Full crop in the AM?

[mboreham1]

I have a bantam, she is very lively, however after letting them free range for 45 mins this AM her crop was huge! I lost one bird to what seemed to be a blocked crop so i am quite sensitive to checking, i dont know if after 45 mins of eating and scratching around the crop should be that full? I have 3 other RIR's and they didnt seem to be at capacity in their crops.

Am i being ultra sensitive or should a crop not be that full by 8.30 am?

 

[mboreham1]

no one has seen this before?

 

[mypicklebird]

You need to check in the morning, before the bird can eat. Then make the decision about whether there is a problem or not. Or catch her now, and fast her for 12 hrs- and check her then. It should be empty after a 12 hr fast- AM or PM. Any bird can gorge and fill their crop in 20min if it finds something yummy, so checking after they have had time to eat and are hungry, is not helpful in your decision making process.

 

[mboreham1]

ok, many thanks, i was not sure how long it takes them to fill the crop, they all eat like it will be their last meal!