ISA Browns and blocked crops?

[mainer2978]

Has anyone else experienced lots of crop blockages with their ISA Browns? I have three and one or the other of them seems to experience crop blockage every couple of months. I have two Black Australorps and they seem to be able to eat anything. I've had Orpingtons and New Hampshire Reds in the past, and they never had any problems either. Could it be a genetic predisposition?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Has anyone else experienced lots of crop blockages with their ISA Browns? I have three and one or the other of them seems to experience crop blockage every couple of months. I have two Black Australorps and they seem to be able to eat anything. I've had Orpingtons and New Hampshire Reds in the past, and they never had any problems either. Could it be a genetic predisposition?

Welcome To BYC

I've never heard of a correlation of crop issues and breed.

What do you feed, including treats?
Do you provide Grit (Crushed Granite)?

How old are the Isa Browns and do they lay eggs, have any issues with egg laying, poor production, swelling of the abdomen, etc.?

Often a crop problem is a Symptom of an underlying condition - a few common conditions that accompany crop problems are reproductive disorders, worms, Coccidiosis and/or infection.

Here's more information about treating crop issues:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

 

[mainer2978]

Welcome To BYC

I've never heard of a correlation of crop issues and breed.

What do you feed, including treats?
Do you provide Grit (Crushed Granite)?

How old are the Isa Browns and do they lay eggs, have any issues with egg laying, poor production, swelling of the abdomen, etc.?

Often a crop problem is a Symptom of an underlying condition - a few common conditions that accompany crop problems are reproductive disorders, worms, Coccidiosis and/or infection.

Here's more information about treating crop issues:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/


View attachment 4096664

My Browns are 2. They get Purina Layena feed in a hopper and a flat rubber pan. There is granite grit in the pan. I give them mealworms and/or soldier worms mixed with grain as scratch. They get kale and some other veggies like cucumber, carrot shreds, and cooked winter squash. They never get bread products or anything like that.
In the winter (Nov. to Apr.) they are indoors, although I have been taking them out on nice afternoons now that it's finally getting nicer. (They have a sandbox and a large rubber tub with garden soil/peat moss for digging and dust baths.) The rest of the year they are out in a large pen with a dirt floor, and I let them out to roam for about an hour or two a day.
Maybe I have been giving them too many treats, although there is such conflicting information on how much and when . . .
It's just frustrating that this happens.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

My Browns are 2. They get Purina Layena feed in a hopper and a flat rubber pan. There is granite grit in the pan. I give them mealworms and/or soldier worms mixed with grain as scratch. They get kale and some other veggies like cucumber, carrot shreds, and cooked winter squash. They never get bread products or anything like that.
In the winter (Nov. to Apr.) they are indoors, although I have been taking them out on nice afternoons now that it's finally getting nicer. (They have a sandbox and a large rubber tub with garden soil/peat moss for digging and dust baths.) The rest of the year they are out in a large pen with a dirt floor, and I let them out to roam for about an hour or two a day.
Maybe I have been giving them too many treats, although there is such conflicting information on how much and when . . .
It's just frustrating that this happens.

So...
Do they lay eggs or not?

What's your climate/where do you live that they have to be inside for months?

Yes, there is a lot of conflicting info about how much, what to feed, etc. etc.

We all do things differently, that's for sure. For me, I feed mine commercial poultry pellets and give "treats" a few times a week. I give treats in the afternoon after they have been eating their nutritionally balanced poultry feed for the largest portion of the day.
Treats may be a little scratch, scrambled eggs, mealworms, fruits/veggies, sprouts, etc. Whatever I have that they may enjoy.

 

[mainer2978]

So...
Do they lay eggs or not?

What's your climate/where do you live that they have to be inside for months?

Yes, there is a lot of conflicting info about how much, what to feed, etc. etc.

We all do things differently, that's for sure. For me, I feed mine commercial poultry pellets and give "treats" a few times a week. I give treats in the afternoon after they have been eating their nutritionally balanced poultry feed for the largest portion of the day.
Treats may be a little scratch, scrambled eggs, mealworms, fruits/veggies, sprouts, etc. Whatever I have that they may enjoy.

Yes. They lay eggs almost every day. Every once in a while, one will take a day off. When they molt, of course, there are larger gaps in their laying.
We live in Maine, where it can be very cold, wet, windy, and snowy in the winter. We choose to bring them in (the loft of our garage) so that it is more comfortable for them and for us when we take care of them. They do have windows up there, but the light isn't very bright, so we have full-spectrum lights as well.
They have their two grain feeders -- one with grit. They get a couple handfuls of dried worms in the morning mixed with grain on the floor. I give them a few leaves of kale every day around lunch time. I usually give them something with it, too, like a cucumber sliced lengthwise. Maybe once a month they get a scrambled egg. I sometimes wonder if that is too much, but then I think about the fact that they are omnivores and like a varied diet. Hens that are free-range all day get plenty of greens and bugs.