Help—rooster swallowed a rubber nipple!

[Mossy Dell]

I can't believe what I did. Giving my chickens a long overdue de-worming with Ivermectin in a 3 ml syringe, I was trying a small rubber nipple on the end of the syringe. As advertised, it seemed to be working perfectly to sneak the dewormer in at the corner of their mouths. Well after a few successes, one of my roosters bit down on the nipple, which popped off the syringe, and he swallowed it. All in the blink of an eye.

The nipple is about 1 1/4" long, made of soft clear rubber. It's presumably in his crop. Where it won't break down. And if it goes farther, won't it create a blockage? Is he dead rooster walking? Is there anything (reasonable) I can do?

 

[nuthatched]

I wouldn't worry, it should pass.
It's easier the mix the wormer into a bread ball and dose that way.

 

[Mossy Dell]

Thank you, nuthatched! Bread is a good idea.

It's actually very easy with a small syringe, 3 cc, to pull down the bird's bottom beak and stick the syringe in. At least with standard sized chickens. Can't believe I tried a nipple.

 

[Tonyroo]

Lesson learned. I just use a plain syringe when deworming.

He should be fine if it's a rubber nipple. The crop holds the food then it gets passed through the gizzard to be broken down and into the stomach. This is a reference of how it works.

 

[nuthatched]

Thank you, nuthatched! Bread is a good idea.

It's actually very easy with a small syringe, 3 cc, to pull down the bird's bottom beak and stick the syringe in. At least with standard sized chickens. Can't believe I tried a nipple.

You're welcome. I've never tried a syringe simply because a few of my goonies don't appreciate handling.