Diarrhea, Sour Crop, and Breathing issues

[uisceros]

Hi all,

I have a mystery - my favorite chicken is suddenly ill and I don’t know what is wrong. She is open mouth breathing (though her comb is still red), lowering her tail, making slight crackle noises when she breathes, and has mild diarrhea (her poops are mostly solid, but liquidy enough that the feathers around her vent are encrusted)

She also has sour crop. I’ve been treating it for a while (it went away and came back) first with miconazole cream and now with nystatin I dose her with twice a day via tube feeding.

The sour crop seems to be getting slightly better, but is this all related to that? I’ve only dealt with sour crop once before and it was uncomplicated.

This is a three year old Serama hen. No clue if she’s still laying, but she is still interested in eating. She lives in a flock of 18 bantams, they eat all flock (currently Nutrena), and have a dirt/sand substrate. I routinely deal with respiratory issues, but I don’t think this is that.

 

[thecatumbrella]

I routinely deal with respiratory issues, but I don’t think this is that.

Can you elaborate on this? What kind of respiratory issues? It might not be the problem, but it could be contributing.

 

[uisceros]

Can you elaborate on this? What kind of respiratory issues? It might not be the problem, but it could be contributing.

It's not coryza, it's most like wheezing and occasional sneezing. Penny (the chicken in question) has never shown symptoms, but her flock mates do.

Penny has gotten a lot worse. It seems like her sour crop is just not resolving, so she's stopped eating. She's very thin and lethargic.

I brought her inside and am still tube dosing her with nystatin. I also tube fed her some kaytee exact handfeeding with some B12 and poultry cell mixed in.

I think the gasping is related to the fluid buildup in her crop. I'm holding her fully upright right now and I'm not seeing any gasping. I'm hoping the food I gave her helps her maintain some strength. She's struggling.

 

[thecatumbrella]

Let me tag a couple people that can help if they're online.

@Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock - Thanks, guys.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

She is open mouth breathing (though her comb is still red), lowering her tail, making slight crackle noises when she breathes, and has mild diarrhea (her poops are mostly solid, but liquidy enough that the feathers around her vent are encrusted)

She also has sour crop. I’ve been treating it for a while (it went away and came back) first with miconazole cream and now with nystatin I dose her with twice a day via tube feeding.

The sour crop seems to be getting slightly better, but is this all related to that? I’ve only dealt with sour crop once before and it was uncomplicated.

Penny has gotten a lot worse. It seems like her sour crop is just not resolving, so she's stopped eating. She's very thin and lethargic.

I think the gasping is related to the fluid buildup in her crop. I'm holding her fully upright right now and I'm not seeing any gasping. I'm hoping the food I gave her helps her maintain some strength. She's struggling.

Sounds like the crop problem is causing the respiratory distress.

Does she have any bloat or fluid in the abdomen below the vent between her legs?
You mention you don't know when she last laid an egg, was she having trouble with production?

Possible she has a partial blockage, so if the crop is still not moving after treatment, you may need to give her a flush to see if that helps.

Often a crop problem is a symptom of an underlying condition (reproductive disorders, worms/coccidiosis, infection, etc.). So very often while symptoms may not even seem to be related, they can be.


Directions for Epsom Salts Flush
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/hen-trying-to-eat-but-cant.1598035/post-27170402

 

[uisceros]

Sounds like the crop problem is causing the respiratory distress.

Does she have any bloat or fluid in the abdomen below the vent between her legs?
You mention you don't know when she last laid an egg, was she having trouble with production?

Possible she has a partial blockage, so if the crop is still not moving after treatment, you may need to give her a flush to see if that helps.

Often a crop problem is a symptom of an underlying condition (reproductive disorders, worms/coccidiosis, infection, etc.). So very often while symptoms may not even seem to be related, they can be.


Directions for Epsom Salts Flush
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/hen-trying-to-eat-but-cant.1598035/post-27170402

Thanks so much!! I’m right now I am just trying to get her to drink some. She’s really weak and I’m not sure she’s going to make it. She was purring earlier so at least she’s mostly comfortable.

I don’t feel any bloat in her abdomen. She was acting perfectly normal until the sour crop - she was broody for a bit and suddenly developed this.

Right now her crop is really full and doesn’t seem to be going down. She pooped earlier but it was straight liquid.

I’m honestly devastated because she is my favorite and oldest chicken.

I’ll try the flush tomorrow. Right now I want to make sure she keeps the water I got her to drink in.