Lethargic, not eating much but drinking a lot, squirted poop that was mostly clear with some green mush

[aart]

I tried coconut oil earlier in the week and it didnt work.

How much CO and for how long?
IME, it took several days of CO and massage for the lump to break down.
Any poops?
Any other foods except chicken mash?

 

[NatalieP]

How much CO and for how long?
IME, it took several days of CO and massage for the lump to break down.
Any poops?
Any other foods except chicken mash?

I saw her poop this morning and it looked less runny than usual which was good. Probably a result of actually eating her mash yesterday.

On Monday I gave her minced carrots and that's the last time she got anything besides normal feed. She did free range yesterday though.. we only have tiny weeds that she was probably pecking at.

I probably only gave her a teaspoon of coconut oil since she's so little (3 lb cream legbar) and I didnt want to go overboard. I only did it Tueday while it was still more malleable. You mentioned to be gentle with the massages, is that to avoid her aspirating or something else? And now that it's hard, will the coconut oil loose it up some? Did you notice any progress throughout the days while you were treating?

 

[aart]

What I did was mix about 1tsp of melted CO soaked up with as much crumble as it took.
Free feed that all day...and of course water always available.
Massage was just squishing the lump gently a few times a day to help break it up.
Sometimes you can push the crop contents up a bit towards the crop 'exit' but not enough to push it back up the esophagus were it could end up in the trachea and aspirate the lungs.

I kept her confined the whole time, a week, so she would not ingest anything else.
In case you're not familiar with chicken anatomy, this might help:

 

[NatalieP]

What I did was mix about 1tsp of melted CO soaked up with as much crumble as it took.
Free feed that all day...and of course water always available.
Massage was just squishing the lump gently a few times a day to help break it up.
Sometimes you can push the crop contents up a bit towards the crop 'exit' but not enough to push it back up the esophagus were it could end up in the trachea and aspirate the lungs.

I kept her confined the whole time, a week, so she would not ingest anything else.
In case you're not familiar with chicken anatomy, this might help:

View attachment 2443687

I sincerely appreciate your help!! Thank you so much!!

 

[Mother-Hen-Michele]

Henrietta (and you) and in my prayers. You are doing great (and so is she).

 

[HeiHei123]

I am so sorry, I had a bird that I raised from one day old die recently. In the last few weeks of his life I spoiled him rotten, giving him all his favourites, keeping the bullies away from him, and the last day of his life we spent the day together. I carried him in a blanket in my arms and we watched everything in the garden. We sat in the sun and watched the ducks in the pond and all the chickens playing. At sunset he had a heart-attack in my arms and I just cried and kept telling him over and over again that I loved him and I was sorry for his suffering. I thanked him for being my baby and coming into my life. It is so hard to have these little creatures, they are so fragile and often don't live long no matter how much we love them.

Your post made me cry! I had an experience like this recently with my 4 day old baby chick. She would not eat or drink and I knew she was sick and would die, so I held her in my hands for two hours trying to keep her warm and comfortable before she passed away. It is so sad that these things have to happen

 

[NatalieP]

Henrietta (and you) and in my prayers. You are doing great (and so is she).

Thank you ❤ that means SO much to me.

Heni is also saying thank you

 

[Mother-Hen-Michele]

Heni looks like she is milking this for all she can get! Your warm soft clothes look like an awesome napping location on a cool autumn day. (smart baby!)
How is she, and how are you ? Is she getting stronger ? the meds are done now ?

 

[NatalieP]

Heni looks like she is milking this for all she can get! Your warm soft clothes look like an awesome napping location on a cool autumn day. (smart baby!)
How is she, and how are you ? Is she getting stronger ? the meds are done now ?

Thank you ❤ we're both doing ok. She's made a bit of progress (crop almost fully empty and a little bit more energy here and there) but definitely not out of the woods yet. We've moved her inside (just in time to avoid the outside cold here lol). She's keeping at her weight and had another vet visit with a new round of treatments. I've recapped and started a new thread and meant to link the two:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/lethargic-hen-running-out-of-ideas.1433693/