Hen not responding to treatment. Gape worm? Link to video please help assess.

[genesis1981]

Never use oil in a crop. It gums everything up. I would try the wormer and see what the reaction is, wormers work pretty fast. If nothing changes in those that have been wormed in a couple of days, then there is something else wrong. For now added probiotics is the best thing for sour crops until you can get some Acidified Copper Sulfate.

Well the crop isn’t sour yet. No fluid. No smell. No gurgling. It’s just very full of food since this morning. I can feel lots of stuff in there. Mostly feed. A little grass probably. She had blueberries yesterday I think I feel those.
So if it’s just the impacted crop and not sour, and you do not recommend oil, what do you recommend? Majority of folks I spoke to said they give olive oil or warmed coconut oil then massage the crop off and on til it breaks up.
I did give her the panacur with a little bit of yogurt and have added a bit apple cider vinegar to her water.

 

[genesis1981]

Coccidiosis can slow a crop down along with causing intestinal bleeding. Has it been really wet in your territory lately? Using Corid is a possible item we can try if the wormer and Copper doesn't do the trick. Did your vet check for Coccidiosis?

The vet didn’t check for anything!! Seriously I do not get the idea after talking to everyone on here that she had any experience with chickens.
It hasn’t been overly wet here. A few showers here and there. We’re in Maryland and it’s mostly been very mild temps and dry weather. I will look that up right away.

 

[TwoCrows]

Well the crop isn’t sour yet. No fluid. No smell. No gurgling. It’s just very full of food since this morning. I can feel lots of stuff in there. Mostly feed. A little grass probably. She had blueberries yesterday I think I feel those.
So if it’s just the impacted crop and not sour, and you do not recommend oil, what do you recommend? Majority of folks I spoke to said they give olive oil or warmed coconut oil then massage the crop off and on til it breaks up.
I did give her the panacur with a little bit of yogurt and have added a bit apple cider vinegar to her water.

Since you started with the worming, I would continue with that. It can't hurt and you can then rule out worms. The only time oil is recommended is if the crop is impacted and the only type of oil to use then is Mineral Oil. Crops are going to feel funky all day long so you cannot judge them at any time during the day. The only rule you can follow with a crop is that it should be completely empty in the morning. If it is, then it is working properly. If it still has something in it, something is wrong.

Impactions will feel like a hard tennis ball in the morning. When the crop is hard but you can actually squeeze the contents like puddy, it is called a Doughy Crop. (this is a type of yeast that grows out from the lining of the crop). A soft squishy crop is another type of yeast infection which remains sloppy and squishy and sort of floats around in there. Many times you will feel what you think is scratch or grains deep in the crop with a sour crop. (these are yeast colonies).

Get in the habit of feeling crops first thing in the morning. Check everbody's crop by running your hand down the front of the chest of each bird. They should all be flat first thing in the morning. Not a morning goes by that I don't check crops, I have had way too many crop issues over my years and it's best to catch them early.

So, all this being said....continue to worm your birds. Order some Copper Sulfate from one of the above retailers or call TSC and see if they carry it? I am not sure if they do or not. If you definitely know how to safely vomit the bird, do it but be extremely careful, not all birds can handle this without aspirating. Use probiotics or even ACV in the water (1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar per gallon of water) and when you get the Copper, get them all on it. (1/4 teaspoon Copper per gallon of water, new batch daily, use for 7 to 10 days max.) Use probiotics for one week after Copper because it scrubs the crop and intestines clean of all digestive enzymes and bacteria.

 

[genesis1981]

Since you started with the worming, I would continue with that. It can't hurt and you can then rule out worms. The only time oil is recommended is if the crop is impacted and the only type of oil to use then is Mineral Oil. Crops are going to feel funky all day long so you cannot judge them at any time during the day. The only rule you can follow with a crop is that it should be completely empty in the morning. If it is, then it is working properly. If it still has something in it, something is wrong.

Impactions will feel like a hard tennis ball in the morning. When the crop is hard but you can actually squeeze the contents like puddy, it is called a Doughy Crop. (this is a type of yeast that grows out from the lining of the crop). A soft squishy crop is another type of yeast infection which remains sloppy and squishy and sort of floats around in there. Many times you will feel what you think is scratch or grains deep in the crop with a sour crop. (these are yeast colonies).

Get in the habit of feeling crops first thing in the morning. Check everbody's crop by running your hand down the front of the chest of each bird. They should all be flat first thing in the morning. Not a morning goes by that I don't check crops, I have had way too many crop issues over my years and it's best to catch them early.

So, all this being said....continue to worm your birds. Order some Copper Sulfate from one of the above retailers or call TSC and see if they carry it? I am not sure if they do or not. If you definitely know how to safely vomit the bird, do it but be extremely careful, not all birds can handle this without aspirating. Use probiotics or even ACV in the water (1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar per gallon of water) and when you get the Copper, get them all on it. (1/4 teaspoon Copper per gallon of water, new batch daily, use for 7 to 10 days max.) Use probiotics for one week after Copper because it scrubs the crop and intestines clean of all digestive enzymes and bacteria.

I ordered the copper sulfate the minute you told me too. It is on its way but it says 1-4 days.
My hen has been happy and breathing normally all day today. But I just ent out and checked her crop again and now it has a lot of fluid in it. I have her separated off. All she had today was the tiniest bit of olive oil very early on on a pea sized bit of bread, and then some plain yogurt with the panacur in it. She has had plenty of water that had the proper amount of apple cider vinegar in it.

