it "fluid filled" then it is sour crop. If it is hard, it is impacted.


I'm not sure how new you are to the world of chickens, but if symptoms onset you need to take them inside/seperate them and treat them immediately. After a week of symptoms, it is often too late to save them.
 
Mine is fine this morning too..bulge went down..and then after breakfast she bulged a lil again..i think she is a lil piggy is all..and because she is a dark cornish and her feathers are tight against her ..you just notice it more
 

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