Impacted crop

[lishah2000]

I have a RIR that has had crop issues lately. Usually soft and large (no smell), but yesterday it was pretty hard and still pretty big. I tried bread with oil and she wouldn't eat it. It was getting dark so I left her in the coop for the night.

Today I took her inside and the only soft food I have is hand-feeding formula. She will eat that with oil mixed in. Just don't know if that's as good as other liquid foods. Will this be ok, or should I get something else?

This morning she was still pooping, but it was very liquid and green. Since she has been inside she has passed some more like that and some that are more firm and dark/blackish, but small amounts at a time.

She has perked up a little bit in the last hour or so.

I've been massaging the crop as often as I can. It's still about the same size as last night and hard, but a little more fluid from what she has taken in. Is there anything else I should do?

 

[math ace]

I've had a crop issue with my bird going on 2 months now. It still isn't right. The bird is light - - has not put on the weight that she should have my now.
Somethings can not be passed without surgery. . . . On that note, I am posting a link to my thread of all the things I tried when the crop was REALLY large.


https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=430783


Good luck!

 

[lishah2000]

Thank you for the link. I'll keep in mind all the things you tried.

She seems to like the formula and is eating all that I give her each time. I'm just giving her little bits at a time. Hopefully the oil will help some.

 

[MarieNC]

My RIR had crop issues as well which eventually resulted in two surgeries. She's doing very well right now but it was a rough ride. I would suggest a trip to the vet if things don't resolve soon. An impacted crop can be really serious. Best of luck.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I would think if you keep feeding her the problem is going to just get worse, let her go over night without any food and see if her crop is flat in the a.m. if not then you'll need to get something done soon, hows her poop look do you think food is getting through the crop at all? hers some info that might help.. good luck sour crop

Yes, it is sour crop. The food that is in there has dissolved into a toxic slush. If the crop is still full, you would want to cleanse it and then treat her with probiotics and give her organic apple cider vinegar water for two weeks if she's showing no other symptoms. You also will want to determine the cause of the problem in the first place and fix that.

Glenda Heywood has a good article on cleansing a crop. PM me if you'd like it.

You will want to do this as soon as possible because the liquid in that crop will grow bacteria and yeast and make your bird sick(er).

The probiotics are to replace the bacteria that have been damaged by the toxic contents and pH of the crop dribbling into the rest of her digestive tract. They will also help fight against whatever bad bacteria and yeast make it to that part of the system. The organic apple cider vinegar (1 ounce ACV to one gallon of water) will help correct the digestive tract pH, provide more good bacteria, break down the feedstuff that are in the crop waiting to go through, and also provide more digestive enzymes to break down solid particles in the digestive tract. The pH of ACV at this solution is that of a healthy digestive tract which is unfriendly to good bacteria. the pH of the crop (and thus the digestive tract) now is unfortunately friendly to bad bacteria, so we must change that.

If you see runniness of droppings after four days of treatment after the cleaned crop, let the board know. Let us know in any case, please.

By the way - no more solid foods until she's over this for two weeks. No grains, no grit, nothing but crumbles, probiotics (plain yogurt, acidophilis tablets, etc), maybe the bread if it's soaked in something useful - BUT - it's too friendly for yeast infections, sooooo maybe not. Boiled egg yolks are a good healthy treat and will help her gut. You can also mix the yogurt in a small amount of unsweetened applesauce. The pectin is small, helps clean out the digestive tract of sludge from this, the pH is like ACV (can be used with it), and chickens like the taste so it's a good way to hide probiotics.
Robin.
Feathered Brush Studios F

More information:This blockage could be solved as simply as dropping a few drops of olive oil down your bird's throat. There are risks to this depending on the type of blockage and how bad it is, but as she is obviously breathing OK I would try this before more expensive paths. If she just gobbled a long piece of straw or grass, it may be just this simple.



I have more info below for those interested, and/or if this treatment does not work and there are not other symptoms. -------

Whether it is crop impaction (food/straw/grass lodged tightly in crop) or stasis (crop stops moving food through) for whatever reason, the stuff has to come out - - and the sooner the better. IMHO, for more severe blockages/stasis, the safest way is to get it to come back up the way it came. The risks with crop stasis and crop impactions are 1) if the feed/grass/goo stays in the crop too long, it ferments and can cause food poisoning; and 2) if you try to squeeze blockages up manually or use drugs to get them going the other way, you could cause more severe blockage.

For anyone else watching this thread, there are lots of folks on the forum who have successfully treated crop issues - - and there are plenty of folks who have failed. In my own experience, I have usually sent birds with severe crop stasis to my avian vet so he can evacuate the crop with suction. Some folks have tried this at home with squeezing and/or gently tilting bird upside down, but there is a great risk of suffocating the bird this way. I know of a couple of folks who have lost birds by doing this.

Of course, my vet has not always been successful either, so I guess you have to choose your risks.

Once the crop is safely emptied, the bird can be monitored and fed liquid with electrolytes (half-strength Gatorade if you don't have bird-specific products), and then liquified food. If the crop does not start moving again very soon, we administer Reglan under our vet's instruction. Reglan stimulates peristalsis (the autonomic muscle function that moves food through the digestive system). This powerful drug is also used for people (prescription only, and it is a clear liquid). We have had good luck administering it in moistened food, but your vet (or you, if you know how) can also inject directly into the crop if the bird refuses to eat.

