Grass stuck in hens' crops

[Ederle]

I have four hens who have impacted crops. Their crops are clearly swollen and large, filled with grass. I know for a fact that each of these hens have been eating grass/hay.

After I found out about these four, I withheld food this morning and checked the rest of the hens' crops. Four more hens have grass in their crops this morning, but just a tiny bit. Their crops look flat, not swollen at all, and they are all hungry, but they definitely each have a small amount of grass in their crops. So what do I do about these four? Since their crops didn't empty overnight obviously something is wrong, but their crops are tiny and not swollen at all. So what should I do?

 

[Eggcessive]

Do you have granite poultry grit available for your chickens? You could try giving some refrigerated or frozen coconut oil 1 tsp to each hen—cut it into tiny pieces for each to peck and eat. Mineral oil mixed into some cooked egg or wet chicken feed would be a good alternative. I don’t recommend given oil orally without some food because they can gag and choke on it. Making a chicken vomit is a very dangerous thing as well. Make sure all chickens have access to water 24/7 and electrolytes could be added especially to the 4 with very swollen crops. The ones with smaller crops could probably eat some wet mushy feed, but no seeds or whole grains. Impacted crops can be massaged downward several times a day, and water is the best thing to help break it up. Tube feeding water would be helpful. A vet could do crop surgery if you feel the grasses cannot be removed.

 

[Eggcessive]

Here are some articles about impacted crops:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ntion-and-treatments-of-crop-disorders.67194/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

 

[Ederle]

Here are some articles about impacted crops:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ntion-and-treatments-of-crop-disorders.67194/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

I've made some progress, now only three hens seem to have crops that won't empty. I've been giving them scrambled egg soaked in oil, along with grit.
The weird thing is that there is barely anything in their crops, but the little bit of grass that is in there just won't come out. I've been massaging them all very frequently. The grass isn't in a tight ball or anything, so I don't understand why it's not passing through and being digested.

 

[Eggcessive]

Hopefully, those will move along. It might be good to remove the bedding, if that is what they are eating, and switch to pine shavings or sand. Impacted crop if the material rots, can cause sour crop, usually a fungal infection, but can be bacterial. Crop surgery can be done for impacted crops. A vet is best if available for complicated cases. Here are a couple of articles on crop disorders if case you need them:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ntion-and-treatments-of-crop-disorders.67194/

 

[Ederle]

Hopefully, those will move along. It might be good to remove the bedding, if that is what they are eating, and switch to pine shavings or sand. Impacted crop if the material rots, can cause sour crop, usually a fungal infection, but can be bacterial. Crop surgery can be done for impacted crops. A vet is best if available for complicated cases. Here are a couple of articles on crop disorders if case you need them:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ntion-and-treatments-of-crop-disorders.67194/

Now I'm pretty sure one of them has sour crop
When I picked her up I accidentally pressed too hard on her crop, and she vomited up brown stinky mush. Quite a bit of it too. I was afraid that she'd breathed it in but she seemed okay afterwards, breathing normally. She has clearly been feeling unwell today, and not eating anything at all anymore.

Unfortunately the only vet in the area that takes chickens is closed on weekends.
All of the other hens are still acting normal, so now I'm hoping they'll all either get better or at least soldier on until Monday.

 

[Eggcessive]

Did you read the links about crop treatments? The second one recommends getting Monistat cream, and giving 1/2 inch 2-3 times a day for sour crop. Please read them.

 

[Ederle]

Did you read the links about crop treatments? The second one recommends getting Monistat cream, and giving 1/2 inch 2-3 times a day for sour crop. Please read them.

Yes, I did read them. I'm going to give the Monistat to her tomorrow. I hope there's enough time to save her, but I'm not optimistic because she's been dealing with multiple health issues for a while now and this just might push her over the edge. I have not had very good luck with my pets lately.

 

[Eggcessive]

How old is the hen? Do you think that she might have some underlying reproductive or other problem that is causing her crop problem? Many times fluid or masses from internal laying/salpingitis can cause a slow down of the digestive tract, leading to impacted, then sour crop. The hens that I have had with crop disorders usually had something else going on. You can also tske some coconut oil and get it cold, then chop some into small pieces and offer them to her for a couple of days. That can help to help move the food through her digestive tract.