Bump on chest

[aoxa]

Update: She laid a soft-shelled egg and after that seemed to feel better - started eating again anyway. Her crop still feels full (I gave her some olive oil and massaged it) and now she is gaping her mouth open. Should I keep massaging and not let her eat any more?

I'd leave her alone right now. She may be gaping because of the oil.

Let her eat. Stop her at bedtime and in the morning check her again.

 

[ChickensRDinos]

I'd leave her alone right now. She may be gaping because of the oil.
Let her eat. Stop her at bedtime and in the morning check her again.

x2 I would just leave her be and check her first thing in the morning. She has been eating so it should feel full. It it likely normal.

 

[aoxa]

Not relating to the crop, but I suggest offering oyster shell on the side seeing as her egg was soft. She must have been uncomfortable because of that.

 

[janinepeters]

Not to hijack this thread, but I have a bantam brahma with a partially impacted crop at the moment. I think she just developed it within the last couple of weeks, or maybe I didn't notice it before because she is heavily feathered, and now it's more visible because she is molting.

The crop is quite firm and about 2 inches in diameter. I've been gently massaging once a day in late afternoon, but it does not help. Once I tried feeding her olive oil prior to massaging, but that didn't seem to help either. She eats, drinks, and behaves normally. I've witnessed only a couple of her poops in the last few days and they look about normal size for a bantam. Is there any chance she will pass this on her own? How effective is massage? I am afraid if I massage too vigorously the impacted food will come back up and she'll aspirate it.

 

[ChickensRDinos]

At the beginning of the year I had a maran with a very seriously impacted crop. She is the least friendly of my birds so I don't handle her daily and it took a bit for me to notice. By that time it was pretty bad.

Is your bird isolated? What are you currently feeding her? NO solid foods.

(Kmdecario - I really think your birds crop is likely normal and fine so don't be overly alarmed by all this info unless you are really certain something is wrong, this is for Janine)

I isolated my bird and withheld food long enough to be sure I knew that it really was impacted crop. I could feel a very hard mass that was surrounded by squishy (which was the food starting to rot). I starting feeding her loosely scrambled eggs and the olive oil, no solids. At first I tried massaging down. I massaged firmly. Not too hard but not overly delicate. The mass in my bird was very large. Her crop was the size of a grapefruit. I know that massaging can work given the right circumstances but I think the mass I had was too large. Next I tried vomiting. If you do try this know that it is risky because you can get fluid in your birds lungs and this is bad. Only vomit a very little at a time and never hold a bird upset down for more than a few seconds.

I was able to get her to throw up the sour liquid but it made no difference in the mass. I waited several days and kept trying but my bird was started to waste and was getting to be in really bad shape.

The bottom line is that you have to find a way to get the blockage out or the bird will not get any food and the food in the crop will rot. Either way this will kill the bird. So, I cut it out.

Here is my bird the day I isolated her with her crazy crop:




Here is her minutes post backyard surgery standing next to everything I pulled out:




Here is the bird 2 weeks or so later all well:




I draw pictures for children for a living - I am NOT a vet and I have no medical training. And I would not try this unless you are certain you know what is wrong and that the alternatives aren't working. That being said, it went well and she laid an egg the next day and did wonderfully. I would be happy to walk you through what I did. Feel free to PM me for the details.

 

[ChickensRDinos]

Make sure that is really is impacted before doing anything. Isolate and with-hold food for a whole day and see if the lump goes done. A lump after eating is normal even if it seems big. They only way to tell is if they have gone a number of hours without food.

Eating and pooping normally does not seem like impacted crop.

 

[janinepeters]

Thanks so much - let me think about it. I sort of thought the only solution would be surgery. Her crop is 2 inches in diameter, but she is only a bantam, so for her it is huge and I doubt she will be able to pass it. I am thinking that the kinder choice for her might be to put her down, as she has other problems, including a chronic, mild respiratory problem that I think is likely to get the better of her this winter. She also had bumblefoot on both feet and I've been soaking them for 2 wks in TricideNeo. One foot completely healed in less than a week, but the other is persisting. She is 3.5 years old, so for a chicken she has had a decent amount of time on earth, and maybe it's her time to pass. Maybe it's better to put her down before the stress of winter sets in.

 

[janinepeters]

Make sure that is really is impacted before doing anything. Isolate and with-hold food for a whole day and see if the lump goes done. A lump after eating is normal even if it seems big. They only way to tell is if they have gone a number of hours without food.

Eating and pooping normally does not seem like impacted crop.

I know it's not totally impacted because she is eating and pooping, but it is definitely partially impacted. I have been picking up all my other chickens and feeling their crops to compare. The crops of all of them, even those of my full sized birds, are smaller and softer than this bantam's crop. I haven't withheld food, but I can see that early in the morning before she could possibly have eaten very much, that her crop is still huge and firm. Clearly some food is passing through, but there must be a big wad stuck in there, and if she cannot pass it, it is only a matter of time before complete impaction.

 

[ChickensRDinos]

Im sorry to hear about all her health issues. I have a bantum cochin frizzle who is a little piggy - when she goes to bed at night her crop is much bigger than 2 inches so you never know (it is always empty again in the morning and then she pigs out again). If you want to know for sure I would isolate and withhold food overnight and check in the morning.

 

[ChickensRDinos]

I know it's not totally impacted because she is eating and pooping, but it is definitely partially impacted. I have been picking up all my other chickens and feeling their crops to compare. The crops of all of them, even those of my full sized birds, are smaller and softer than this bantam's crop. I haven't withheld food, but I can see that early in the morning before she could possibly have eaten very much, that her crop is still huge and firm. Clearly some food is passing through, but there must be a big wad stuck in there, and if she cannot pass it, it is only a matter of time before complete impaction.

I'm sorry. Good luck.