I Just Emptied an Impacted Crop (update good news pg 3)

[Lanissa86]

Texas Star, do you have a pic of your girl? How is she?

 

[Break an Egg]

Well I started this thread a while ago, and she is doing great now.

Some may think that I was cruel in operating on her w/o any pain meds, but actually she follows me around more now than she ever has. Everytime I open the door to the backyard, she comes in, or she flies into the garage window and sits on the washer until nighttime because she knows I'll go pick her up and put her in her coop. So I'll let you be the judge. After all, we named her speedy because she was just too fast to catch.

@ Yadichick81 I would give the chick some veg or olive or via eyedropper and make sure to get it down into the crop and don't get any oil at the hole at the back of her tounge. Massage the crop afterwards, and it may move the mass on down. If there is air in there it will come out with the massage.

Like I said I tried everything I could for her before operating. It wasn't fun or exciting, and I hope to never have to do it again. I'm just glad she's okay.

 

[go-veggie]

Quote:
They don't numb here either.

ETA: OP, good for you! I had to drain a chick. It was that or watch it die. Glad I did, hope to never want to choose opening a crop or culling.

Same here...just tylenol before hand-just one of the MANY reasons why my 2 year old never had to deal with that procedure.

 

[Break an Egg]

Quote:
She is going to be 20 weeks. I'll see if I have a pic. I know I have a short clip of the surgery. It's me sewing her up.

 

[cajunlizz]

Quote:
I just noticed you in RoSharon, Texas ? My mother in law lives in Clute .

 

[CountryMom]

Texas Star Congrats on saving your EE. I think that many do not realize that most vets do not even look at chickens, let alone other exotic small animals. I know NONE of the vets near me (and after looking up the link confirmed within 2 hour drive) will look at a chicken. In fact, I know my vet would have said to just cull it and get another. That is the way they are. Now, he has been wonderful in putting up with my guinea pigs. Not knowning a whole lot he has allowed me to bring in information for him to help with drugs and such I need. Then looked up what he needed to confirm and helped me fill perscriptions. There is one local vet that advertises dealing with exotics, but then killed a friend of mine's pig by perscribing antibiotic toxic to guinea pigs. They just can't know everything about every animal. There have been many a time I have had to deal with an emergency all on my own here at our ranch - and not with chickens yet. When there are just no vets available you do what you have to. And when you have the ability then there is nothing wrong with trying to save your livestock.

 

[blue90292]

texas star, thank you so much for your support and the email. i was finally able to get my gumption up and got a volunteer to help me with the procedure. my friend from the feedstore held her gently while i prodeeded with the surgery.

i ended up taking out of her crop, almost 10 oz of food, grass and corn. i cut the skin and could see the crop. i had the hardest time trying to figure out where to cut since i could see her veins and didn't want to cut any of the veins. the hole i cut turned out to be too small and when i tried to cut a larger hole, i ended up cutting a vein. the bleeding scared me so badly, i thought i would lose her. although, being 8 years old, she was quite the trooper and only complained a couple of time when i dug in too deep to try and clean out her crop. like i said, i pulled out 10 oz and i'm not even sure it was all taken out. i ran out of saline at one point. i'm so glad for the other thread that showed all the supplies. i went through three pairs of latex gloves, 10 pads of gauze and used up all the thread to stich her up.

my friend and i were both literally shaking by the time we were done. i have been sewing since i was 14 but my hands kept shaking. it was probably the worst stich job i'd ever done. makes me almost teary eyed thinking about it.

i have her in an isolation cage in my kitchen. she's eating yogurt. she wouldn't drink so i added water and terramycin in her yogurt which she ate up very quickly. she's been pooing since that night. she finally started drinking water yesterday and so i added some applesauce to her yogurt. the applesauce made her hiccup yesterday several times and THAT scared me. i know we're not through the woods yet but she seems to be doing okay (knock on wood) and has walked some around her cage.

my biggest fear at this moment is giving her too much food. she acts like she hasn't eaten in days. i'm giving her a cup (4 oz) of yogurt a day and have now added about 3 oz of applesauce to that yogurt. am i feeding her too much? or too little??

 

[Break an Egg]

I would say 4 oz is a good amount. You want to let the crop shrink back if it can. I am so happy to hear she is alive and doing well. 10 oz is alot. Hopefully, she will be back to normal in no time.

She is trying to eat alot because her body has been deprived because of the blockage. I would feed her small amounts and give her some hardboiled egg and yogurt for some energy.

 

[Break an Egg]

GOOD NEWS PART!!!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


She's been doing fine for a while now, and she just turned 21 weeks today, on Wednesday, we found a pretty aqua egg in the nestbox in her coop. She is there with 2 other EE's and we weren't sure who was laying. Today she flew into our garage threw the window that faces the backyard, and laid another egg. lol She is the first one to lay! I am very excited and I need to post some pics of her two pretty eggs!

 

[Farmer Kitty]

I'm so glad she is going well. And now she has laid 2 eggs!