Hen has sour crop and impacted crop!!! She has lost weight!!!!!

[thecarmiearmy]

• Lavender Orpington, a little over 1 year old, not sure on exact weight but she's lighter than normal. We think she's started to lose weight due to the blockage.
• For the past week she's been lethargic and even falling asleep while standing up when she's outside free-ranging.
• I noticed her acting lethargic and having a swollen crop a few days ago. I'm not sure if this has been going on longer than a week, though.
• None of the other chickens are showing signs of sour crop or any health issues.
• We think she may have eaten too much long grass. There are a few patches of it in our backyard where the chickens free-range. But it's not the entire yard... She must have been going after these specific patches.
• She hasn't pooped today at all. I'm not sure if she did yesterday either.
• We began fasting her today and isolated her from the other chickens. My roommate had to empty her crop because there was so much fluid inside she began to have overflow spill from her mouth. The crop was originally swollen to the size of a softball. He got it down to the size of a golf ball (did not empty completely, there was still an impaction) and had her sip on water, because she was extremely tired afterwards and not very responsive. Once she perked up a bit, he started giving her a mixture of plain yogurt, water and crushed garlic. The crop has refilled and is now the size of a baseball. If her crop has not emptied by tomorrow morning, we plan on emptying it again before we start the coconut oil (and stool softener if that doesn't work) and massage treatment. We are not sure if she has pendulous crop because we weren't able to completely empty the crop. We can't tell if it's sagging or not. Our goal is to completely do at-home treatment, until no other solution works and we have to take her into a vet to have them perform crop surgery.

Does anyone have any suggestions or advice for us? How did you treat your chickens with sour crop? We could use any advice you could give. I can't imagine the thought of losing another chicken this year.

 

[azygous]

I felt her crop earlier, nothing in there, no squishyness or smell so dont know if she had sour crop or not now. She had some yogurt earlier and crushed garlic mixed with coconut oil. To be honest I really dont know what I should be treating her for

This is the problem with trying to hitch a ride on someone else's thread. I was answering the original poster. I answered your post by citing your quote. Your hen appears to have a terminal infection, maybe treatable, probably not. If you want to discuss your hen's issues, it would be best to make your own thread so we all know what we're talking about.

 

[thecarmiearmy]

Update, she pooped out more fibrous grass this morning! Got her to sip on water... eat a little plain yogurt. Massaged her crop and took off the Ace wrap crop bra since it got dirty. She perked up and EVEN STARTED GROOMING HERSELF!??!?!?!?!? For her this is an insane amount of energy!!!!!! I'm so thrilled. Just seeing her do normal chicken behavior feels SO GOOD right now. Got her the vaginal cream and fed her a half inch, just like another article said. Now giving her mushed up scrambled egg with coconut oil to help it go down...

 

[azygous]

Here's how I treat crop issues. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

It's possible to have impacted crop at the same time as sour crop. I treat the impaction first with oil and then treat the sour crop with miconazole for the next seven days.

 

[thecarmiearmy]

Here's how I treat crop issues. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

It's possible to have impacted crop at the same time as sour crop. I treat the impaction first with oil and then treat the sour crop with miconazole for the next seven days.

Thank you, I've been referencing that article. I've never had this happen before and have been researching like crazy!

 

[thecarmiearmy]

I have the same problem with one of my girls at the moment, her crop isnt too large as she has not ate much for two days. Has has all the symtoms your does so I gave her some olive oil earlier and massaged the crop but I am really in the dark with us. I have already lost one chicken with this problem a year ago so Am quite upset I now have a chicken with the same problem and I think it could also be because she ate a length of platic thread from weed control matting before I could stop her

I'm sorry that you and your girl are experiencing the same problems. But stay strong and keep hope!!!!!! ❤ Keep up the oil massages, try a stool softener like they (the article posted above) said, try yeast infection medication. We owe it to our girls to keep trying!!!

 

[thecarmiearmy]

Woke up this morning and Courage had a bowel movement!!! Nothing solid, mainly liquid (smelt of garlic, from the mixture)... but small bits of dark green stuff came out. Which I'm guessing are bits of rotten grass from the impaction!!!!!! I'm scared and stressed to heck and back, BUT that is the small glimmer of hope I needed!!!!!!!

 

[Oolala]

I'm sorry that you and your girl are experiencing the same problems. But stay strong and keep hope!!!!!! ❤ Keep up the oil massages, try a stool softener like they (the article posted above) said, try yeast infection medication. We owe it to our girls to keep trying!!!

I have just raided my medicine cabinet and have canesten cream, dulcolax, probiotic powder. I gave her a few lumps of coconut oil jast as she was settling to bed and massaged her crop which was a little squishy and smelly and gurgled. Keeping everything crossed she looks better tomorrow, will check her crop first thing before doing anything else.

 

[thecarmiearmy]

UPDATE!!! We accidentally fed her 2 tablespoons instead of 2 teaspoons... BUT!!! I don't think there's anything wrong with that. Mainly because her crop has gotten considerably smaller! NOW fits in my palm like a baseball. A TON better!!! Massaged her twice, each for 10 mins. Still not flat. Going to give her a 30 min break before we give her the stool softener and more massaging. Please keep us in your thoughts!!!

 

[azygous]

You can't overdose a chicken on the oil. Most all of it passes right through. Glad it's working. Your goal is to get that crop emptied. Keep up oil and massage.