Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[knoturavggrl]

More Issues

I'm sorry I haven't been around everyone but I have been dealing with another sick chicken almost from the day Niamh got better.

Something, either trauma or neurological is stopping Joy from being able to use her right leg. She had been to the vet twice and neither possibility can be ruled out.

She currently is living in my office with me. She gets to see Niamh every day when she comes in the house and on nice days I take her out for field trips in the yard.

This started back on 10/26. She saw the vet on 10/27. Here she is at that visit.

View attachment 4249728

I nearly lost her on November 3rd. I had been letting her roam the Cluckle Hut as she was using the leg some at that point but unknown to me, I think she stopped being able to reach her food and water.

This is her at the second vet appointment on 11/5
View attachment 4249729

I did get to her on time and like Niamh I syringe fed her for 12 hours until she started eating and drinking on her own again. That's when I moved her inside so I can monitor her eating and drinking.

She has regained a little font l function with her leg. In this video, right at the start, you can see her pull her leg under her for the first time since she came into the house.

The biggest help to us has been her deciding that mash is pretty good. As a general rule, my ladies don't eat mash. Joy eating mash keeps me from having to syringe her meds into her. Now her morning mash has all her medicines in it. That means Mrs BY Bob can take care of her without my assistance now.

We have no idea how long this will take. I know that @RoyalChick dealt with something similar and it was weeks until Bernie recovered.

For now, we are doing what we can to keep things interesting for her. With play dates and field trips. I am putting one of those song bird videos they on youtube which are designed for cats, to help entertain her. There does seem to be a reaction from her when I put it on.

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All of this has left little time for BYC. I will try to stay engaged now as things have settled into a routine of sorts. I've missed you all.

Oh goodness, yes RC described the sling she made to me when I went through this with Rue. I opted for a donut with a towel because Rue wouldn’t let me put her in anything she would have hurt herself trying to get out. Your sweet girl looks calm though perhaps the sling would work out better for you and Joy. I am sending healing thoughts your way.

Yes - I will open Jaffarra’s crop tomorrow. And clean it out.

Betty is not doing good either. I tried to drain the fluid in her crop but she flicked the tube out and sprayed me with the most foul putrid smelling fluid. I need to clean that out also and see why she wants isn’t passing anything.

I guess I’ll open her crop also and check to see if there is a blockage. Why are these crop issues happening? This is what happened with Twister and Leah.

Jaffarra and her crop surgery

Today I opened up her crop and hauled out a bunch of smelly nasty stuff.

I first put out my supplies
View attachment 4250830

Then I trimmed plucked and cleaned her skin over the crop.
View attachment 4250831

I hauled all this crud out, I must have spent an hr digging stuff out. I would irrigate and loosen up things and the haul more out, just when o thougj I was done, there was more in there! But I think I got it all. The smell was grim, and it was impossible to keep the site clean.
View attachment 4250833

When done I use a running suture on her crop incision which about 1/2” and three single sutures on her skin. I slathered antibiotic ointment on the crop incision and the skin, then a spray of Blu-Kote, and the Amoxicillin.
View attachment 4250832

If she survives the night I’ll give her some Tylenol tomorrow morning. As I wasn’t sure how her crop was working I didn’t want to give her Tylenol. The trauma of working on the crop will have it sore and likely not working too well. I tried to put a bandage on her crop but she was agitated so I removed it. There are no shavings in her crate she is on an old sheet. I have Betty in with her.

I hauled about 10cc of putrid fluid from Betty’s crop and treated her with canestin. If her crop isn’t better by Saturday I will do her crop also and see what’s in there.

Ponypoor, you have nerves of steel. Thank you for sharing the process with us. I am terribly sorry it was necessary for you to have to do this. I hope they both recover quickly.

 

[RoyalChick]

Jaffarra and her crop surgery

Today I opened up her crop and hauled out a bunch of smelly nasty stuff.

I first put out my supplies
View attachment 4250830

Then I trimmed plucked and cleaned her skin over the crop.
View attachment 4250831

I hauled all this crud out, I must have spent an hr digging stuff out. I would irrigate and loosen up things and the haul more out, just when o thougj I was done, there was more in there! But I think I got it all. The smell was grim, and it was impossible to keep the site clean.
View attachment 4250833

When done I use a running suture on her crop incision which about 1/2” and three single sutures on her skin. I slathered antibiotic ointment on the crop incision and the skin, then a spray of Blu-Kote, and the Amoxicillin.
View attachment 4250832

If she survives the night I’ll give her some Tylenol tomorrow morning. As I wasn’t sure how her crop was working I didn’t want to give her Tylenol. The trauma of working on the crop will have it sore and likely not working too well. I tried to put a bandage on her crop but she was agitated so I removed it. There are no shavings in her crate she is on an old sheet. I have Betty in with her.

