Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Ponypoor]

My understanding is that the crop should be essentially empty before food in the morning and if it isn’t there is a problem.
The problem may be fixed by coconut oil and massage (which is actually a nice binding experience).
The watch out is if it stays for a length of time without emptying then candida (the yeast that causes thrush in people) starts to grow and ferment the crop contents.
That is what happened to Minnie. You could smell it in her breath. That is what I was treating with miconazole.
But the other times crops have been slow I have solved just with the oil and massage.

I gave it a massage not any oil yet will get some tomorrow meanwhile I will massage.

 

[MaryJanet]

Minnie’s crop was empty this morning. She went to bed with a normally full crop (not mega bloated) so I was optimistic.
But yay!!
I have no idea what of the various treatments worked but I don’t care. They worked!


I just gave her last dose of miconazole so I will start to feel less like I am running an infirmary.

Now she, Maggie and Dotty still have diarrhea which is how this all started, and I still have weirdly walking Bernadette. But at least I am not syringing and worrying about every bite of food.

Back to diarrhea. Is it possible diet is part of the problem? They are all on chick starter which is very high protein. But they are foraging a lot because the weather is good. Hmmm.

Great news about her crop!!

To me, it seems no or very little harm will flow from putting them on adult hen food, and it might resolve the diarrhoea.

 

[RoyalChick]

Great news about her crop!!

To me, it seems no or very little harm will flow from putting them on adult hen food, and it might resolve the diarrhoea.

Yes. It was because of the Hooligans. I tried having them on separate food but the big Princesses spotted that the Hooligans had better rations so they would break in to the Hooligans’ HQ and steal their food. But they are doing that anyway even with same food and the Hooligans are very big so I think could handle lower protein.

Edited to add: Big Hooligan sporting her snazzy snakeskin boots.

 

[MaryJanet]

Yes. It was because of the Hooligans. I tried having them on separate food but the big Princesses spotted that the Hooligans had better rations so they would break in to the Hooligans’ HQ and steal their food. But they are doing that anyway even with same food and the Hooligans are very big so I think could handle lower protein.

Edited to add: Big Hooligan sporting her snazzy snakeskin boots.
View attachment 3143766

I figured that was what had happened but for some reason I've been thinking the diarrhoea predated the aunties' access to hooligan food.

 

[RoyalChick]

I figured that was what had happened but for some reason I've been thinking the diarrhoea predated the aunties' access to hooligan food.

This is where it would help if I was a more disciplined and organized person because I really should have recorded stuff like that.
I can figure out the diarrhea by looking back at vet appointments for Minnie - but what I don't have is when did I finish the bag of layer food and move them all to chick starter.
I am so hopeless (I have got better about recording eggs since Maggie's lash egg but I should record feed changes too!

 

[MaryJanet]

This is where it would help if I was a more disciplined and organized person because I really should have recorded stuff like that.
I can figure out the diarrhea by looking back at vet appointments for Minnie - but what I don't have is when did I finish the bag of layer food and move them all to chick starter.
I am so hopeless (I have got better about recording eggs since Maggie's lash egg but I should record feed changes too!

Also, I'm wondering if the diarrhoea had compound causes. I dimly recall they were recently wormed, right? Maybe worms got it started then diet kept it going?

 

[MaryJanet]

Yes. It was because of the Hooligans. I tried having them on separate food but the big Princesses spotted that the Hooligans had better rations so they would break in to the Hooligans’ HQ and steal their food. But they are doing that anyway even with same food and the Hooligans are very big so I think could handle lower protein.

Edited to add: Big Hooligan sporting her snazzy snakeskin boots.
View attachment 3143766

Ps nice boots!!

 

[RoyalChick]

Also, I'm wondering if the diarrhoea had compound causes. I dimly recall they were recently wormed, right? Maybe worms got it started then diet kept it going?

