Can you explain the crop to me?

[dulcimer lady]

I've never had any issues with blocked crop at all so I have no experience with it. I've only read a few things on it. Could you explain where the crop is - do you find it by touch? Also what do you do for blocked crop? The only thing I know is to give olive oil.

 

[Yay Chicks!]

Here's a thread that's a few years old but has some great chicken anatomy pics and links: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=10845

Edited to say, when the chicken crop is full, you will see that one side of its chest will be larger than the other. It's usually large at night and then by morning, as the food passes through the gizzard and then is digested, the crop will be smaller in the morning.

 

[chickschool]

Yes, you can feel it. It's located on the front of the breast bone and if full will feel like a small lump. With my little piglets (6 weeks) when full is about the size of a large grape. As far as it getting blocked up...I've never experienced that. I hand raised cockatiels years ago and because they didn't have feathers you could literally see (thin skin) into their crops I could tell if the needed to be "burped". I would massage, VERY gently, in an upward motion and that would usually alleviate an discomfort they had. Don't freak out if some food comes back up and be sure to keep their nostrils clear.

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

Thankfully, my girls have not had crop issues. The best way to feel the crop is to go into the coop right after they have gone to roost and put your hand on a bird's chest. You'll feel a lump that can be marble sized up to nearly baseball sized depending on the bird. That is the crop. By the morning all the food has passed through and it will feel small. At the end of the day I can tell how well my girls are eating just by cupping their crops to see how full they are. I was surprised by how much less they ate when they were molting.