Chicken With Sour Crop

[LittleBantam15]

Hello,
I have a three year old silkie bantam with sour crop. She has already had it twice and both times before she recovered after treatment that the vet prescribed but it's back again. Seeing as it is very difficult to find a vet who both sees chickens and has an available appointment, I usually have to take whatever appointment I can get from whoever. The second veterinarian I visited emptied my hen's crop, gave her an anti-fungal, and prescribed antibiotics, which took care of the problem, but we were not able to see that vet this time and had to see someone else.

This vet gave my chicken, Marshmallow, an x-ray to make sure her crop wasn't being impacted and found nothing. As instructed, I have injected Marshmallow with Metoclopramide five times already and the last injection I'm supposed to do is tonight. Marshmallow has been pooping more frequently since doing this. She has been on a pink antibiotic called Sulfatrim for a week today and has three days left to go. Her crop still seems squishy and is still overflowing a few minutes after I allow her to have water every time. She is able to fly out of her basket and walk around a little, but while she is not on her deathbed she is not as lively as she should be and I am worried that the sour crop is not going away.

When this has happened before, she has been unusually thirsty, drinking tons of water. She is acting the same way this time, but I am afraid to let her drink plain water because every time I do, yellow, slightly gooey fluid comes out of her beak very soon after. I've been trying to persuade her to eat bread soaked in water and her regular food crumble mixed with water and mashed up, but while she has reluctantly nibbled both a bit, she seems very focused on just getting the water. She was willing to eat part of a blueberry but doesn't seem very interested in food.

Should I just give her plain water and allow her crop to overflow? Should I attempt emptying her crop on my own? I'll admit I'm not very eager to resort to that. I've read about various treatments but I don't know if it would be wise to try them while also doing the current treatments. I am trying to get a probiotic today - is it likely that that will help? If anyone has had experience with anything like this please let me know what you think I should do

 

[coach723]

When a bird has repeated bouts with sour crop it can be an indication that there is something going on farther down the digestive tract that is slowing things up. Do you know when she last laid? What do her droppings look like? Pictures are welcome. Does her abdomen feel bloated, below the vent, between the legs, either water balloon like or very hard? I would not try to clear the crop yourself, it's very easy for them to aspirate the contents.

 

[LittleBantam15]

I don’t think she has laid in over six months. Before giving her the metoclopramide her droppings looked very normal apart from being far smaller than usually and slightly watery because she was not eating very much but drinking a lot. Now they are very liquidy and pale. Her abdomen feels normal.

 

[LittleBantam15]

 

[Shezadandy]

I've got a chronic crop bird myself, and I'll share with you how I learned to manage her issue.

I think what's happened is your chicken's crop muscle has become stretched out and she has lost the "off-switch" for water and food. I'm not going to tell you that one is directly related to the other, because I don't know that for sure. I'm aware some will say use a crop bra - but that doesn't address the underlying issue, the stretched out muscle.

I offer this as what worked for me with my bird (now 5 and still laying eggs) -- Important, this is strictly with the condition that there are no blockages (feathers, straw, hay, whatever) preventing the movement of crop contents. Confine her with no food and no water and don't let her eat or drink until her crop decreases. Obviously ... do this inside where she can be kept comfortably, not outside in the hot weather.

After a day with no food and no water, if the crop doesn't move and you're not comfortable emptying it yourself, then have the vet do it for you, because having the contents just sit there is detrimental to her health.

Once that's done - and her crop is empty - whether she's processed her over-filled crop herself and you find poop, best case scenario -- or if the vet empties her ---- very important - restrict her food and water access to very small amounts for a limited time.

Finish whatever meds she's on with your vet, but I would recommend returning to water and her regular food once that's done.

She WILL want more, but start small - think like 3 tablespoons of water and 2 tablespoons of food. And be very disciplined about it - there must be an empty crop before she gets more. Food and water rotting away in an immobile crop just lands you back at square one.

Repeat ... no more until she's emptied her crop again. If you're worried about nutrition, poultridrench is a good supplement.

I know that runs counter to all we hold dear in taking care of our feathered friends, but if she's drinking until she expels liquid out of her beak - and gets sick enough to end up at the vet--- it's time to help her get back on track.

By limiting access to food (stick to her crumbles- no more bread or other treats etc) and water, and waiting for that to make its way down before she gets more, you are helping her crop muscle regroup (instead of being stretched into a water balloon) and contract and regain the muscle tone.

As she reliably empties her crop between small meals, then you can gradually offer a little more, or do the same small amounts more frequently. This is over the course of 4-5 days provided there are no setbacks in the form of a huge crop - but since she should only be getting what you're giving her in small quantities - that shouldn't happen.

After the initial week of small meals, week 2 is spent increasing the meal/drink sizes incrementally. By week 3 or so, you should be able to leave her a dish with food and a dish with water without her inhaling every speck and drop.

You'll feel like a jail warden, but ultimately when the hen's crop muscle shrinks back up and gets back to work, it's all worth it. My problem hen is back to having a full dish of water and as much food as she wants - without the binge drinking/eating. Might she do it again some day? Yep.

 

[RumneyRoost]

@Shezadandy gave good advice.

