Emergency Crop Problem- Help Needed ASAP!

[The Angry Hen]

@The Angry Hen

Well it is good news that she is laying regularly as that pretty much rules out reproductive issues, which can be killers. I have no personal experience of Brahmas although I know they are big birds. What I would say is that if there is a significant problem with the crop, the birds will lose weight (body condition) quite rapidly so if your girl is looking and feeling overweight (breast bone well padded), I would not be overly concerned that she has a problem with her digestive tract. She may just be a glutton.... the important thing is that the crop goes down overnight and is more or less empty first thing in the morning before she gets a chance to eat.

Giving your hens an appropriate diet is really important, just like it is for top athletes. Hens have been selectively bred to be finely tuned egg laying machines....you need to put the right balance of things in one end to get eggs out of the other. Egg production needs protein, but too much protein can be bad for them and too much carbohydrate can be equally bad. Like us, excess carbohydrates get turned into fat, and like us, they love carbohydrates (scratch), so you have to be quite disciplined about the treats you give them. Poultry feed is produced to have the right balance of protein and carbohydrates and other nutrients they need to be healthy and lay eggs. Once you start adding extras, you risk upsetting that balance. Of course we all like to give them treats, but you really do have to be firm with yourself and them.
I butchered some chickens for my neighbour that were not laying very well. They had been fed too much scratch and the thick layers of yellow fat on their belly and encasing all their organs was quite an eye opener and almost certainly why they were not laying well. Two of the 4 had reproductive issues that I believe were as a result of those fat deposits.

I hope that explains things a little better

Thank you! Yes, it explains things wonderfully. I understand with the treats. I will get a little more firm with feeding her. That you again for all of your help, I will look into it more and use your advice. I am also glad to know that the reproductive issue isn't too dominant in this situation and that it most likely isn't what she has.
Knowing the chance of that is low, it sure does take a lot of worry off of my chest. Have a very nice evening. You really are a lot of help to me.

-Angry Hen

 

[The Angry Hen]

No problem. I'm heading off to bed now (it's after 2am. Eek!) but will check in whenever I get the chance tomorrow, for an update.

Sleep well and see you tomorrow!

 

[chicksinschool]

Thank you for all your help, I am Rosa's chicken mom. Here is a little more information regarding her situation.
Rosa is 8 months old, starting laying at 6.5 months. Laid 4 eggs, promptly stopped, only to start crop issues. At this time I also switched her food and started allowing an hour of free range time.
Whe she began vomiting I took her to the vets to be diagnosed with a yeast infection, put on meds. She was healthy for a few days, only to start the issues again. Brought her to vet, diagnosed with bacteria infection, CROP DRAINED WITH A TUBE, put on antibiotics. Fixed for a few days, back to vet to have crop surgically drained, vet opted not to do this since her crop will drain but slowly. Had blood work done, has low liver enzyme 1.7, should be between 2.1-4.7. High Calcium levels 14.1 range 7.8-11.1. Vet not alarmed since could be from 10% weight loss in 1 week.
Started monitoring weight, gained all back within week. STILL NOT LAYING. This was 4 weeks ago. Since then she has been put on ACV with mother and probiotics. She laid 3 random eggs during Hurricane Irma and has not laid since then. Besides her crop issues and not laying she is alert and happy.
She normally has 2-3 days were her crop does not drain and then 2 good days. I have ordered her a crop bra, grit and Acidified Copper Sulfate.

Food - layer pellets
TREATS: mealworms, black oiled sunflower seeds, oats and greek yogurt, Kale and collard greens
What are your thoughts?

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[rebrascora]

Hi again

Have you done any massaging of her crop? Once you have made a little space in there by vomiting her, you need to massage, especially now we know she hasn't be operated on. Regular crop massage is the first level of treatment along with access to only sloppy food as I detailed in my previous post. Massage for 5-10 mins 4x a day. She should enjoy it or at least, not find it unpleasant.

There is clearly a problem that it is not emptying properly. Either there is a partial impaction of the crop that is clogging up every few days or the problem is further down her digestive tract. She may not be laying because she is impacted or the impaction may be because she has a reproductive problem.... it's a "chicken and egg" if you will excuse the pun. Hens will only lay eggs when they are getting enough nutrients to produce them, so if the impaction is preventing her food getting through her system efficiently, she will not be able to make eggs. If she has a reproductive problem that is impacting her lower digestive tract (gut) that will back things up and slow the rate at which food will move through her crop.
Is there any obvious abdominal swelling?.... check between her legs and just below her vent and compare to other healthy chickens. Does she stand or move strangely compared to the others... legs wider apart perhaps?

What does her poop look like? Is she soiling her feathers below her vent? Feel free to take some photos of her poop and post them and any photos of her you may find relevant.

What breed is she? Some breeds seem to be more susceptible to crop problems than others in my experience and some can be more prone to reproductive problems.

Once you empty some of the gunk out of her crop and start massaging it, I need you to describe how it feels?
My gut feeling is that she is probably impacted with fibrous material that is clumped into a soggy mass and plugging the outlet of the crop, but without seeing and feeling her myself, it is difficult to tell, so I need as much information as you can give me from your examination of her.

It is interesting that much of this started when she was introduced to free range. Sometimes when they are suddenly exposed to grass, they go a bit wild and eat too much of it. Usually in a pen there is very little and it is short, but free ranging often gives them access to longer grass or other vegetation and they can pig out on it. The crop itself does not really grind food up with grit, that happens in the gizzard which is a very strong muscular organ. The crop is essentially just a food storage pouch, so if they fill it up with something like long grass that gets all knotted up into a big ball it can't get broken down or pass through the outlet into the gizzard and therefore it just sits there in the crop slowly rotting and clogging up the outlet and preventing other food/water from progressing easily through the system.
There are videos on You Tube that show crop surgery being done and that mass of grass or hay being removed from the crop. It's easier to understand when you see it and especially when you try to gently tease it out with forceps through a small incision in the crop and realise that it was never going to be able to go through the digestive tract on it's own.

 

[chicksinschool]

Thank you for your reply!
I have been massaging but not 4x a day for 5 minutes. I will get on that.
Her poop is normal and vent is clean.
no abdomial swelling,however, she always has had a very pronounced waddle. .
She is an Easter Egger.
As for a mass, I have never felt anything abnormal. Before a vomit it usually feels like a balloon filled with flour and water. Usually after a vomit, I can start to feel the pellets. When it does empty, rarely, I try and feel around to see if there is a mass, I have yet to feel anything.
I am beginning to wonder if part of the problem is that she is an overeater since her crop can get quite large. Once it is large it does hang down low. . could she just be stuck in an overeating cycle?