Just tried to adminster Dulcolax for possible impaction, and literally don't get it

[kcan2]

How in the world do you get your chicken to take this stuff?

I pulled down on the wattles, opened the chicken's mouth. He closes it, I open it. Attempted to put bread tidbit soaked in Dulcolax stool softener in his mouth (he wouldn't eat the bread himself). Barely get it in, he shakes it out. I'd like to administer the pill whole, but where to place it so it can safely be swallowed? Bantam rooster, tiny mouth, or maybe I'm just imagining it's tiny.

I used to be very good at administering pills to cats, but this is a new level!

Background: 6 mos of head shaking, itching, constant crop adjusting. Wormed him twice (not in a row). Cleaned his ears, and nostrils. Checked his throat slit thingy with no apparent blockage. He poops fine but I am attempting to treat impaction due to constant yawning/swallowing motions and his tendency to have a hard littke crop with no flex to it by end of day.

 

[azygous]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/ Read that. It will give you all the information on crop disorders you need.

Giving a pill to a chicken is not complicated. People think the chicken will choke. No. They won't. They aren't like people. Chickens have no teeth so they can swallow things that seem enormous to us. Just pry open the beak any way you can and stick the pill in.

Do your chickens have access to suitable grit? It may be one of the most common causes of impacted crop, not having suitable grit.

 

[NatJ]

He poops fine but I am attempting to treat impaction due to constant yawning/swallowing motions and his tendency to have a hard littke crop with no flex to it by end of day.

Is it empty by morning?

Just having a full crop at bedtime does not indicate a problem, but the crop is supposed to be empty again by morning.

 

[Banana01]

How in the world do you get your chicken to take this stuff?

I pulled down on the wattles, opened the chicken's mouth. He closes it, I open it. Attempted to put bread tidbit soaked in Dulcolax stool softener in his mouth (he wouldn't eat the bread himself). Barely get it in, he shakes it out. I'd like to administer the pill whole, but where to place it so it can safely be swallowed? Bantam rooster, tiny mouth, or maybe I'm just imagining it's tiny.

I used to be very good at administering pills to cats, but this is a new level!

Background: 6 mos of head shaking, itching, constant crop adjusting. Wormed him twice (not in a row). Cleaned his ears, and nostrils. Checked his throat slit thingy with no apparent blockage. He poops fine but I am attempting to treat impaction due to constant yawning/swallowing motions and his tendency to have a hard littke crop with no flex to it by end of day.

Crush it up into powder and mix it with water in a small cup, then administer the medicated water with a 10 mL syringe.

But really you can skip the medicine and just administer 10 or 20 mL of water and shake his crop around. Your chicken is just dehydrated.

Introduce a couple more waterers at various heights off the ground, and make sure he has access to water every morning when he gets up, all day, and up until the last second before going to roost.

Pull him out of the roost after he goes to bed for a few days and give him 10 to 20 mL of water and mix it with the content of his crop.