I hauled about 10cc of putrid fluid from Betty’s crop and treated her with canestin. If her crop isn’t better by Saturday I will do her crop also and see what’s in there.

You are a brave lady - hoping for the best for her - that really is some nasty stuff!

 

[bgmathteach]

Jaffarra and her crop surgery

Today I opened up her crop and hauled out a bunch of smelly nasty stuff.

I first put out my supplies
View attachment 4250830

Then I trimmed plucked and cleaned her skin over the crop.
View attachment 4250831

I hauled all this crud out, I must have spent an hr digging stuff out. I would irrigate and loosen up things and the haul more out, just when o thougj I was done, there was more in there! But I think I got it all. The smell was grim, and it was impossible to keep the site clean.
View attachment 4250833

When done I use a running suture on her crop incision which about 1/2” and three single sutures on her skin. I slathered antibiotic ointment on the crop incision and the skin, then a spray of Blu-Kote, and the Amoxicillin.
View attachment 4250832

If she survives the night I’ll give her some Tylenol tomorrow morning. As I wasn’t sure how her crop was working I didn’t want to give her Tylenol. The trauma of working on the crop will have it sore and likely not working too well. I tried to put a bandage on her crop but she was agitated so I removed it. There are no shavings in her crate she is on an old sheet. I have Betty in with her.

I hauled about 10cc of putrid fluid from Betty’s crop and treated her with canestin. If her crop isn’t better by Saturday I will do her crop also and see what’s in there.

Looks like that is the problem with having horses AND chickens, it appears they got into some of the horse hay...and that then plugged it up so nothing else went through.

I'm so sorry you (and she) are having to deal with this!

Have you thought of giving them cellulase? With a number of them having this issue, maybe putting it in the mash for a few days might be a good idea for everyone??? Won't hurt them, and may help any with a partial blockage! And give direct to those that seem to be having serious crop issues?

 

[RoyalChick]

Looks like that is the problem with having horses AND chickens, it appears they got into some of the horse hay...and that then plugged it up so nothing else went through.

I'm so sorry you (and she) are having to deal with this!

Have you thought of giving them cellulase? With a number of them having this issue, maybe putting it in the mash for a few days might be a good idea for everyone??? Won't hurt them, and may help any with a partial blockage! And give direct to those that seem to be having serious crop issues?

Good idea. I only used cellulase to help clear a blockage - but giving it prophylactically would be a help to them in breaking up tough stuff.

 

[Ponypoor]

Looks like that is the problem with having horses AND chickens, it appears they got into some of the horse hay...and that then plugged it up so nothing else went through.

I'm so sorry you (and she) are having to deal with this!

Have you thought of giving them cellulase? With a number of them having this issue, maybe putting it in the mash for a few days might be a good idea for everyone??? Won't hurt them, and may help any with a partial blockage! And give direct to those that seem to be having serious crop issues?

Yes I am thinking of doing that. But the amt off crud in there, the cellulaze wouldn’t have done anything for it.

I am now removing all the hay from the atalls so the chooks can’t eat it. I’ll get them some cabbage a couple times a week to give them something different to munch on. And no more grass for them!

 

[Ponypoor]

Ponypoor, you have nerves of steel. Thank you for sharing the process with us. I am terribly sorry it was necessary for you to have to do this. I hope they both recover quickly.

You are a brave lady - hoping for the best for her - that really is some nasty stuff!

When you have to do you just knuckle down and get the job done. It’s not overly technical to do, just have to go slow and steady. Not make the opening too big and using the proper tools. Those teethed tweezers are really handy.

I would have liked to have thinner thread for the crop but beggars can’t be choosers. The stuf I used is synthetic absorbable.

I lost the scalpel blade though, I will need to find that sucker it’s very sharp!

So anyone who is doing this don’t make the incision too big, and irrigate the crop insides frequently to help break things up. And gently sweep around inside the crop with the forceps or tweezer to remove the contents.

I kept sweepimg in a gentle circle inside the crop to try and find more stuff and wow did I find stuff just as. I figured I was done I would find more.