Making a crop bra for a hen with pendulous crop

[azygous]

I have an article on crop issues, how to know them and treat them. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/ There is a rudimentary pattern for a crop bra in the article, but I decided to make a proper crop bra today for my twelve-year old Wyandotte hen Lilith who has been having trouble with impacted crop lately due to her aging chest muscles no longer being able to support her crop so it empties after she eats.

Photos are not in exact order of assembly. But you can get the general idea. The most difficult part is sewing a piece of elastic to the bottom of the bra cup and taking tucks in the top so the bra forms a pouch for a better fit. Then the velcro on the straps need to be placed where they will need to be for your own hen's custom fit.

The straps on top go behind the head and the bottom straps criss-cross under the wings and over the back, joining the top straps. I allowed ample velcro to be able to adjust the tightness of the bra, readjusting it as needed to achieve crop emptying. In Lilith's case, she signals with a most queasy look in her eyes and neck gyrations when her crop is not emptying.

 

[azygous]

Update: This is in reference to the elderly hen I previously made the crop bra for. Lilith is now twelve years old, and she's old and tired. (Like me.) For the past three weeks, she's been tired and listless. I gave up on the crop bra because it didn't seem to make a difference. Her crop has been full and lumpy but never sour or impacted. What it is, I've discovered, is slow and tired like she and I. So, I've been periodically giving her brief crop massages throughout the day, perhaps three or four. It takes maybe 45 seconds each.

After each massage, Lilith has become energized. She immediately feels like eating. Due to this, her food intake has increased and her energy level has also increased. She has gone from barely alive to a hen who is now coming off her lounging cushion and stepping out of the run to join the other chickens in competing for treat toss.

To sum it up, if you have a chicken with a chronic crop issue, give this a try. Pick up your chicken and do a gentle massage of the crop. It takes less than one minute. This, I believe, will rejuvenate the crop and improve function. While it may not cure a chronic crop disorder, it will improve it, and your chicken will feel much better than they did before. Best of all, it's simple, easy, non-toxic, and doesn't cost any money.

 

[azygous]

Lilith is tolerating the bra very well. Actually, she's twelve and used to hate me when she was younger, and now she doesn't give a ****.

One problem, though, the bra doesn't push up her heavy crop to the proper level where it will empty. The operative word is "push" so I modified the bra with a push-up insert. But of course!

I made a pouch, tacked it by machine to the bra so it won't slip out of position, and filled it with a piece of foam. Now, to try it out on Lilith to see if it actually works and isn't just a nifty idea in my head.

 

[azygous]

Lilith is twelve and just began wearing the bra a few days ago. She's been tending toward this pendulous crop for about a year, and it's just now become a problem.

I'm happy to report that the push-up insert did the trick. Her crop was much less full this morning, and Lilith was in much better spirits.

She's been wearing it all the time and doesn't mind it, so I'll keep it on her for this time being and see how it goes.

 

[Sapphire Sebright]

I have an article on crop issues, how to know them and treat them. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/ There is a rudimentary pattern for a crop bra in the article, but I decided to make a proper crop bra today for my twelve-year old Wyandotte hen Lilith who has been having trouble with impacted crop lately due to her aging chest muscles no longer being able to support her crop so it empties after she eats.

View attachment 2651099View attachment 2651100View attachment 2651101View attachment 2651102View attachment 2651103View attachment 2651104Photos are not in exact order of assembly. But you can get the general idea. The most difficult part is sewing a piece of elastic to the bottom of the bra cup and taking tucks in the top so the bra forms a pouch for a better fit. Then the velcro on the straps need to be placed where they will need to be for your own hen's custom fit.

The straps on top go behind the head and the bottom straps criss-cross under the wings and over the back, joining the top straps. I allowed ample velcro to be able to adjust the tightness of the bra, readjusting it as needed to achieve crop emptying. In Lilith's case, she signals with a most queasy look in her eyes and neck gyrations when her crop is not emptying. View attachment 2651122

Interesting! I like the white leopard print -- it blends in with her feathers.
Also, wow, twelve years! That's amazing!

 

[Chicken Chat]

Excellent idea! Let us know how the adjustment works, it has to be more comfortable than an underwire...

 

[ravensnow]

Writing the measurements on the fabric itself is really helpful for the photos. I bought a crop bra from Etsy and planned on cloning it to make more, but your alternate design will be helpful, too.

 

[azygous]

Lilith was very cooperative. The push-up pad supports the crop right where it needs to be. I'll see how it works to empty the crop overnight.

 

[azygous]

Tube feeding is much easier, believe it or not, than syringing fluids because you need only insert the tube once while you need to reinsert the syringe repeated times to get all the fluid in.

Most vets will have these tube feeding kits and can sell you one at cost if you regularly do business with them for other pets. I paid $3 for mine from my vet. Or you can buy a bit of plastic tubing where they sell aquarium supplies. You will need to find a syringe to fit into the tube. The tube should be around eight or nine inches long and smooth on the end so it won't nick tender tissue in the esophagus.

Insert the tube as you see the syringe being inserted in the photo above. I slide it into the beak along the right side of the throat, gliding slightly under the tongue to avoid the hole in the center of the throat behind the tongue which leads to the airway. Slide the tube in until it's well inside the crop.

It helps to wrap the patient securely in a towel so wings and feet are controlled. Once the tube is in, the patient is normally calm, and she should remain calm as she feels fluids filling her crop.

If you see fluids begin to back up in the tube instead of going down easily, then the crop is full and you should stop to avoid over filling. This will stimulate gentle diarrhea to flush out the system. Be sure to provide plenty of plain water in between flushes. She can eat if she wishes, also.

 

[Ravenfeather]

This is a great thread, thank you! I appreciate there not being any laughing going on. I have an easter egger, just two years old that is having pendulous crop issues. Massaging helps her, but I need to let her out in the run with the others, so this push up easy on and off pattern is SO HELPFUL!