Impacted and Sour Crop...and Something Else?

[azygous]

Electrolytes need to be carefully administered. If you're giving it via syringe or tube, you should limit it to once an hour for chickens in extreme crisis and no more than six hours a day, and limit the overall period of electrolytes to no longer than a week. The salts can build up in the tissues and cause problems. Sort of like indoor plants that the owner fertilizes way too often and they wonder why they're dying in spite of all the fertilizer.

The runny stools may be a side effect of infection. But adding a probiotic can't hurt.

 

[Mimi13]

Electrolytes need to be carefully administered. If you're giving it via syringe or tube, you should limit it to once an hour for chickens in extreme crisis and no more than six hours a day, and limit the overall period of electrolytes to no longer than a week. The salts can build up in the tissues and cause problems. Sort of like indoor plants that the owner fertilizes way too often and they wonder why they're dying in spite of all the fertilizer.

The runny stools may be a side effect of infection. But adding a probiotic can't hurt.

I had not planned on tubing any, but more so putting it in her cage to drink. I’m afraid to do this now.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hopefully one last question.

Georgia Girl still has extremely watery poop. The last coconut oil she had was Thursday night and the molasses flush on Friday at lunch. She has been eating her chicken feed and also a few scrambled eggs. What can I give her to start forming her poop? Maybe some electrolytes? Is there possibly a homemade recipe?

Thank you.

ETA: I’ve read where these electrolytes are bad for a “healthy” chicken. I wouldn’t necessarily call her a “sick” one, but her gut is obviously out of balance. What can I do to restore it? Also, could the miconizole possibly be causing the diarrhea?

I agree with @azygous I would offer a probiotic.
Electrolytes, I do use them, but sparingly.

Some use purchases probiotics, others give yogurt. For me, I personally give a little wet feed with buttermilk. It's all personal preference I suppose. Too much of anything is not a good thing, so I would limit yogurt or buttermilk to about 1 Tablespoon a day.

 

[Mimi13]

I agree with @azygous I would offer a probiotic.
Electrolytes, I do use them, but sparingly.

Some use purchases probiotics, others give yogurt. For me, I personally give a little wet feed with buttermilk. It's all personal preference I suppose. Too much of anything is not a good thing, so I would limit yogurt or buttermilk to about 1 Tablespoon a day.

Thank you! You just clarified something for me. Did you know I was stumped? For whatever reason, I was still thinking the electrolytes when Carol said probiotics. My stupidity.

I am out to pick up my GS from pre-k so I’ll stop and get yogurt and buttermilk. My bird is so dang picky and I don’t want to have to tube feed her again.

Thank you again, @Wyorp Rock!

 

[LaFleche]

To restore gut balance you could try Moro's carrot soup: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/worms.1428744/post-23677653

But be careful to only use half the amount of salt as chicken kidneys are sensitive to salt.

 

[Mimi13]

Impacted crop? Gone
Sour crop? Sweet again
Pin feathers? Growing in nicely
TLC? She’s getting a bunch

I believe she’s enjoying her time inside and seems to love the snuggling. This was Friday morning.

I gave her two doses of buttermilk mixed with her feed, 1 T on Thursday and 1 T on Friday, but the diarrhea didn’t seem to change any.

She found the sunny spot on the floor, but it is evident by her stance that she isn’t a well bird. It is hard to believe this bird was once my big old Barred Rock, strong and solid.

I know it looks like her crop is still large in this picture, but it isn’t. It has gone completely down.

I am going to guess she has an underlying problem or another one altogether because Georgia Girl just doesn’t seem to be getting any better.

Her poops are still pretty much liquid, some with a few squiggly forms of poop in them.

I have let her out each day for a bit and she always makes her way back to the door when the others start heading toward the coop. Today the temperature was in the 50’s and she stayed out for about six hours. I snapped a picture of her as she made her way back to the house. Same hunched up posture. Her poor little head is so drawn in. It breaks my heart.

One thing I wanted to mention about her crop. When I finally got the impaction to break up and those few days when it was pretty empty, I could feel something in the bottom of it. It’s very easy to feel it because she has no feathers there in the front. I can’t compare the shape to anything in particular. It’s just an irregular, hard something. It doesn’t move around, almost like it is adhered to the bottom inside/outside of the crop. Is there anything such as I have described that rings a bell?

 

[Sixandahalfacres]

Possibly her breast bone? I just went through this with a 3 month old pullet... I thought I was either destined to have a house chicken, or that she would get to the point I would have to cull her. Probiotics helped in the end after I had done everything you have done. I bought capsules and emptied them into her water and after a few days her poops started looking normal again instead of watery messes. Another thing to look into is deworming her, I can’t remember if you mentioned that, but it’s a good idea - there might be a blockage further down in her digestive system causing all of this.

 

[Mimi13]

Possibly her breast bone? I just went through this with a 3 month old pullet... I thought I was either destined to have a house chicken, or that she would get to the point I would have to cull her. Probiotics helped in the end after I had done everything you have done. I bought capsules and emptied them into her water and after a few days her poops started looking normal again instead of watery messes. Another thing to look into is deworming her, I can’t remember if you mentioned that, but it’s a good idea - there might be a blockage further down in her digestive system causing all of this.

No, the object isn’t her keel bone. It’s a small, odd shaped little something.

What kind of probiotic capsule did you give your bird?

Yes, I could worm her. It has been about 5 months since she was last wormed.

 

[Sixandahalfacres]

No, the object isn’t her keel bone. It’s a small, odd shaped little something.

What kind of probiotic capsule did you give your bird?

Yes, I could worm her. It has been about 5 months since she was last wormed.

The probiotics were acidophilus with bifidus (natural source)

 

[Mimi13]

Here is another lovely picture of her first poop this morning, but I’m sure it means something to the experts. Who is the Poop Inspector General? @casportpony, is it you? If so, I would love some insight into my Barred Rock’s condition, please, please, please.