In my own experience, the 3-part process of 1) crop evacuation; 2) peristaltic stimulation; and 3) gentle re-introduction of solid food has worked in most situations, whether the crop issue was from a fungal infection, eating something toxic, or some other undiagnosed issue. The only failure I have had so far was a cockerel who secretly snuck into the older hens' grit/oyster shell cup and filled his crop completely full. He was already too dehydrated/starved by the time we figured out what was wrong to have a chance at recovering from a major crop evacuation.

Hope that information helps others. If there are experienced folks who would like to add to or correct this or any treatment info, please feel free to chime in.
Standards ~ Black Australorp, Silver Ameraucana and one crazy EE
Bantams ~ Blue/Black Cochins, Buff Silkies, Golden Neck Belgian d'Uccle and Butterscotch Dutch Booted Bantams, BBS Ameraucanas, Quality EEs
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[lishah2000]

She didn't have any food last night and crop was still full. Today all she has had is a small amount of hand feeding formula with olive oil mixed in. I stopped giving that to her around 4:00 today.

I started the ACV in the water yesterday when she was still outside and I have it in her water inside.

Not sure about her passing anything. I noticed bright green droppings (solid) in the run yesterday and that's when I checked on everyone. This morning they were still bright green and watery. Today some bright green and watery, some darker green and more solid, mixed with some that looks like powered feed (?).

I don't think she has been eating normal - at least yesterday. She was very weak this morning, but did perk up this afternoon.

 

[ipana]

lishah2000, it sounds as though your hen could be starving to death from lack of nutrition. This has been caused by the impacted crop. Feeding her is only complicating the problem because it appears very little is leaving her crop to nourish her. Is your hen a free range bird? If so, she could have a large ball of grass which could cause the problem.

It appears as though you have two choices. You could take her to the vet or you could try to work this out yourself. If it is a big ball of grass, it is not likely that you will able to help her. If it's something else, there's a chance that you could be successful.

Anyway, if you choose to try to help her yourself, be advised that her greatest need is nutrition. She cannot get anything to leave the crop, so you've got to try to flush that crop out. Here are some instructions. If they don't make sense to you, please post any questions. I will put some links at the bottom.

By using a feeding tube and syringe without a needle, inject warm water into the crop. Depending on how full the crop is now, you could inject 60cc+ of warm water. With the water in there, massage the crop to help loosen what is causing it to be blocked and then hold the bird upside down, making certain that her head is always down. If she lifts her head, liquid can pool in her mouth and she may aspirate it into her lungs which could possibly kill her. There is an opening to the lungs in the mouth toward the back of and under the tongue. Flush her a couple of times and try to get as much of the junk out as possible. I held my bird over the toilet so I could see what was coming out. That will help you to know what's causing the problem and you can keep her away from that stuff after she recovers as it may cause the same problem again.

Do not keep feeding the bird anything other than soft food. The food isn't going through so it is only making the problem worse. If she is pooping some, that's a good thing but she needs soft food. I used diluted baby food through the syringe. If she'll eat it herself, it doesn't have to be so dilute. Someone who is studying to be a vet cautioned that using baby food with garlic or onion powder is not good for birds long term as it causes hemolytic anemia. I doubt that you will be using baby food long term but keep that in mind.

I'll paste a couple of links for you. One is pictures of poop so that you can compare your hen's poop to the pictures and get some info about where she is. Another is a first aid site where (if you scroll down) you can see a crop tube set up and instructions. I will also look for a link to a thread here for more info. Keep us posted. We hope you can save your hen.

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

http://www.broodyhen.co.uk/ket/fowlnotfoul/1staid.htm

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=442100

 

[lishah2000]

Her crop didn't go down overnight, but she has had a bit more normal droppings today. I can still feel solid stuff in the crop, but it does feel softer than it did yesterday.

She has not been free-ranging. No grass in the run, but they do have hay and shavings in the coop. The hay isn't new, but it's still possible she ate some.

I'm hesitant to try the flush. It seems a good majority of people that try this, kill the bird.

I will keep it in mind if things don't improve or she gets worse. I'll see about getting the supplies and I will get some different soft food.

I'm going to check into vets, but avian vets are in short supply in the area. One wouldn't even do a beak trim without doing all the crazy tests to figure out why the beak needed to be trimmed. I can't imagine what he would want to do for this.

Money is short because I have two other pets under vet care right now.

 

[ghunt507]

firststatevetsupply.com/ go to online store


This is a link to to a product called "crop bound" works with natural obstructions..

Didn't work for a started bantam that enjoyed eating shavings more than food.

 

[ipana]

I understand your hesitation about flushing but it will not kill the bird if you keep its head down. My little hen who had this issue was flushed at least 50 times in her numerous bouts with sour crop. She eventually was healed when her owner (me, I'm ashamed to say) realized it was the grass that was continually causing the problem. If you're not comfortable with it, then don't do it, that's for sure. I still feel confident in the process as it has worked for me and others.