In the spring I had a hen with sour crop. My vet told me to try emptying it myself by inserting a tube (the same way you would to tube feed), and draw up the crop contents into a syringe. Then flush with some water.
I followed that with an anti fungal treatment and limited food and water.

If your hen hasn’t laid in six months the crop issues may be the result of another underlying issue.

 

[coach723]

The tubing out of crop contents is much safer than 'vomiting' a bird, so if necessary I would do it that way. When you took the bird to the vet, did they do a fecal test for internal parasites? A heavy load of parasites can cause things to slow down and the crop to not empty properly, I have dealt with that particular issue a few times. Treatment was worming, followed by only water soluble foods, some coconut oil and plenty of fluids, with crop massage each time. Recovery for that has taken up to a week following the worming for the digestive tract to begin to function normally. The My other crop problems were in one case an impacted gizzard, and in all the rest were caused by underlying reproductive problems, like cancers and infection (salpingitis). Reproductive problems are not uncommon in birds over the age of 2.
These are a couple of good articles, if you haven't seen them yet:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ntion-and-treatments-of-crop-disorders.67194/

 

[LittleBantam15]

The tubing out of crop contents is much safer than 'vomiting' a bird, so if necessary I would do it that way. When you took the bird to the vet, did they do a fecal test for internal parasites? A heavy load of parasites can cause things to slow down and the crop to not empty properly, I have dealt with that particular issue a few times. Treatment was worming, followed by only water soluble foods, some coconut oil and plenty of fluids, with crop massage each time. Recovery for that has taken up to a week following the worming for the digestive tract to begin to function normally. The My other crop problems were in one case an impacted gizzard, and in all the rest were caused by underlying reproductive problems, like cancers and infection (salpingitis). Reproductive problems are not uncommon in birds over the age of 2.
These are a couple of good articles, if you haven't seen them yet:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ntion-and-treatments-of-crop-disorders.67194/

We did do a fecal test for internal parasites and they didn't find any. I will keep the reproductive problem possibility in mind. Thank you for the articles - I will be sure to read them right away. Thank you so much for your help!

 

[LittleBantam15]

@Shezadandy gave good advice.

In the spring I had a hen with sour crop. My vet told me to try emptying it myself by inserting a tube (the same way you would to tube feed), and draw up the crop contents into a syringe. Then flush with some water.
I followed that with an anti fungal treatment and limited food and water.

If your hen hasn’t laid in six months the crop issues may be the result of another underlying issue.

Thank you for this - if I have to empty her crop I will do it this way.

 

[LittleBantam15]

I've got a chronic crop bird myself, and I'll share with you how I learned to manage her issue.

I think what's happened is your chicken's crop muscle has become stretched out and she has lost the "off-switch" for water and food. I'm not going to tell you that one is directly related to the other, because I don't know that for sure. I'm aware some will say use a crop bra - but that doesn't address the underlying issue, the stretched out muscle.

I offer this as what worked for me with my bird (now 5 and still laying eggs) -- Important, this is strictly with the condition that there are no blockages (feathers, straw, hay, whatever) preventing the movement of crop contents. Confine her with no food and no water and don't let her eat or drink until her crop decreases. Obviously ... do this inside where she can be kept comfortably, not outside in the hot weather.

After a day with no food and no water, if the crop doesn't move and you're not comfortable emptying it yourself, then have the vet do it for you, because having the contents just sit there is detrimental to her health.

Once that's done - and her crop is empty - whether she's processed her over-filled crop herself and you find poop, best case scenario -- or if the vet empties her ---- very important - restrict her food and water access to very small amounts for a limited time.

Finish whatever meds she's on with your vet, but I would recommend returning to water and her regular food once that's done.

She WILL want more, but start small - think like 3 tablespoons of water and 2 tablespoons of food. And be very disciplined about it - there must be an empty crop before she gets more. Food and water rotting away in an immobile crop just lands you back at square one.

Repeat ... no more until she's emptied her crop again. If you're worried about nutrition, poultridrench is a good supplement.

I know that runs counter to all we hold dear in taking care of our feathered friends, but if she's drinking until she expels liquid out of her beak - and gets sick enough to end up at the vet--- it's time to help her get back on track.

By limiting access to food (stick to her crumbles- no more bread or other treats etc) and water, and waiting for that to make its way down before she gets more, you are helping her crop muscle regroup (instead of being stretched into a water balloon) and contract and regain the muscle tone.

As she reliably empties her crop between small meals, then you can gradually offer a little more, or do the same small amounts more frequently. This is over the course of 4-5 days provided there are no setbacks in the form of a huge crop - but since she should only be getting what you're giving her in small quantities - that shouldn't happen.

After the initial week of small meals, week 2 is spent increasing the meal/drink sizes incrementally. By week 3 or so, you should be able to leave her a dish with food and a dish with water without her inhaling every speck and drop.

You'll feel like a jail warden, but ultimately when the hen's crop muscle shrinks back up and gets back to work, it's all worth it. My problem hen is back to having a full dish of water and as much food as she wants - without the binge drinking/eating. Might she do it again some day? Yep.

This sounds like a great plan. I will start doing this today. Thank you so much for the information and your help! I hope your hen stays well!