Advice/Help Needed - Bright Green Poop

[TwoCrows]

And now that I think about this, you mentioned using antibiotics and now her crop is now slow? This is classic yeast infection. Yeasts grow out of control when antibiotics are used. I am definitely leaning toward yeast infection now.

 

[tarahharlin]

I am so sorry about your hen.

Good that the fecal test came back negative. Do you know if they also tested for Cocci as well? Sometimes they are only looking for the common worms like roundworms in the intestines.

I have had a few internal layers and what seemed to be common with all of them was funky egg laying ALL their egg laying careers....eggs off the roost bar, no shells, thin shells, LOTS of eggs with just a membrane, too many yolks in one day, lots of wind eggs, etc.... And in the end, they had ascites in the belly, water belly. Lots of fluid in the abdomen. So if your girl doesn't appear to have a water belly, and you can compare hers to healthy hens bellies, then I would say this could be something as simple as a yeast infection of course reproductive cancers are common in hens as well.

I am going to guess she doesn't have a grass impaction? Judging from that poop, it doesn't look like an impaction, but I could be wrong. So I am leaning toward yeast infection?? I am learning over the years that Acidified Copper Sulfate is the way to go when treating these yeasty crop issues. I have use my simple methods and home brews, but honestly, Acidified Copper Sulfate WILL treat this if it's a yeast infection, if its an e.coli thing or even canker, it will treat them all. And all of these things are very common to cause a slow crop. So if it's not a yeast thing but an over growth of e.coli, the ACS will take care of it.

So....you might order some Acidified Copper Sulfate. You can get it at most poultry supply places. 1/4 teaspoon ACS to one gallon of water and what I do is make up a gallon of it and use it over the course of the next few days. A mixed up batch will last this long. Give her a new portion daily. Use the ACS for 5 to 7 days. 7 is max.

And I would vomit her to get the gunk out of her. Massaging can help push it through, but if it's sour and yeasty, they really shouldn't absorb all this gunk. Some birds won't release it, some will. Hold her forward and down for ONLY 1 to 2 seconds once the stuff starts to come up. Stand back up quickly so she doesn't aspirate on it. If she won't let it out, so be it. Some don't. Do this first thing in the morning only, I rarely vomit them during the day since they need water and food to be absorbed, even if it's only a tiny bit.

See if this won't help her. These crop issues can be very difficult to figure out because many times these blocked crops are a secondary issue to something else going on inside the body.

I sure hope you can heal her up soon!!

Thanks...I hate seeing her this sick. I feel so helpless and plus, this is our really first sick chicken. I don't know for sure on the fecal testing for cocci, but I am assuming so, since any of the times I have had a fecal test done, everyone has checked for that. I did express my concern to the vet about e coli, which is one of the reasons I wanted to have that fecal test done also. That would show that, right? When he did a rectal on her, he did think that he felt some sort of mass in her, but also said it could be her gizzard pushed back. He did mention ascites and egg peritonitis too. She has never taken a break from laying in her life...even when molting.

No impacted crop. That was the first thing I checked on her when I noticed that she seemed off and I do my best to give them all a quick crop check every morning.

So, I just called our local feed store and they don't have the ACS. Of course. I guess I could order some, but not sure how much time I have. That is a really good point you made with the antibiotics and the yeast infection. The day I brought her into the vet her crop was full of fluid, but the next two days seemed much better and that it was emptying...then she guzzled all that water on Wednesday, which filled up her crop and it hasn't gone away since. Since I can't get ACS, should I try Monitstat? I feel like I don't have a lot of time and I'm not even sure if treating her crop will help her, but I also don't want to give up on her, nor do I want her to suffer though. Her comb has flopped over so much and at times has gotten dark. I feel so badly for her.

I really appreciate all your help and advice!

 

[tarahharlin]

And now that I think about this, you mentioned using antibiotics and now her crop is now slow? This is classic yeast infection. Yeasts grow out of control when antibiotics are used. I am definitely leaning toward yeast infection now.

I actually just took her outside with me, since it's a nice sunny day and while she was pecking around some, she vomited herself a couple times. I don't know if that made her feel a little better, or what because I put her scrambled eggs that she wouldn't touch this morning in front of her and she gobbled them up. Not sure if that was wise to let her eat, but she hasn't eaten on her own, since Saturday, so I figured at this point, if she wants it, she can have it. She still wants to drink a lot of water. I'm not sure how much I should let her keep drinking?

 

[TwoCrows]

Birds with intestinal distress tend to drink a lot of water. I would let her decide how much water she wants and wouldn't limit her. She will stop drinking when she is full, even if it does come back up.

I am not sure if they test for Cocci or not with these fecal tests as Cocci is not a worm but a protazoa, so it's another type of test, I think.

It is so easy for a birds intestinal flora to become out of balance. There are healthy supplies of yeast, e.coli and other bacteria in the gut at all times. Much of it is used for digestion. But hosts of things can through the entire machine off balance and if one over grows itself, seems like the rest of it does too. And too much of these yeasts and e.coli's can be deadly. So if the diet of the bird is off even a little bit, too much starch, impactions, worms, parasites, bacterial infections, egg binding, internal laying, canker, alkaline environments (this is my issue here as my soil is loaded with molds, mildews and yeasts) wild birds can bring in disease and yeasts, genetics can play a big part, just about anything that effects the over all health of the bird and or slows down the intestinal machine will throw the entire thing off and cause an overgrowth of yeast and bacteria. And it is very difficult to figure out which came first, how they contracted it and why. Even many humans have problems with an over growth of yeast in the body.

So that is why when I hear of someone having a bird with a crop issue, I always start with the basic stuff, which more often then not is the problem...worms, cocci, egg binding or overall health. Ascites is pretty apparent. Grass impactions do happen, but are not all that common as long as the bird has access to grit and is healthy to start with.

