Beginner-months in lost 2 to sour crop and have found dime sized rubbery masses in 2 different eggs today

[Beginnerhenlady]

Y'all...I'm overwhelmed. Received 20 mature hens in March. All has been fine. Good feed. Free range a large enclosed yard all day. Fresh water daily and self feeding water in the run. Clean nesting and roosting, mint added to their nest. DE in the coop to keep mites away and keep things clean. Dry run, cleaned often. Fresh fruits and veggies as I acquire them. Meal worms when they need to coop up.

Suddenly within a week, I've lost 2 to sour crops. One I caught right before she passed (small always pecked on, hid in the nesting area on and off during the day so I wasn't aware. The other I nursed for 3 days and seemed she had sour crop as well as impacted. I put her down today after no improvemens and continue weight loss and weakness. This morning I cracked two eggs, each had a small mass inside. One was the size of a dime and one the size of a a sequin(best comparison I can think of). Had some (pulled tbe two small masses out) for me and my dog because I didn't know anything about lash eggs.
They get fresh water daily. Added ACV 3 days ago to the large waterer (self feeding kind) And over other week I add rooster booster.

A friend was moving and gave me these hens. I'm starting to get really discouraged. I don't know if they're all going to start dying, if all the eggs should be pitched, or if I want to keep doing this. I lost one to fly strike early on but felt it was the cost of learning.

Help. If I could thin them out by giving half away, I would but also don't want them treated poorly if given to the wrong people. I was also just laid off unexpectedly. If you're near Memphis I would happily give some of them to you. Is all of this routine? Should I expect more sudden deaths? Keep or pitch the eggs? I'm worn down.

 

[nuthatched]

Crop issues are often a sign of something isn't right in the reproductive area. Where did you get these birds? How old are they?

 

[TwoCrows]

Hello and welcome to BYC!

I am sorry your birds are struggling. When someone gives you their birds you really don't know the history of their exact care and it's always possible they are sick. What breed are these birds? Any guess on ages? Some production breeds don't live long and 2 to 4 years is about as long as they live.

Do you know if the previous owner wormed them? If not, you might start with some Liquid Safeguard, paste will work too. It's a wormer that will kill off most worms aside from tape worms. You will need an empty 3ml syringe to administer it orally for 4 or 5 days in a row. Repeat in 10 days to get the hatched worms. A bird with worms in the intestines can develop slow and impacted crop, impacted intestines as well. You can get Safeguard at most feed stores or on line. While you are at it, purchase some Corid too, which will take care of Coccidia, many times when they have one type of parasite they have others. Coccidiosis is very common and will slow down and impact the intestines too.

I'd start with these and see if you can stabilize the flock. Plain yogurt, 1 teaspoon per bird a few times a week, or any powder you can put in the water is always good for the intestines, used a few times a week. Apple Cider is good to use but not daily either.

As for the Lash eggs, this stems from infection in the Oviduct and requires antibiotics. I've had good luck with using Amoxicillin, for Standard breeds 250mg 2 times daily for 7 to 10 days, big roosters use 3 times a day. I usually get my meds from Twin City Poultry, they are running low on Amoxicillin capsules however they do have the powder to put in water here.

Best wishes and keep us posted!