Crop Problem, hen wont eat!!

[rihanna12]

I found that my senior hens seem to do better if they don't have to compete with the younger gals. I had an old hen start acting odd-staying by herself and not eating. Her tail was tipped to the side and she acted like she tasted something bad. So isolated her and offered her a bit of mixed veggies. She ate them so I fed her small amount of mixed veggies through out the day. And she perked up. I then added a bit of powdered baby bird hand feeding formula to her veggies to give her extra calories and protein. She really perked up and started chatting like a chicken should. So I converted a pen to a Senior Center and she's doing well. I put her sister with her and both are doing great. One is actually laying two eggs a week unheard of in a 11 year old hen.
Have you considered taking her to a vet? I like to radiograph these hens and see what's going on. In the veterinary scene I've seen a few chickens who had eaten bolts. That was a fun radiograph to look at! One the other hand, a radiograph can tell you if you are dealing with neoplasia or some other disease process, and give you a more targeted approach to treating your hen.
The one thing I have learned with chickens who have pendulous crops is to feed them small amounts of food several times a day. Canned Veggies sprinkled with baby bird hand feeding formula really seems to to help those pendulous, slow working crops. Never allow a chicken with a slow crop to gorge themselves. I like to have my senior pets have as normal a life as possible. Good luck!

Wow thank you for that!!!
so i actually do have a senior center that two sisters were in until one died. The thing is is that she is the most kind chicken in my flock, no one picks on her and she doesn’t pick on anyone else, there’s also only Four other hens so not too bad. i was thinking about mixing the powder bird food with water to see if that works, and then if she isn’t interested i will mix it with veggies. Do your two hens still eat baby bird food? And also how do you get the powder to stick to the veggies?

so a vet isn’t an option sadly. would there be any treatment for a lodged bolt or something else without surgery?
And in the past after her last episode, she lived outside eating all she wanted without any problems! But now that it has happened again she might need To be moved to the senior center with her friend so i can properly feed her.

 

[rihanna12]

Sounds like it may be impacted if there's grass too.
You may want to give her 1 stool softener as described in the article to see if that helps get things moving.

I would not give lettuce at this point. Just wet mushy feed. If you need to, withhold food for 24 hours, but do make water available.

She still may have an underlying condition that is compounding the problem.

Alright, i will try to find the stool softener. Just wondering... what would lettuce do thats not good?

 

[rihanna12]

And also, i am not sure this will help or not but while i was slightly beginning on backyard chickens i had a first account and I forgot my username, password, all of that So i just made a new account which is this one!!
now i switch between the two, whichever one i remember first...
i have made a thread about this girly on my old account during her first episode. I would love if @theoldchick and @Wyorp Rock and anyone else could take a look at it! Its pretty long though so i understand if you dont, it just gives a good background.

this is the link, I’m not sure if I did it right though
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/sour-pendulous-crop.1441384/

 

[Wyorp Rock]

And also, i am not sure this will help or not but while i was slightly beginning on backyard chickens i had a first account and I forgot my username, password, all of that So i just made a new account which is this one!!
now i switch between the two, whichever one i remember first...
i have made a thread about this girly on my old account during her first episode. I would love if @theoldchick and @Wyorp Rock and anyone else could take a look at it! Its pretty long though so i understand if you dont, it just gives a good background.

this is the link, I’m not sure if I did it right though
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/sour-pendulous-crop.1441384/

You had one of the best crop consultants giving you tips on that thread. I doubt I could give you any more info than what Carol gave you in 6 pages.

 

[rihanna12]

You had one of the best crop consultants giving you tips on that thread. I doubt I could give you any more info than what Carol gave you in 6 pages.

Yes i know, she gave me incredible advice!!
the thing now is, the molasses last time was enough to revive her but this time, it hasn’t worked. (Also last time she did have these grainy seed poops but they calmed down after a bit)
she is pretty lively its just that she is uncomfortable from her crop not digesting enough even after she was given molasses, miconazole, coconut oil, and A mix of cinnamon powder, ginger powder, chili powder, a squirt of lemon juice, baking soda, and water (a YouTube video recommended that one). I also have been giving her my ascites treatment which contains some acv (it is a small amount but maybe that is affecting her?)

 

[theoldchick]

Wow thank you for that!!!
so i actually do have a senior center that two sisters were in until one died. The thing is is that she is the most kind chicken in my flock, no one picks on her and she doesn’t pick on anyone else, there’s also only Four other hens so not too bad. i was thinking about mixing the powder bird food with water to see if that works, and then if she isn’t interested i will mix it with veggies. Do your two hens still eat baby bird food? And also how do you get the powder to stick to the veggies?

so a vet isn’t an option sadly. would there be any treatment for a lodged bolt or something else without surgery?
And in the past after her last episode, she lived outside eating all she wanted without any problems! But now that it has happened again she might need To be moved to the senior center with her friend so i can properly feed her.

I used canned mixed vegetable and the powder sticks to it pretty well. My two seniors are off the bird formula for now as they are doing so well. I give them a wild bird seed mixture that has very little corn in it. And of course they get their canned mixed veggies! Oh, and the chickens who ingested bolts were a simple fix. Since the objects were still in the crop it was a simple crop surgery to remove them. The hens recovered quickly and the last I heard they were doing well. I think your hen may do better where she doesn't have to interact with a large flock. While we don't see aggressive behavior, I have learned that chickens can be vicious when not distracted by the presence of the human food dispenser. Good luck!

 

[rihanna12]

So i went to the store and i got liquid pill form of dulcolax and green peas and and green beans. each pill is 100 mg , how much should i give?
I have felt her crop more and i cant feel anything that is hard so that is good.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

So i went to the store and i got liquid pill form of dulcolax and green peas and and green beans. each pill is 100 mg , how much should i give?
I have felt her crop more and i cant feel anything that is hard so that is good.

The Dulcolax is just stool softener - stimulant free correct? You can give 1 pill.

 

[rihanna12]

Yes stimulant free, one pill a day?

So this morning her crop digested but she isn’t eating. she is still pooping seeds but she doesn’t have access to them anymore so she should stop pooping like that soon. I gave her green peas and beans, eggs, and baby food and water but she didn’t seem that interested in it.

I will see when i come home soon but she didn’t eat when i was there.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Yes stimulant free, one pill a day?

So this morning her crop digested but she isn’t eating. she is still pooping seeds but she doesn’t have access to them anymore so she should stop pooping like that soon. I gave her green peas and beans, eggs, and baby food and water but she didn’t seem that interested in it.

I will see when i come home soon but she didn’t eat when i was there.

If the crop emptied, then I wouldn't give another pill. See how she does with wet soaked feed (a small amount) and plain water.