But sometimes, many times, we never do know exactly what is wrong, so we treat the obvious.

You will probably need to order the Acidified Copper Sulfate on line. Here is a link to Twin City Poultry Supplies that usually ships same day, and always ships Priority mail, so you should get this quick if you order soon. https://www.twincitypoultrysupplies...id=340&zenid=7d6c148139abef8f080047825137a81d

 

[TwoCrows]

You might try the monistat for now, it can't hurt. I have cured up many simple sour crops with vaginal cream. 1ml 3 times a day for 5 or so days. Apple Cider Vinegar is wonderful for basically pickling the intestinal tract and pathogens can't live in there, however ACV does go in as a sour and can cause the crop to grow more yeast at first. However eventually the ACV will help greatly, as long as it doesn't cause a gummy doughy crop before hand. If this becomes the case, you will need to use the Copper Sulfate to irradiate the yeasts and e.coli.

 

[tarahharlin]

You might try the monistat for now, it can't hurt. I have cured up many simple sour crops with vaginal cream. 1ml 3 times a day for 5 or so days. Apple Cider Vinegar is wonderful for basically pickling the intestinal tract and pathogens can't live in there, however ACV does go in as a sour and can cause the crop to grow more yeast at first. However eventually the ACV will help greatly, as long as it doesn't cause a gummy doughy crop before hand. If this becomes the case, you will need to use the Copper Sulfate to irradiate the yeasts and e.coli.

I ordered the ACS and it actually shipped today; however, in the meantime, I went and picked up some Monistat and have given her one treatment so far. Good to know on the ACV. I normally alternate between that and the Probios powder in their water, but I wasn't sure the ACV was okay to give her right now. She has been drinking the probiotic water though. I'm so hoping these things will start to help. I am also going to call the vet and ask if they tested for Cocci. I know in the past, the fecal tests that I have had done, have tested for that, but this was the first time going to this place. They were certified avian specialists, you'd almost hope they would test for that, but I guess you never know.

Thank you so for all the excellent advice! I hope your girl with the crop issue heals quickly!

 

[TwoCrows]

 
You might try the monistat for now, it can't hurt. I have cured up many simple sour crops with vaginal cream. 1ml 3 times a day for 5 or so days.  Apple Cider Vinegar is wonderful for basically pickling the intestinal tract and pathogens can't live in there, however ACV does go in as a sour and can cause the crop to grow more yeast at first. However eventually the ACV will help greatly, as long as it doesn't cause a gummy doughy crop before hand. If this becomes the case, you will need to use the Copper Sulfate to irradiate the yeasts and e.coli. 

I ordered the ACS and it actually shipped today; however, in the meantime, I went and picked up some Monistat and have given her one treatment so far. Good to know on the ACV. I normally alternate between that and the Probios powder in their water, but I wasn't sure the ACV was okay to give her right now. She has been drinking the probiotic water though. I'm so hoping these things will start to help. I am also going to call the vet and ask if they tested for Cocci. I know in the past, the fecal tests that I have had done, have tested for that, but this was the first time going to this place. They were certified avian specialists, you'd almost hope they would test for that, but I guess you never know. 

Thank you so for all the excellent advice! I hope your girl with the crop issue heals quickly!

Great!! Keep us posted and I sure hope your hen heals soon! I know it hurts to watch them suffer.

My girl is healing well and should be off meds soon.

 

[tarahharlin]

Great!! Keep us posted and I sure hope your hen heals soon! I know it hurts to watch them suffer.

My girl is healing well and should be off meds soon.

Just giving an update....So, she ended up getting one treatment of the Monistat yesterday and byesterday evening, her crop was so full that anytime she leaned forward, she'd vomit some liquid. We were planning on having to vomit her in the morning, but when I checked her crop before going to bed, it had started to go down and by morning it was empty. She had pooped quite a bit during the night too, which were very watery. She's drinking water on her own today, but she's still not really wanting to eat much. I'm hoping that ACS will start helping her once that arrives.

Glad to hear your girl is almost done with all her meds!

Thanks again and have a Merry Christmas!!

 

[TwoCrows]

Quote: I sure hope she heals soon! The ACS can't hurt. Lots of people use it once a month or two for worming purposes and just to clean their intestines and crop out.

My girl is doing fabulous and tomorrow I am going to get her started on Probiotics for a few days, then switch to Apple Cider Vinegar for a few days. She should be good as new soon!! And you hope your girl is too.

Keep us posted! And have a very Merry Christmas too!!

 

[tarahharlin]

I sure hope she heals soon! The ACS can't hurt. Lots of people use it once a month or two for worming purposes and just to clean their intestines and crop out.

My girl is doing fabulous and tomorrow I am going to get her started on Probiotics for a few days, then switch to Apple Cider Vinegar for a few days. She should be good as new soon!! And you hope your girl is too.

Keep us posted! And have a very Merry Christmas too!!

Hi! I just thought I should update this and give the outcome of Miss Henny Penny. The Monistat started working on her crop right after the first treatment and I continued with the full treatment, which cleared it up. While she was drinking quite a bit on her own, I was still very worried about her eating, which was next to nothing. I was getting desperate and was ready to learn how to tube feed. Of course I didn't have the tubes, so I ordered a few different sizes online from the place @casportpony recommended to me at one time. However, by the time they arrived, she was fully eating on her own again and I started tracking her weight to make sure she was gaining. I feel good though that I now have those tubes on hand in case I ever need them in the future. As of today, she is eating like a champ, finishing up her molt and just started to lay again last week, which I was hoping that she would take a little longer break from laying than a month. We've been alternating between probiotics and acv in the water, which we have always done anyway. I just want to say thanks again for all the advice and support! Hope your girl is still doing well!