I'm pretty sure my hen has sour crop, need advice

[Chicken15]

I completely forgot, I need to go buy a scale, but by comparison to the other hen that's the same size, she about similar weight and doesn't seem to be getting any lighter. I have been catching her eating much more often.

 

[TwoCrows]

I personally think she is on the mend. Don't rush her to eat too much. Her crop is obviously still slow and too much food won't move thru her and only cause distress. And if it is a hot day at your place, chickens don't eat much when they are a bit over heated.

It is too soon to be worried about her poop just yet. If she is not exhibiting any other symptoms other than this slow crop, slow to eat, and some loose stools, than we can still assume this is a case of a slow crop. Not some big disease ready to take her out.

I think she just needs some time to heal. If you are seeing improvement every day from here on out, then we can diagnose this entire thing as a slow crop. Should she develop something new or the slow crop turn into a sour or extremely bloated crop, then we can start thinking on another level.

Even when you catch a slow crop early on, it can take one full week to heal them up. If you didn't catch it for a few days or even a week, it can take 1 to 2 weeks to recuperate and during this time she will have diarrhea.

There should be white caps on the top of the poop. Those are the urates being excreted.

Keep an eye on her. Don't force her to eat until she can handle the load in her gut. Let her drink and eat at her own pace. If she is empty in the morning and has a bit more energy tomorrow, try offering her something else to her diet. Some treat that is not hard to break down and that she will enjoy. It will help jump start her appetite.

Keep me posted.

 

[casportpony]

From: http://chat.allotment.org/index.php?topic=17568.0

The hen who produced this specimen was an older bird who became very thirsty.
She is producing a large amount of watery urates the cause of which is unknown, but could possibly be a kidney problem.

The hen who produced this specimen was about 25 weeks old. She went off her food and ate so little she became underweight. She held her tail down and was tired. She may have had worms and/or egg peritonitis.

 

[Chicken15]

@casportpony, her stool has been much less watery lately, she made one that looked similar to the first picture but it wasn't all entirely white like that, and very little came out. Her stool has been getting larger and larger lately.

@TwoCrows, I don't really force her to eat, I just hold some food in my hand and let her eat however much she likes. But however I do make her drink some water just in case, I don't think she drinks it on her own. Overall she looks to be doing better, and has a little more energy than before. I'll update how she's doing tomorrow morning.

 

[TwoCrows]

Chicken15...post the good news in the morning.

 

[EmSteele]

Hi. I have nothing to add that would help but I'm going through the same issue and wanted to save this thread, great advice and broken down to easily understand.

 

[casportpony]

Remember that sour crop is usually the symptom of something else, so finding out what is causing it is key.

-Kathy

 

[Chicken15]

Today she seems to be about the same as yesterday. I have checked her crop and it felt empty. She's resting now so hopefully it's only a short matter of time until she really feels better.

 

[TwoCrows]

Good to hear Chicken15. The fact that the crop is staying empty is a very good sign. Keep us posted on her progress as the days go by. I surely hope she makes a full recovery.

 

[Chicken15]

She ate and drank plenty of water on her own, she went to sleep with a slightly filled crop, things should start speeding up soon.