Immpacted Crop!! Hen laborious breathing, purplish face! HELP HELP!

[The Chickens' Maid]

Our three+ year old hen has an impacted crop. There is something very hard, but pliable in there. She is breathing hard, and she has a purplish face. She was just dust bathing (the rooster was standing over here, which is different). She has been staying in a nesting box where she sleeps lately. This morning she was really agitated, like she was going to lay an egg. She hasn't laid for months. Her crop is being massaged now and she is being monitored. She still seems very active and alert. She is not happy about being held. PLEASE HELP ANYONE!!!

 

[BirdBrain]

Do a quick search on this section for impacted crop.

Here is a link to one thread that may be helpful
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=251833

Also check the helpful links post at the top of this section for pictoral tutorial on crop surgery.

 

[LynneP]

No access to a vet? In cases of respiratory distress a vet is really the best person to consult.

You may have a couple of problems- if an impacted crop you need to feel to see if it is grit or fibre as apposed to a sour crop. I have no experience with sour crop, but this is what worked for me when I dealt with fibrous crop and gritty crop

https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=7693-sick-hen

The other issue is whether or not she is eggbound. If she is holding her tail down and is hunched, this may be the cause. If not, and if her vent is not pulsing, she may not be laying to lack of nutrition due to a crop problem. These are the most likely causes, but unless one sees and handles a hen, things can be missed. Her activity suggests she is dealing with a minor impaction. I aaume you have isolated her?

You are going to need to handle this hen again either way and may need a second person. Lowering the light will help, so perhaps at dusk, or you can cover the coop window or her cage to calm her.

 

[The Chickens' Maid]

Thanks for responding. She does seem to have a minor impaction. Whatever made her start breathing hard and turning purple, I have no idea. She is back to normal color now, but she does have a small wheeze. It's hard to hear unless you hold your ear right next to her beak.
I don't know about sour crop. I gave her a little bit (she didn't let me give her more) of baking soda/water according to a recipe I found on here to flush her crop. I think it's working, but she keeps swallowing whatever comes up. I also gave her some olive oil to loosen the stuff in her crop up. Other than that, she is bright and looking around and whining to go back to the coop. She is isolated, we may bring her into the house to watch her better. We don't have access to a vet.
I don't think that she's egg-bound. We had a hen die from egg-binding not too long ago. This hen is not displaying any of the symptoms; if anything, I would say that her behavior, although unexpected since she hasn't been laying, was normal for her when she wants to lay. She often takes long breaks in laying, although this was the longest. She sometimes is agitated a day or two before she actually starts laying again.
I have been checking her crop lately; she has a large crop which she has had since we got her as a grown hen. It has never caused problems before, but I've been feeling it to make sure she is digesting. I just noticed this problem this morning, partially because our AMAZING rooster was standing over her. He alerted me by doing that.
Also, she is a bit overweight for a chicken, I think. Although, I'm not sure because I'm no expert on these things. She has more fat and has never liked to jump up or down very much on perches. This year she has been doing this more, but she has always been large.

 

[old fashioned]

I have a hen that is very similar. Much larger bottom half than the others, very grounded-not a flyer/jumper and will walk ALL the way around something instead and not much of a runner either, has yet to lay an egg, sleeps in the box not on roost, much larger crop that never seems to get filled up. I have a post that it may be Ascites(congestive heart failure)-where the abdomen fills with fluids the heart isn't able to pump out and this affects the lungs also(heavy breather) etc. Hopefully both our hens are just fat and lazy

and not sick. Take care and God bless!

 

[LynneP]

See if she is interested in some fresh tomato. If it's a fibre impaction, this will help to dissolve the fibre. If it were grit, you can tell by gently cupping the bottom of the crop to open the tube to the digestive tract, and some nutrition and liquid will get through. Some hens simply like to gorge on fibre and she might have ball of grass or something in there- pliant but keepng a lot of food out- has she gone light?

 

[The Chickens' Maid]

She has gotten lighter, if that is what you meant. I think this may be a fibre impaction; it's very pliable and moldable. I just put new hay in their nesting boxes this morning, maybe she was eating that?
I've been giving her olive oil occasionally, and her crop has gone down a little. She pooped several times, all normal. I'll give her the fresh tomato, too! Right now, I'm guessing that she'll be alright by the end of today, hopefully. I've never had to deal with anything like this before.

 

[The Chickens' Maid]

I'm going to put her back out in the coop. She seems to have completely recovered; she ate some tomato and her crop is going down and is loose. I can't feel anything hard in there! Thank you for all you help! I'll be monitoring her for more crop issues. Thanks again!