Help!! how do I do an olive oil enema?

[chalidobrenz]

They have access to oyster shell grit free choice all the time.. They rarely use it because they free range probably 70% of the time. They always have fresh, clean water. These birds live in the Taj Mahal of chicken coups, no expense has been spared in ensuring their well-being. :/ It's a white crested polish, I have two of them, both of which I've had a great deal of trouble keeping healthy. They are just kind of accident prone.
Her color is better this morning. I truly thought she'd pass yesterday, but after eating some yogurt she perked up a bit. After much massaging, a few drops of olive oil, as much water as the poor thing will drink, she still has kind of a firm mass in her crop, so I made an appointment with our avian specialist today to see what we can do. I'm hoping we can extract it via the mouth, as I'm not sure I would opt for surgery at this point. Hoping for good news for this little bird! I'll keep the feed updated! Thanks for all of your input.

 

[casportpony]

Does the mass feel like grass or feed? Either way, hope you and your vet can come up with a solution.

-Kathy

 

[chalidobrenz]

It really doesn't feel like either. It has gotten smaller throughout the day. The vet thinks she might have just over eaten dry grass and various other yard inhabitants. :/ She said she may have picked up something bacterial, which complicated it even more. We're doing metacam which is an anti inflammatory pain reliever, and a round of antibiotics to see if we can't get things moving in her GI tract. She is quite a bit more perky today than yesterday, but visibly sore and still pretty pale. Hoping for a better day tomorrow! Chickens seem to heal so much at night. Thank you!

 

[casportpony]

Did the vet talk to you about giving fluids?

-Kathy

 

[chalidobrenz]

She said to restrict solids and only give fluids for 24 hours. She has started drinking on her own, and her color has significantly improved. Her tail is much more perky today, and she wants to eat. She's been getting yogurt with probiotics sprinkled over it, and her water is packed with electrolytes. We will give softened layer crumbles tomorrow and see how she does. She looks a million times better today than even yesterday. Hoping things keep looking up!

 

[casportpony]

That's great news!

-Kathy

 

[rancher hicks]

I have a chicken who had an impacted crop yesterday, she's been pooping out grassy, stringy poop, and is now not pooping and constipated. How to I perorm an olive oil enema?

All right I'm back. I have to ask, where did you read about Olive Oil enemas being given to chickens? Please use caution when taking advice from folks here. You don't know them. They may be quacks.

I will grant you there are some fine people on BYC, but not everyone is a sweetheart.

Please use caution, if you can't find second reliable source, outside BYC, for the treatment you intend to give, please don't do it. There are many books available. The public library is a great place to find information on poultry. Also many magazines cover treatments for problems you may encounter. $19 a year for the information you can get is not a lot.

I wish you well,

Rancher

 

[casportpony]

Any type of enema is unlikely to do much good in a chicken, which I think the OP has figured out.

In mammals where an enema might help, like mega-colon in cats, vets may suggest mineral oil or soapy water, not olive oil. In horses, mineral oil is given orally via a tube along with water.

-Kathy

 

[casportpony]

@chalidobrenz , how is she?

-Kathy

 

[chalidobrenz]

I had not read about it on here, actually. It stimulated some peristalsis in the GI tract, but didn't do a lot of good beyond that. She's doing very well! Her color is almost 100%, she has completely emptied her crop, and is eating softened layer crumbles today. She isn't really wanting solid foods at this point, but she's eating softened food very well. So glad!