Betty White has a pale, floppy comb

[azygous]

Let us know when you're ready to tube feed. Are you clear on how to insert the tube?

 

[Tumbleweedlynn]

I have watched some YouTube videos, I will definitely go slow.

 

[Tumbleweedlynn]

Let us know when you're ready to tube feed. Are you clear on how to insert the tube?

Let us know when you're ready to tube feed. Are you clear on how to insert the tube?

Ok, so we are going to eat dinner and then go feed her dinner. I saw that you gently extend her neck a bit, open the beak and slide the tube down over her tongue, about 6”, and administer the food.

Do you have feedback on that, does it sound correct? What should I be feeding her - soft layer crumble, or something different? Also, how much should I administer?

I will come back before we do it, and after dinner.

Thank you so much.

 

[Tumbleweedlynn]

Ok, so we are going to eat dinner and then go feed her dinner. I saw that you gently extend her neck a bit, open the beak and slide the tube down over her tongue, about 6”, and administer the food.

Do you have feedback on that, does it sound correct? What should I be feeding her - soft layer crumble, or something different? Also, how much should I administer?

I will come back before we do it, and after dinner.

Thank you so much.

I just saw your instructions on another thread. I’m going to read that, but will be checking back here

 

[Dovecote2017]

If you suspect Betty White is laying, it would be safest to give her a calcium tablet. She could be having an egg binding problem. Calcium will not harm her either way.

Poop in addition to lethargic behavior gives us important information. If you need to, stick her in a pet crate for tonight so you can observe her more closely.

It will also be convenient to have her in a crate so you can do a crop check in the morning to see if it's emptying overnight. If her crop is full come morning, it may be another indication of egg binding.

This is the calcium I recommend, but a Tums will do in a pinch until you can get the proper stuff. View attachment 3427023

Amen

 

[azygous]

Look at the throat of this photo of a chicken. The espphagus is on the chicken's right side. Insert the tube on the right side, slide it along the inside of the mouth, going slightly under the tongue. This will guide the tube right into the esophagus. Keep going until the tube is neat the lower one-third of the crop. You can hold the tube up to the outside of the chicken's throat and crop and measure, then make a mark on the tube where it will end at the beak.

Warm the liquid food so it's comfortable. Don't feed more than half a cup at a time. The food should all be liquid. Solids will not go through the tube. I use raw egg, yogurt or keifer, water, strained baby foods or baby bird formula you can buy at a pet store. You can squirt vitamins into the mix, and the antibiotic, too, to save time and effort. Go slowly.

If the tube hits the airway, she will cough. Back it out and try again. There will be no coughing or choking if the tube is placed correctly.

I wrap the chicken in a towel and hold her with my weak arm and use my good hand to tube. If she struggles, stop and let her settle back down and then resume.

 

[Dovecote2017]

Ok, so we are going to eat dinner and then go feed her dinner. I saw that you gently extend her neck a bit, open the beak and slide the tube down over her tongue, about 6”, and administer the food.

Do you have feedback on that, does it sound correct? What should I be feeding her - soft layer crumble, or something different? Also, how much should I administer?

I will come back before we do it, and after dinner.

Thank you so much.

No tube feeding wins for me EVER. . I would absolutely LOVE to learn! May be we can zoom with an expert and figure this out. Just a thought….

 

[Dovecote2017]

Look at the throat of this photo of a chicken. The espphagus is on the chicken's right side. Insert the tube on the right side, slide it along the inside of the mouth, going slightly under the tongue. This will guide the tube right into the esophagus. Keep going until the tube is neat the lower one-third of the crop. You can hold the tube up to the outside of the chicken's throat and crop and measure, then make a mark on the tube where it will end at the beak.

Warm the liquid food so it's comfortable. Don't feed more than half a cup at a time. The food should all be liquid. Solids will not go through the tube. I use raw egg, yogurt or keifer, water, strained baby foods or baby bird formula you can buy at a pet store. You can squirt vitamins into the mix, and the antibiotic, too, to save time and effort. Go slowly.

If the tube hits the airway, she will cough. Back it out and try again. There will be no coughing or choking if the tube is placed correctly.

I wrap the chicken in a towel and hold her with my weak arm and use my good hand to tube. If she struggles, stop and let her settle back down and then resume.
View attachment 3438272

Looks like the left side??

 

[Tumbleweedlynn]

Look at the throat of this photo of a chicken. The espphagus is on the chicken's right side. Insert the tube on the right side, slide it along the inside of the mouth, going slightly under the tongue. This will guide the tube right into the esophagus. Keep going until the tube is neat the lower one-third of the crop. You can hold the tube up to the outside of the chicken's throat and crop and measure, then make a mark on the tube where it will end at the beak.

Warm the liquid food so it's comfortable. Don't feed more than half a cup at a time. The food should all be liquid. Solids will not go through the tube. I use raw egg, yogurt or keifer, water, strained baby foods or baby bird formula you can buy at a pet store. You can squirt vitamins into the mix, and the antibiotic, too, to save time and effort. Go slowly.

If the tube hits the airway, she will cough. Back it out and try again. There will be no coughing or choking if the tube is placed correctly.

I wrap the chicken in a towel and hold her with my weak arm and use my good hand to tube. If she struggles, stop and let her settle back down and then resume.
View attachment 3438272

Still waiting for my dinner, but question. Can I not just introduce the soft food through a syringe ? I have given her egg yolk this way, and she does swallow it.

 

[azygous]

If you wish to take forever, yes, syringing it can be done. But tubing is far less stressful for both human and chicken, and you only need to pry open the beak once, inserting the tube once, and then the food all gets pushed into the tube. It's your call. But once you've done tube feeding, you'll see how easy it is and how much more relaxed your patient is during the procedure.

You need at least a 10 ml syringe. Trying to feed with a 1ml syringe won't work.