Help! Clear fluid coming out of pullet's mouth!

Jul 1, 2019
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New Mexico
Hi!

Yesterday I was sitting in front of my two pullets. One of them leaned over and clear, warm, slightly thick fluid came out of her beak. Her crop feels almost like it has a bunch of grit inside it, but I don't provide grit, I let the girls find it themselves.

1) What type of bird , age and weight (does the chicken seem or feel lighter or thinner than the others.) She is about seventeen weeks old. I think she is an ISA Brown. She seems to be growing normally. Her only companion is a Bantam Cochin of the same age.
2) What is the behavior, exactly. Clear, warm, slightly thick fluid came out of beak. ONLY ONCE as far as I know. She also seemed to be swallowing more than usual. Her crop felt small and like she had eaten a lot of grit.
3) How long has the bird been exhibiting symptoms? She did this once last night.
4) Are other birds exhibiting the same symptoms? Not as far as I know.
5) Is there any bleeding, injury, broken bones or other sign of trauma. Not as far as I can tell.
6) What happened, if anything that you know of, that may have caused the situation. She may have eaten a lot of rocks or grit while foraging. She has started doing the "crouchy thing" so I think she will start laying in a couple of weeks.
7) What has the bird been eating and drinking, if at all. She ate some of the mixture I gave her, and maybe some sunflower seeds. This morning she pecked at the feed.
8) How does the poop look? Normal? Bloody? Runny? etc. It looked normal. She sleeps in the nest box, so I just looked at the poop in there. Her poop was a little watery yesterday morning, but I am pretty sure that is from drinking a lot of water since it's hot.
9) What has been the treatment you have administered so far? I gave her some oatmeal, olive oil, garlic, and apple cider vinegar.
10 ) What is your intent as far as treatment? For example, do you want to treat completely yourself, or do you need help in stabilizing the bird til you can get to a vet? I need to treat at home.
11) If you have a picture of the wound or condition, please post it. It may help. Sorry, no pics.
12) Describe the housing/bedding in use. They are in a 2x3 coop with a 3x6 run. I know it is small, but I have one bantam and one standard sized bird in there, so it is enough space. They get playtime almost every day. I use pine shavings.

Thanks!
 
Occasionally birds will bring up liquid from the crop, especially if they recently drank too much. Sometimes it can be indicative of a crop problem or a blockage. I personally don't like feeding oatmeal as it can cause a blockage if fed raw.

You can try gently massaging the crop. Than keep an eye on if it's getting full and than emptying overnight. Chickens sometimes consume stuff they shouldn't and it can cause problems.
 
Occasionally birds will bring up liquid from the crop, especially if they recently drank too much. Sometimes it can be indicative of a crop problem or a blockage. I personally don't like feeding oatmeal as it can cause a blockage if fed raw.

You can try gently massaging the crop. Than keep an eye on if it's getting full and than emptying overnight. Chickens sometimes consume stuff they shouldn't and it can cause problems.
Thanks so much for replying! The oatmeal I fed was cooked. I am hoping that all it was was a lot of water that she had drunk. I massaged her crop the past couple nights and it seems to be doing fine, but I will double-check in the morning. Hopefully I remember! She doesn’t seem to be eating as much as her sister, though. Is that normal? Should I try to make her eat? She is kind of picky.
 
Was her crop empty this morning before she ate/drank?

I would provide her with her normal feed, cut out the extras for several days and see if that makes a difference.
I have been feeling her and her sister’s crips morning and night. They seem to be digesting normally.

All I have been feeding them besides feed is sprouted scratch and sunflower seeds. And whatever they eat while foraging.
 

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