I wormed them because they had diarrhea and a 'flock fecal' test came back positive for worms. Diana didn't have diarrhea and I wormed her anyway. She continues without diarrhea. Maggie and Dotty had diarrhea and still have diarrhea after being wormed. They seem fine with it.
Minnie however was really ill. As well as diarrhea she was lethargic, not eating and looking like she was ready to breathe her last. It was because of Minnie's condition that I pursued fecal tests that eventually showed worms (and Cocci).
After being wormed Minnie's crop stopped working (side effect of worms? or of worm treatment? or just a coincidence?) and her full crop geot yeast overgrowth ie sour crop. Minnie's crop seems to be working again (I am hoping it stays that way), and she is no longer lethargic - in fact she seems quite zippy! But she still has diarrhea.

I think if Minnie and the others stay well and the only symptom is diarrhea I will ignore it. I can try the lower protein food but I doubt it will make much difference as most of their food is forage right now.

 

[MaryJanet]

I wormed them because they had diarrhea and a 'flock fecal' test came back positive for worms. Diana didn't have diarrhea and I wormed her anyway. She continues without diarrhea. Maggie and Dotty had diarrhea and still have diarrhea after being wormed. They seem fine with it.
Minnie however was really ill. As well as diarrhea she was lethargic, not eating and looking like she was ready to breathe her last. It was because of Minnie's condition that I pursued fecal tests that eventually showed worms (and Cocci).
After being wormed Minnie's crop stopped working (side effect of worms? or of worm treatment? or just a coincidence?) and her full crop geot yeast overgrowth ie sour crop. Minnie's crop seems to be working again (I am hoping it stays that way), and she is no longer lethargic - in fact she seems quite zippy! But she still has diarrhea.

I think if Minnie and the others stay well and the only symptom is diarrhea I will ignore it. I can try the lower protein food but I doubt it will make much difference as most of their food is forage right now.

So their poorly digestion may have been caused by worms and compounded by diet, but from what you say about the extent of their foraging I agree it seems unlikely.

 

[ChicoryBlue]

This is where it would help if I was a more disciplined and organized person because I really should have recorded stuff like that.
I can figure out the diarrhea by looking back at vet appointments for Minnie - but what I don't have is when did I finish the bag of layer food and move them all to chick starter.
I am so hopeless (I have got better about recording eggs since Maggie's lash egg but I should record feed changes too!

I don't think this is critical, a persistent problem will be persistent enough through variations in factors to figure out.

Also, I'm wondering if the diarrhoea had compound causes. I dimly recall they were recently wormed, right? Maybe worms got it started then diet kept it going?

That's what I'm thinking, compound causes are probable, and bird-dependent.

I wormed them because they had diarrhea and a 'flock fecal' test came back positive for worms. Diana didn't have diarrhea and I wormed her anyway. She continues without diarrhea. Maggie and Dotty had diarrhea and still have diarrhea after being wormed. They seem fine with it.
Minnie however was really ill. As well as diarrhea she was lethargic, not eating and looking like she was ready to breathe her last. It was because of Minnie's condition that I pursued fecal tests that eventually showed worms (and Cocci).
After being wormed Minnie's crop stopped working (side effect of worms? or of worm treatment? or just a coincidence?) and her full crop geot yeast overgrowth ie sour crop. Minnie's crop seems to be working again (I am hoping it stays that way), and she is no longer lethargic - in fact she seems quite zippy! But she still has diarrhea.

I think if Minnie and the others stay well and the only symptom is diarrhea I will ignore it. I can try the lower protein food but I doubt it will make much difference as most of their food is forage right now.

This is a good summary. I don't see how the protein can make that much difference. Stress of some sort is a possibility. Heat, with a lot of water intake, will cause diarrhea. But were you feeding them broiler chick feed or something? Or game bird stuff 22-24% protein? Manna Pro chick starter is 18% protein. General layer feed is typically 16%. That's not that big a difference. Another possibility is a change in diet, a change in feed. Maybe that in itself could cause a disruption in their digestion.

So their poorly digestion may have been caused by worms and compounded by diet, but from what you say about the extent of their foraging I agree it seems unlikely.

What about what each bird tends to like to eat when they forage being a factor? Hazel seems to concentrate on dandelion and baby's breath greens. Everybody here also loves the grass seeds that are out now.