Impacted crop, need help!

[azygous]

It's not a good sign that you got clumps of grass from his crop. He's likely so impacted that this is going to require crop surgery to resolve. No amount of flushes will wash that stuff through his system.

I can walk you through the surgery if you feel up to trying it. At this point, it's likely the only thing that will save this guy.

 

[chickenmomma16]

It's not a good sign that you got clumps of grass from his crop. He's likely so impacted that this is going to require crop surgery to resolve. No amount of flushes will wash that stuff through his system.

I can walk you through the surgery if you feel up to trying it. At this point, it's likely the only thing that will save this guy.

That’s what I was afraid of. I’m confident I could do it. I unfortunately don’t have sutures/equipment on hand or help to hold him unless I ask my 5yr old. I can’t do it today and I’m going to be gone all day tomorrow. So soonest I could do it is Tuesday and the correct sutures won’t be here until Wednesday if ordered from Amazon. Am I overthinking it? Is there another option?
I’m not sure he has until Wednesday. I could call around and ask a vet in the area if they would sell sutures but at the vet hospital I worked for years ago, they didn’t sell their supplies. I’m open to suggestions.

 

[azygous]

We use super glue, not sutures as suturing thin poultry skin is fraught with disappointment. You can get surgical super glue here. https://www.revivalanimal.com/produ...MIsLWmqq2o7QIVpuHACh1okwBNEAAYAyAAEgK-HfD_BwE

Here is my protocol for crop surgery:

Supplies to assemble:

A helper
Vetericyn wound spray
Betadine or alcohol
Saline wound flush
Sharp, sterilized cutting tool such as a one-sided razor blade or Xacto knife.
Sterile gauze
Tube of super glue
Latex gloves
Bath towel
Scissors to cut away feathers from incision site

Surgery:
-Wrap hen securely in a bath towel confining wings and feet, but leaving the crop exposed. No anesthesia is required. No pain meds.
-Have your helper hold the hen on her back on a hard surface or table.
-Locate the spot where the lump is most concentrated.
-Trim her feathers away so just skin is exposed.
-Prep the site with Betadine or alcohol to remove external bacteria.

Make a one inch incision in the skin. Do not cut any deeper than the outer layer. This will expose the crop sack.

Next, cut a one-inch opening into the crop sack, slightly offset to the outer cut. This is very important. You should be able to see the obstruction, grass or maybe something else that shouldn't be in there.

Putting slight pressure on the crop, push the obstruction toward the opening and pull it out. Continue until you can't get anything else out of it.

Irrigate the inside of the crop with a generous amount of saline until the saline comes out clean.

Dry the incisions by patting with sterile gauze. First apply super glue to the edges of the inner incision. Hold the tissue together until it bonds, about one minute. If it doesn't hold, apply more glue and continue to hold it until it bonds.

Glue the outer incision as you just did the inner one. Spray the incision liberally with Vetericyn. This promotes the tissue to grow together and heal. Do this twice a day for the next two days.

Feed only soft food such as yogurt, soft boiled egg, apple sauce, or gruel made from mixing water into her feed until it's soupy for the week following surgery. Give her a dose of Nutri-drench each day for five days.

 

[chickenmomma16]

We use super glue, not sutures as suturing thin poultry skin is fraught with disappointment. You can get surgical super glue here. https://www.revivalanimal.com/produ...MIsLWmqq2o7QIVpuHACh1okwBNEAAYAyAAEgK-HfD_BwE

Here is my protocol for crop surgery:

Supplies to assemble:

A helper
Vetericyn wound spray
Betadine or alcohol
Saline wound flush
Sharp, sterilized cutting tool such as a one-sided razor blade or Xacto knife.
Sterile gauze
Tube of super glue
Latex gloves
Bath towel
Scissors to cut away feathers from incision site

Surgery:
-Wrap hen securely in a bath towel confining wings and feet, but leaving the crop exposed. No anesthesia is required. No pain meds.
-Have your helper hold the hen on her back on a hard surface or table.
-Locate the spot where the lump is most concentrated.
-Trim her feathers away so just skin is exposed.
-Prep the site with Betadine or alcohol to remove external bacteria.

Make a one inch incision in the skin. Do not cut any deeper than the outer layer. This will expose the crop sack.

