Drinking a LOT of water but eating nothing - sour crop?

[jodievaughan]

My hen Abigail has been refusing all food including treats for the last 2 days. However, she is drinking an absolute ton of water. Her crop feels very fluidy, but since she's drinking so much I can't figure out if it's sour crop. There's so much water in there that when I massaged her crop, a bit of water came up and out of her beak. In the morning I will check to see if her crop has emptied and I'll update this post. I've read a foul odour coming from the beak is typical in cases of sour crop but I smell nothing. I think it would be worth mentioning that I finished a course of Flubenvet wormer about 2 weeks ago now, as I wondered if this could've upset the bacterial balance in her. She's also acting a bit lethargic but not particularly.

Does anyone have any suggestions for what I could do for her? To be frank the vets where I live tell me there's nothing they can do when it comes to chickens so any help would be very much appreciated.

 

[cherrynberry]

My hen Abigail has been refusing all food including treats for the last 2 days. However, she is drinking an absolute ton of water. Her crop feels very fluidy, but since she's drinking so much I can't figure out if it's sour crop. There's so much water in there that when I massaged her crop, a bit of water came up and out of her beak. In the morning I will check to see if her crop has emptied and I'll update this post. I've read a foul odour coming from the beak is typical in cases of sour crop but I smell nothing. I think it would be worth mentioning that I finished a course of Flubenvet wormer about 2 weeks ago now, as I wondered if this could've upset the bacterial balance in her. She's also acting a bit lethargic but not particularly.

Does anyone have any suggestions for what I could do for her? To be frank the vets where I live tell me there's nothing they can do when it comes to chickens so any help would be very much appreciated.

@Wyorp Rock can help.


In the meantime, check her:

1.) Vent (Poopy, swollen, or red?)
2.) Mites/lice (Check under wings, at neck, under vent, near skin)
3.) Crop (Should be empty in the morning)
4.) Abdomen (Is it swollen, firm, or soft?)
5.) Poop (diarrhea, solid, color?)


Pictures would definitely help

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Drinking a lot of water and a crop that is fluid filled, it sounds like she may have a blockage. A sour crop does not always have an odor, so consider treating her for a blockage and for sour crop.

When is the last time she laid an egg? Is there any bloat or fluid below the vent between her legs?
Read through this article to become familiar with treatment and keep us posted on how she's doing.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

 

[jodievaughan]

Thank you both for your help, I really appreciate it! To answer the questions:


Vent - everything is normal

Mites/lice - I am currently treating their shed for red mites

Crop - I checked her this morning, it had not emptied. Very fluidy and I couldn't feel any solids in there whatsoever.

Abdomen - normal

Poo - I haven't seen her pass any, but I haven't been with her 24/7. With the sheer amount she's been drinking, I can't imagine she's not passing anything.

Eggs - she has been laying daily as normal.


Since her crop had not emptied this morning, I got her to be sick and a brown liquid with an unpleasant smell came out. I emptied out as much of it as I felt I safely could and the crop was nearly empty at the end. After this, I syringe fed her some natural yoghurt. She then immediately went to the water afterwards and drank a ton of it. Does anyone have any suggestions for what to do next? I was thinking an anti-fungal medication might be appropriate. I haven't given her any Critical Care Formula because I think the maltodextrin could worsen a yeast overgrowth. I'd really appreciate anyone's advice.

 

[jodievaughan]

Another update - I just got hold of an anti-fungal medicine (2% Clotrimazole) and I'll be giving her 1ml 3 times per day. I'll keep sharing updates. In the mean time, if anyone has any advice I'd love to read it!

 

[jodievaughan]

Just thought I'd put this question forward - since I find Critical Care Formula unsuitable in this case due to it's maltodextrin context, I was wondering if anyone has suggestions for an alternative nutritional support while she's not eating?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Mites/lice - I am currently treating their shed for red mites

Crop - I checked her this morning, it had not emptied. Very fluidy and I couldn't feel any solids in there whatsoever.

Just thought I'd put this question forward - since I find Critical Care Formula unsuitable in this case due to it's maltodextrin context, I was wondering if anyone has suggestions for an alternative nutritional support while she's not eating?

It's good you were able to get the Clotrimazole and start that. That's what I use to treat crop issues.

Does she have any mites currently on her? You've treated all the birds in addition to their shed right?

Do keep in mind, that she may also have a blockage if the crop is filling with fluid, re-read that article and the comments to treat for a blockage as well.
Very soupy feed can sometimes be syringed or some use Kaytee Baby Bird forumla.

Getting a fecal float to see if worms are part of the problem would be good.
Most of the time, I've found there's an underlying condition causing the crop to slow - reproductive disorders, infection, worms and/or coccidiosis are a few.

 

[jodievaughan]

It's good you were able to get the Clotrimazole and start that. That's what I use to treat crop issues.

Does she have any mites currently on her? You've treated all the birds in addition to their shed right?

Do keep in mind, that she may also have a blockage if the crop is filling with fluid, re-read that article and the comments to treat for a blockage as well.
Very soupy feed can sometimes be syringed or some use Kaytee Baby Bird forumla.

Getting a fecal float to see if worms are part of the problem would be good.
Most of the time, I've found there's an underlying condition causing the crop to slow - reproductive disorders, infection, worms and/or coccidiosis are a few.

Many thanks again for your response!

I have not seen any of the red mites on Abi, however I recently lost a bird and did find one on her body, so I was about to start treating all of the birds directly, I just haven't yet figured out what to do yet. This is because I have Pharmaq Ivermectin 1% Spot On, but the kind advertised towards small animals (I used it for my rabbit). I'm trying to figure out if this would be alright to use on the chickens too. The same brand has a 1% one for large ornamental birds too, but the only difference I can see between the two kinds is the size of the bottle. Do you happen to know if the one I already have would be okay to use? From what I've read they have the same active ingredient which is in the same concentration, and they're suspended in the same base.

I'm definitely keeping the possibility of a blockage in mind. I can confirm she did pass waste today. The non urate part was small and runny which makes sense to me since she's not eaten for 3 days now besides the small amount of yoghurt she got today.

I did just complete worming them about 2 weeks ago so I wouldn't have guessed worms would be the cause, what do you think?

 

[jodievaughan]

Something just occurred to me. About a week ago I gave the hens a bigger portion of corn than usual as a treat. I didn't think much of it at the time but perhaps this could've upset her crop?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I think the dosing would be the same. Let's tag in @casportpony and ask just to be sure.
The "Ivermectin" would be the same, but let's re-check dosing.
As for the difference - it's probably marketing and packaging

Giving a little extra treat of corn once, really shouldn't have been a problem. The crop is basically a holding tank for food - so technically it's the digestive system that you are treating.

I have Pharmaq Ivermectin 1% Spot On, but the kind advertised towards small animals (I used it for my rabbit). I'm trying to figure out if this would be alright to use on the chickens too. The same brand has a 1% one for large ornamental birds too, but the only difference I can see between the two kinds is the size of the bottle.