The hen we had to put down obviously had a blockage and then her crop filled with fluid. I really hope this hen is not headed in the same direction because we cannot seem to find a poultry vet with availability anywhere near us.

 

[TwoCrows]

I ordered the copper sulfate the minute you told me too. It is on its way but it says 1-4 days.
My hen has been happy and breathing normally all day today. But I just ent out and checked her crop again and now it has a lot of fluid in it. I have her separated off. All she had today was the tiniest bit of olive oil very early on on a pea sized bit of bread, and then some plain yogurt with the panacur in it. She has had plenty of water that had the proper amount of apple cider vinegar in it.

The hen we had to put down obviously had a blockage and then her crop filled with fluid. I really hope this hen is not headed in the same direction because we cannot seem to find a poultry vet with availability anywhere near us.

A bird should have food and water in their crops during the day, the crop is going to feel funky all day long. However the crop needs to be empty in the morning, so that is the only time you can make a judgment on whether or not it's not functioning properly. She may just be drinking a lot of water now, not eating much. Its hard to say right now. Check it first thing in the morning and see if its empty. If it's all squishy in the morning, all you can really do is wait for the Copper to arrive. For now you might use some Apple Cider Vinegar in her water.

If she does have a squishy crop in the morning, and if you have any vaginal cream in the house, you can load up a syringe with 1ml of the cream and squeeze it onto her tongue 3 times a day. Some yeasts respond very well to gyne lotrimin and die quick. Myself and many other members have used it with great success on some sour crops. Once the Copper comes in, you can switch over to that.

 

[genesis1981]

A bird should have food and water in their crops during the day, the crop is going to feel funky all day long. However the crop needs to be empty in the morning, so that is the only time you can make a judgment on whether or not it's not functioning properly. She may just be drinking a lot of water now, not eating much. Its hard to say right now. Check it first thing in the morning and see if its empty. If it's all squishy in the morning, all you can really do is wait for the Copper to arrive. For now you might use some Apple Cider Vinegar in her water.

If she does have a squishy crop in the morning, and if you have any vaginal cream in the house, you can load up a syringe with 1ml of the cream and squeeze it onto her tongue 3 times a day. Some yeasts respond very well to gyne lotrimin and die quick. Myself and many other members have used it with great success on some sour crops. Once the Copper comes in, you can switch over to that.

I’ve been seeing that people use the yeast infection creams. I’m definitely going to try anything I am told to try repeatedly. I am hoping the massaging today got moving what I felt filling her crop first thing this morning. Fingers and wings crossed.

 

[genesis1981]

As of this morning both hens have flat crops. I am so grateful to everyone for their advice! Aside from crying out for the hen we had to put down they seem in good normal spirits. I put them both back in the run but am withholding feed from them both for now and gave them both some scrambled egg and a bit yogurt.

Now I am unsure about what to do about deworming. I gave each chicken .3ML of Panacur yesterday. We are awaiting results on a fecal sample from one of them today. I have seen a lot of different things about how to dose using panacur. I know it is by weight. Our hens are all very similar weight. All the same age and breed and came to us together on this week last year. The original prescription for the sick hen we had to put down was 7 days of this dose of Panacur. Do we need to do that dose for the other two hens now? Should I just save the few doses I have left and dose them again in 6 days? Ive seen many articles about this med online that say one dose then another in either 7 or 14 days, but the vet instructed us to do it dally for a week. Finding it a bit confusing, and I know the vet isnt going to tell me what to do without bringing both chickens in, which seems a bit silly to me, and it is nearly an hour drive.

 

[TwoCrows]

As of this morning both hens have flat crops. I am so grateful to everyone for their advice! Aside from crying out for the hen we had to put down they seem in good normal spirits. I put them both back in the run but am withholding feed from them both for now and gave them both some scrambled egg and a bit yogurt.

Now I am unsure about what to do about deworming. I gave each chicken .3ML of Panacur yesterday. We are awaiting results on a fecal sample from one of them today. I have seen a lot of different things about how to dose using panacur. I know it is by weight. Our hens are all very similar weight. All the same age and breed and came to us together on this week last year. The original prescription for the sick hen we had to put down was 7 days of this dose of Panacur. Do we need to do that dose for the other two hens now? Should I just save the few doses I have left and dose them again in 6 days? Ive seen many articles about this med online that say one dose then another in either 7 or 14 days, but the vet instructed us to do it dally for a week. Finding it a bit confusing, and I know the vet isnt going to tell me what to do without bringing both chickens in, which seems a bit silly to me, and it is nearly an hour drive.

Great that the crops are all empty!! Wait and see what the test comes back as today. If no worms are present then you might hold off on the worming. Definitely worm them all if even one of them has worms.

And if you are completely paranoid, you might do a preventative worming in a couple of weeks after the weak birds have gained some weight and healed.

 

[genesis1981]

Great that the crops are all empty!! Wait and see what the test comes back as today. If no worms are present then you might hold off on the worming. Definitely worm them all if even one of them has worms.

And if you are completely paranoid, you might do a preventative worming in a couple of weeks after the weak birds have gained some weight and healed.

Ok! I looked up stuff about the drug. I keep thinking it's like an antibiotic and I have to be careful how many times I dose or finish a dose, but I guess I need to let that go. Really the most important thing is not to give too much or little based on weight it seems.

 

[TwoCrows]

Ok! I looked up stuff about the drug. I keep thinking it's like an antibiotic and I have to be careful how many times I dose or finish a dose, but I guess I need to let that go. Really the most important thing is not to give too much or little based on weight it seems.

Keep us posted on the results today!