Arizona Chickens

[Demosthine]

Demosthine, I would take both those silkies!

LoL. No, I may joke about it, but we aren't getting rid of them. They've become her pets. Thanks for the offer, though.

 

[pipemum]

Thanks, countrygirl. The crop is squishy and her burps stink so I think it's sour crop. I stopped trying to get her to spit up after the first day. It wasn't productive and then I read more about it and how dangerous it can be. I'm just massaging now. I'm doing the recommended treatments listed (isolated, acv, probiotics). So far, nothing has been helping. She's already lost weight. I went to Walgreen's last night about bought some anti-fungal cream (monistat, and was that ever embarrassing!) and gave her some of that last night and this morning. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she'll pull through. It's a bummer that I'm having a health issue so early in my chicken keeping.

 

[pipemum]

I've been wondering about the cause of sour crop...it could just be 'one of those things' but maybe it was a combination of the bermuda stringers that I had pulled (which really should be digested by now, they're not THAT ropey and tough) and the fact that I ran out of apple cider vinegar on Friday through Sunday. I usually put a capfull of acv on their food every morning.

 

[FeatherPugs]

I was told acv in the heat was not a good thing? I would prefer using acv year round if I could. We've been having real regular 110 degree temps here. The heat is bad enough without stressing them with acv and heat if its not recommended. Thoughts?

 

[City farm]

Thanks, countrygirl.  The crop is squishy and her burps stink so I think it's sour crop.  I stopped trying to get her to spit up after the first day.  It wasn't productive and then I read more about it and how dangerous it can be.  I'm just massaging now.  I'm doing the recommended treatments listed (isolated, acv, probiotics).  So far, nothing has been helping.  She's already lost weight.  I went to Walgreen's last night about bought some anti-fungal cream (monistat, and was that ever embarrassing!) and gave her some of that last night and this morning.   I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she'll pull through.  It's a bummer that I'm having a health issue so early in my chicken keeping. 

Glad that you are asking these questions.. Newbie as well.. Lucky for us when we had the French cooper Marans had her crop to
full. I did catch it really earlie, did the rubbing & that was that.. Whew !! Glad to know what to do.. Keep us posted..

 

[City farm]

For whoever it was that was having crop issues....this is for sour crop, not impacted crop. Is the crop squishy or hard?? I have not personally had to deal with any crop issues yet, but these methods below are by 3 different people who have and what worked for them. [SIZE=12pt]Sour Crop, or Candidiasis, is caused by an overgrowth of candida albicans. Simply put, it is a yeast infection inside the bird’s crop. It causes the mucus membranes within the crop to swell giving the bird the appearance of having something the size of an apple lodged in its neck. This overgrowth of yeast can also create lesions in the crop, esophagus and mouth. [/SIZE] [SIZE=12pt]In a true case of sour crop, the swollen area will feel squishy and a bad smell can be detected from the beak when pressure is applied to the crop. If the crop is hard, it may be an impacted crop and not sour crop, so please be sure to inspect the crop area thoroughly before treating.[/SIZE] Method 1:

• Withhold water for the first 12 hours
• Withhold food for 24 hours
• After the first 12 hours, give only clear, clean water with no additives
• At this point I release the bird but I continue observation

If the crop does not empty after the first 24 hours:

• I give the bird only clean water and try to get the crop empty to start treatment
• Do not feed the bird any solid food at all until the crop is empty. If it is not empty there is a reason. Adding more volume (food) is not going to help
• Use a dropper to give olive or coconut oil
• Massage the crop

If the crop swells up again

• Confine the bird to the coop
• I again withhold water for 12 hours and food for 24 hours - you need that crop emptied for treatment to work.
• I massage the crop if it feels hard and impacted. If it is squishy I do a little massaging to get things moving.

After the crop empties:

• I feed them eggs with a tablespoon of plain yogurt. I just smash the whole egg… shells and all - and stir in the yogurt.
• I observe for the next 24 hours.
• They are offered plain fresh water at all times.
• After 24 hours, if the crop has emptied, I add plain grain to the eggs.
• I observe for another 24 hours.

