Cream Legbar not growing/crop problems

[jdwilk]

Advice please: I got two crested cream legbars from a breeder to keep a lone olive egger company until they were ready to join the big girls.
One had a structural deformity and I think wry tail. She was not growing and is with a friend now who is working with her. The other is also not thriving and when I put them to bed I always check her crop and it’s empty or I can’t find it.
Today I brought her in to give her some egg and watch her eat and this is what I observe. She does it pretty much with each bite.
I am worried I will lose her and my olive egger is now double her size... she is ten weeks.
What can I do??

Link to video here:

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10221108782263561

 

[NatJ]

Any other ideas for special foods??

Ordinary chick starter, made wet with water.
Some chickens like it runny and soupy, other chickens like it stiff enough that holds its shape as they take bites.

Sometimes just changing the texture of the feed (like adding water) can help a chicken eat it better.

And chick starter really does have all the right nutrients for growing chickens. It sounds to me like she doesn't need special food, she just needs to eat enough food.

You could try giving her a private meal in both the morning and evening, in case the other chickens have been interfering when she tries to eat. (Sometimes not eating is a physical problem, sometimes it's a social problem.)

I was not able to see either of the two videos, so I'm saying this based on what was in the text.

 

[azygous]

It does appear this chick, who is so cute I can barely handle it, has a crop disorder. Or it has a blockage that is not allowing the crop to drain properly.

If you've already give the coconut oil, be sure to massage it into the crop. Then if the chick is still not perking up, do more oil.

This could be a FTT (failure-to-thrive) chick and the digestive system isn't working efficiently. Time will either improve this situation or she may get worse. There isn't much more you can do with such a chick other than special feedings as you're doing.

 

[azygous]

I have used crumbled tofu with an FTT chick and it thrived. It was way behind the other chicks. I fed tofu sprinkled with Poultry Nutri-drench to all the chicks so the small chick would be stimulated by competition to eat. Tofu is a high protein food, very easy to digest. You can also get strained baby food or baby bird formula which is sold at pet stores.

 

[azygous]

As @NatJ pointed out, it's important to continue offering the chick feed in addition to the special feedings of tofu and other high protein food.

 

[jdwilk]

Ordinary chick starter, made wet with water.
Some chickens like it runny and soupy, other chickens like it stiff enough that holds its shape as they take bites.

Sometimes just changing the texture of the feed (like adding water) can help a chicken eat it better.

And chick starter really does have all the right nutrients for growing chickens. It sounds to me like she doesn't need special food, she just needs to eat enough food.

You could try giving her a private meal in both the morning and evening, in case the other chickens have been interfering when she tries to eat. (Sometimes not eating is a physical problem, sometimes it's a social problem.)

I was not able to see either of the two videos, so I'm saying this based on what was in the text.

great suggestion. I tried some wet food today and she seemed to be taking nibbles... will keep trying and I am going to take her to the vet saturday....

 

[azygous]

You'll need to describe what the chick does when eating.

 

[jdwilk]

Oh so hard to describe without the video working. This is not a typical crop adjustment. Let me see if I can fix the video issue. Didn't realize it was not working. Thank you for letting me know.

 

[jdwilk]

You'll need to describe what the chick does when eating.

I hope this works. She does this with each bite...

 

[Eggcessive]

It looks like she is adjusting her crop. Her crop might be impacted. Can you feel of it in her upper right chest and tell us if it is full and doughy or hard, or if it is empty or full and puffy? Do you have chick grit available for her? It should be available in a separate container from her food. Is she out on grass yet? What all does she eat besides eggs? What type of bedding are you using?

@azygous is the crop problem specialist, but I would be inclined to offer some chilled coconut oil cut into pieces and later massage her crop downward several times a day, if it feels firm or doughy.