Hen acting wierd.. breathing through her crop looks like a bullfrog

[mudderhen]

I have a hen/pullet, close to a year old that has been acting funny for a few days. Every time I go out to the coop she is inside sleeping. This is throughout the day, and I am rarely seeing her out in the yard. She has had diarrhea for about a week, but I thought it may have had something to do with the new grass that has come up they are eating that hasn't been available over the winter. I don't think that is what it is now though.
She perches and sleeps even with me around in the coop and when she brreathes, her crop blows up like a bullfrog. Anyone know what this is? When I pick her up, she is nice and heavy, hasn't lost any weight, and fights me like she doesn't want to be handled. Just like a normal chicken. I brought her into the house, and she walked around and talked for a few minutes and now is standing in the kitchen floor with her eyes closed sleeping again. Her crop is completely empty, and she is doing that open beak thing like she is yawning rather frequently.

Anyone have any idea? I have had chickens for a few years now, but nothing like this. I don't know whether to leave her alone, give her antibiotics, or bread with milk, or some other remedy.

 

[gameboygal12]

hmmm.... I'd give her some electrolytes in her water, (found in gatorade) and scrambled eggs and see if that peps her up.

 

[SandraChick]

Is the crop staying the same size throughout the day? It should be gone in the morning. If not, she may have an impacted crop. Here's what I did....
I gave the chicken drops of ACV water (apple cider vinegar with the mother....1Tbsp/quart of water--this is a stronger concentration than used whe you use it regularly in their waterer). This will help the pH in the crop, which is important for fixing the problem.

Then, IF SHE WILL EAT....soak some bread in olive oil and feed it to her. If she won't eat, give her a few drops of olive oil in her beak several times a day.
Again, if she will eat, see if she'll eat some yogurt (with live cultures)....this helps rebalance the yeast to good bacteria ratio (impacted crop goes heavy to the yeast)

I also suggest separating her from the flock and giving her a quiet, dark, area to "recover". You will have to keep a close watch on her. making sure she drinks water will be critical!



On a side note....this often happens when they eat too much long grass or hay....so If you've recently added hay in their coop or run....keep an eye out for the rest of your flock.


Good Luck.
Sandra

 

[mudderhen]

I will try it. thanks. she is inside which she generally isn't, and she has laid down behind the serama coop and has gone back to sleep. she isn't eating very much at all, but doesn't feel as if she has lost any weight. When she breathes, her crop blows up like a bullfrog, but goes down with each exhalation? when I pick her up, and feel of her crop it feels completely empty. If she had an impacted crop, would I not feel something inside it? I don't think I have ever had a chicken with an impacted crop before, but being in the medical field, with a human impaction, there is material inside, and the impaction/obstruction doesn't go away until the material is removed. Is that correct or do I need to look outside the box because animals are different from humans?
I think she is eating little bits, because she had diarrhea again earlier and it was mostly clear/yellow liquid with a little solid material and a few bits of undigested short pieces of grass. Sorry this is graphic, but I don't know how else to describe it.
I will try to get her to eat the bread with olive oil, and I will have to get some yogurt, but she seems kind of disinterested in food.

 

[FlashPointFarm]

It sounds like she has a big hole in her crop. I'd guess that the food she eats mainly goes into her body cavity.

ETA: If she was impacted, you are right. Her Crop would be full. Poor girl.

 

[mudderhen]

Okay.... Please don't take this wrong, and I REALLY appreciate everyone's thoughts and advice, so I am going to play devil's advocate just to see what we may be able to rule out.....
Flashpointfarm says that her crop would remain full if it was impacted. So.... we can possibly rule that out.
My next thought is that if she has a hole in her crop, then food would be entering her body cavity in which I am thinking...
1. she wouldn't be able to digest anything because it would be in the cavity not going into the crop, and the food would set up a likely fatal infection rather quickly.
2. She may be very hungry acting because the food wouldn't be going where is should.
3. She wouldn't be pooing.
4. With the air appearing to go into the crop, there would also be an extra opening into the respiratory tract for the air to be going into the crop, and she would appear oxygen starved.
She has eaten very little this afternoon, BUT she has eaten a little bit of bread with olive oil, and she did drink some water that I threw some distilled white vinegar in while she was drinking. ( I didn't have any ACV).

Any thoughts? I really don't know a lot about chicken anatomy and physiology other than when I am getting ready to put one in the crock pot.

 

[FlashPointFarm]

If she is getting a little food into her digestive tract, it could be that a hole, if there is one, is on the side, or upper part of her crop?

 

[mudderhen]

Does anyone know how this could have happened or how to treat it if that is what it is?

 

[FlashPointFarm]

My guess is she ate something that punctured her crop. I've heard of chickens eating nails and such. That would be my guess. As far as treating it, I don't know that I'd trust myself. You could operate and try to sew it up. The operation would be similar to the impacted crop operation. I can try to find the link for you.