I do not do much messing with sour crop. Sometimes they get something lodged in there that needs time to get out. I can usually feel it from the outside and massage it out. If you are sure it is sour crop, there are many things that can be done to treat this kind of thrush naturally. The key to curing thrush naturally and permanently is to kill the yeast with natural means and also to cure the underlying deficiency or imbalance that allowed the yeast to grow out of control in the first place. You treat all you want, but if the bird is to get better it is imperative to find the core of the issue. I offer Oregano, tea tree oil, lavender, and a few cloves to all my birds regularly. Usually this time of year birds develop sour crop from over eating all the lush greens they didn’t have over the winter. I have two that are pooping pure green from the wild strawberries and blossoms. They come in at night and look like they are going to blow up. (They look normal by morning, so I know it’s not a thrush issue.) I have culled one bird for a chronic crop problem. She just loved to eat the oddest things. I had cut up old pie tins and put them in my garden to deter birds and bunnies, and she loved to eat them. Loved shiny things. Found all my husband’s lost nails, nuts and bolts. She was very odd. If she came across a nail head in a door jam or window, she would spend hours trying to get it out. Method 2: Cut out all ACV Give yoghurt with probiotics Eggs are also good No sugar at all - so no fruits, breads, etc. Massage crop When I first noticed that my hen Ruby had Sour Crop, she was bending over to eat and regurgitating. That stuff STANK. Like spoiled milk. Her crop was huge. I took her off food and offered her only water while I did some research. I then bought some plain, sugar free, yoghurt and offered it to her with eggs. She gobbled it up. I massaged her crop twice a day and continued to offer her yoghurt in addition to their regular feed for a week. No treats. She was better after a few days and back to normal after a week. Method 3:
The one thing that I found after searching the internet was Red Wine... You MUST withhold food or grain based food - it’s a yeast infection and sugars feed yeast. Give the chicken a dropper full of Red Wine and wait. Massage the crop in a downward motion. Check the chicken later and if it is not gone give them more Red wine and some plain, organic yogurt. The chicken should be cured in 12-24 hours.
Another chicken owner had the same problem and I told her about the wine. At first she was skeptical but emailed the next day say it was a miracle! So that’s my 2 cents.... [SIZE=12pt]*Please note – Be cautious when administering liquids and oils by syringe or dropper as you do not want your bird to aspirate the liquid into the lungs.[/SIZE]

Thank you for such detailed information..

 

[City farm]

The only pets allowed at our rental is CHICKENS..
We have a MASTER BEDROOM W/ PRIVATE BATH
Power Road & McKellips.. Close to 202 FWY & Salt river.
$400.00 a month on 1/2 acre.. Ron a family friend is there now
Works all the time or is fishing, golfing or up in Heber on the weekends.. Pass the word around..

 

[Fuzzybird]

Quote: ooops!

 

[MaddBaggins]

Hello there,

I'm relocating to Bullhead City from Orange County (close to beach) and I'm getting concerned about moving my BR from cool to HOT weather! Could anyone send me suggestions/links on the best coop design, etc. or anything else I should be aware of regarding Bullhead. My coop here was made primarily for keeping warm at night and I know that will not definitely not work in Bullhead.

Many thanks

Well, I don't think you could pick anyplace much hotter in AZ. Eeek!

Welcome to AZ!

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Quote: If I do bring our boys they will not be on your Xbox.. This is a lesson for them.. Thank you for opening up your home girl...

Sonoran, we rescued 2 German Shepards... The boy.. 4 years. I had our friend from Abbotts G.S. look at both for their overall
hips & what not.. His were bad, which was ok with us.. Along with his limp.. Which we thought at time of adoption was from the
recent surgery.. He was neutered about a week before from we took him home.. Where they put the needle in was the leg he
was limping on.. Again no big deal. But he had Diarreha & again the guy said they eat whatever is donated.. Well,,, we separated
him from the other dog to make sure he was eating.. Rice, banana, yogurt, chicken. We have been doing whatever we can for him, but we
think he was really sick when we got him.. He is on 2 antibiotics & 3 other stuff.. don't think he is going to make it.. Bless his heart..
It was not cancer, but we have a 19 plus year old dog.. That is not doing good..The vet tech said that sometimes the doctor want to
do a examination & charge us.. I was like whatever.. When a dog is suffering and there is nothing you can do why put them threw all
of the poking & what not.. Our regular vet does not have same day appointments, this other place could get us in ASAP so we took
it.. He went down hill so fast I could not wait.. We had another 19 year old dog that we tried to take to our regular vet the day she had
a stroke. They had no appointment for her.. So we are just needing a vet that if we need to go in at a moments notice, without making it
more stressful that would be nice.. The resue group probably did not know he was that sick either.. We hope he does better in the next
few days.. There is more to the story, ask me when I see you..
I don't take my dog/cats to Dr Burke, although if they had not already had a good veterinarian that is near my house, I would switch. But Countryside, where they do go, is literally right around the corner--walking distance. I can usually get same day appointments, although not always with the vet we generally use. For an emergency I would see anyone there, for stuff that I can plan, I will wait a day or two if necessary just so there is consistency; Dr Farrar KNOWS Tess and her idiosyncrasies . But even then I can often see Dr Farrar on the same day--as long as it is a day she is in. They are open Monday-Friday from 8-6, and Saturday mornings (maybe until noon?)