Next, cut a one-inch opening into the crop sack, slightly offset to the outer cut. This is very important. You should be able to see the obstruction, grass or maybe something else that shouldn't be in there.

Putting slight pressure on the crop, push the obstruction toward the opening and pull it out. Continue until you can't get anything else out of it.

Irrigate the inside of the crop with a generous amount of saline until the saline comes out clean.

Dry the incisions by patting with sterile gauze. First apply super glue to the edges of the inner incision. Hold the tissue together until it bonds, about one minute. If it doesn't hold, apply more glue and continue to hold it until it bonds.

Glue the outer incision as you just did the inner one. Spray the incision liberally with Vetericyn. This promotes the tissue to grow together and heal. Do this twice a day for the next two days.

Feed only soft food such as yogurt, soft boiled egg, apple sauce, or gruel made from mixing water into her feed until it's soupy for the week following surgery. Give her a dose of Nutri-drench each day for five days.

Yes! Glue! Thank you!
I found some on Amazon that will be here Tuesday. Hopefully I can find a holder with a strong stomach. My options are limited. I’ll pick up any other supplies needed tomorrow. Should I find a pair of forceps to grab anything in the crop? I’ll keep you updated. Hope he stays strong enough to wait til Tuesday. If Amazon comes too late I’ll have to do it Wednesday.

You mentioned to do the incision where it’s most concentrated. I can’t feel anything in his crop so where would the incision be placed in this case? Low? High? Middle?

 

[azygous]

If you can't feel anything in his crop, then is the crop empty? There is no point opening up an empty crop. If a crop is impacted with grass stems, you would be able to feel every blade and stem.

If the crop is empty at this time, then the blockage is farther down the digestive tract, and the best way to tackle that would be the three-day Epsom salt flush.

 

[chickenmomma16]

If you can't feel anything in his crop, then is the crop empty? There is no point opening up an empty crop. If a crop is impacted with grass stems, you would be able to feel every blade and stem.

If the crop is empty at this time, then the blockage is farther down the digestive tract, and the best way to tackle that would be the three-day Epsom salt flush.

It’s fluid filled with bits of grain similar to barley? It feels like beads floating around. Otherwise I can’t feel anything. But last time he vomited(I didn’t do it on purpose that time) I got bits of grass out. When this all began a week ago and I made him vomit a couple times in a row to empty his crop o got a couple long pieces and a clump of thick blades grass. I’m assuming the blockage is somewhere between the crop and gizzard. It’s either a grass blockage or a grain blockage from some new whole grain type feed being mixed in with his old pellets.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

It gets intense here with no animals eating it it towers over my 6ft tall husband. Thankfully it all eventually falls down every year with the rain, wind and snow.

Sounds like good place for buffalo or yaks!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Sorry, I was a little behind. Caught up now; following.

 

[azygous]

Without the crop being full of solid material like a stuffed mattress, I would do the three-day Epsom flush. I think it has a good chance of getting the job done, but it's arduous. Not for the patient, for you. It's work.

Are you set to tube? The recipe is one-half cup warm water with one teaspoon Epsom salts tubed into the crop. Every last drop. Then do another half cup later this evening. All of it. Then tomorrow do two more treatments, and the third day, two more.

It would seem that a chicken would be overwhelmed by this, but I've found that the chicken is actually energized by it and feels immediately better. This acts on the intestines to stimulate a vigorous movement of all contents through the system. It also creates a thirst that encourages drinking plain water in between the treatments that further helps to get things moving. You should notice your patient immediately perking up.

 

[chickenmomma16]

Without the crop being full of solid material like a stuffed mattress, I would do the three-day Epsom flush. I think it has a good chance of getting the job done, but it's arduous. Not for the patient, for you. It's work.

Are you set to tube? The recipe is one-half cup warm water with one teaspoon Epsom salts tubed into the crop. Every last drop. Then do another half cup later this evening. All of it. Then tomorrow do two more treatments, and the third day, two more.

It would seem that a chicken would be overwhelmed by this, but I've found that the chicken is actually energized by it and feels immediately better. This acts on the intestines to stimulate a vigorous movement of all contents through the system. It also creates a thirst that encourages drinking plain water in between the treatments that further helps to get things moving. You should notice your patient immediately perking up.

I don’t have tubing. I have a breast pump with silicone tubing? I might be willing to sacrifice it? Would that work?