HELP!!!! SOUR CROP??? Did I do it??

[TheSpiceGirls]

Washed sand is another great source of grit. I have it on the floor of my hen house and I fill up their dust bathing holes with it and mix in some dirt and DE.

 

[humpbacks1962]

Mine free range in my backyard, so they pick pieces of dirt here and there for grit. Also grasses, seeds, etc..

 

[chickenjane82]

Ok... They have been completely free range, they could get to where we have gravel too, until the hawk showed up. Noone died, but I had 2 close calls and luckily 2 survivors with minor wounds. I hate to do it. But I confined them to an area small enough that theres not alot of swoop down room.

I didnt realize I should be giving them grit. I have no problem getting them some though!

 

[chickenjane82]

She died.

Please someone tell me what I can do to make sure that this doesnt happen to anymore of my hens!
I cleaned up the hay. Ill have my husband pick up a bag of grit on the way home today...anything else???

 

[TheSpiceGirls]

Quote:
Oh, gosh. I am so sorry. I wish I could give you a big hug.

Picking up all the hay is a great start. Some hens eat it. Most don't. But getting rid of it will hopefully spare the others. She may have gotten some of that gas and juice from crop into her lungs and that's tough for a chicken to handle.

Hopefully, the others are okay. Give their crops a good feel. It should be firm and yet soft to the touch. Not soft and squishy or rock hard. Although, I have felt my Jersey Giant's crop before bed and really wondered if it was impacted. But she was fine in the morning.

Make sure they have plenty of food and water and access to grit. I think you'd done what you can.

 

[heatherkh]

I'm so sorry!! Don't be too hard on yourself. As the previous poster said, some will eat the hay, some won't. And some will be fine if they do. Provide some free choice grit for them to peck at as needed, and it should help. I had my first bad crop issue this week as well - and it is unnerving! Again, I'm so sorry for your loss. It's very traumatic.

And the sand is a great dual purpose option, because they'll dust bathe in it as well.

 

[humpbacks1962]

Quote:
I am so sorry. You did all you could. Your girl was lucky to belong to someone who cared.

I am sincerely waiting for mine to pass on as well, because I know it is very difficult for birds to recover from this. His improvement seems to be off and on, but I know eventually he will pass on from this condition.

 

[chickenjane82]

Im so sad! I thought she seemed a little better because she was standing. I went outside to move some stuff around and when I came back to check on her she was standing behind the door. I picked her up and she nestled up to me and was just DIEING!!!! AAAHHHH!!!!!

horrible.

I did go out and feel some of the others. Im so frustrated because theres a few that feel a little squishy??? But maybe they just havent eaten as much feed as the others today????? My piggy Turkens always have GIANT packed crops. with no feathers you can see the grain in there...its kinda weird. But I cant tell if anyone else has a problem. Everyone seems active and ok. But she did yesterday too, so I DONT KNOW!!!

Ive never really payed much attention to the crop so I dont know what its suppose to feel like.

 

[humpbacks1962]

Take it easy and do not panic.
Just keep an eye on the others, and hope for the best.

Mine is out grazing with my girls in the day. At night, I bring him into the basement. The girls have not shown any signs of illness, but I am sure they have been exposed to the bug. All I can do is hope they stay strong, but any stress can trigger the illness once they have been exposed.

Stay calm, and positive.

 

[itsren]

Shes in my bathroom.

Is there anything I can do to prevent anyone else having the same problem?

Posting this question helped me! Two days ago, I switched bedding from pine chips to straw. I'm allergic to the pine chips. I guess I'm going to suck it up and deal with the allergy. I didn't know straw or hay was bad. I'm getting it out of there today.

Thanks for posting your question!