Making a crop bra for a hen with pendulous crop

[Marion Cooper]

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.

I have made a crop bra, whilst waiting for one to arrive. I have put it on my hen but she is doing the neck movements more than ever. Do you know what that could be from, is it too tight?

 

[azygous]

The neck gyrations are from her crop being full and uncomfortable, usually yeast causes this due to burning sensations.

You need to monitor the crop, checking each morning to see how it's emptying. If the crop fails to empty, you may need to tighten up the fit. I suggest treating her with miconazole if you are in the US. It's easily found with the women's hygiene products. If in Europe, you may need to hunt for Nystatin or Medistatin which is a pigeon yeast med.

 

[Marion Cooper]

The neck gyrations are from her crop being full and uncomfortable, usually yeast causes this due to burning sensations.

You need to monitor the crop, checking each morning to see how it's emptying. If the crop fails to empty, you may need to tighten up the fit. I suggest treating her with miconazole if you are in the US. It's easily found with the women's hygiene products. If in Europe, you may need to hunt for Nystatin or Medistatin which is a pigeon yeast med.

Thank you, I am in Australia and she is on Nilstat. I put the bra on last night but her crop was still full this morning. I massaged her crop and it is still squishy and she brought up liquid.

 

[Marion Cooper]

The neck gyrations are from her crop being full and uncomfortable, usually yeast causes this due to burning sensations.

You need to monitor the crop, checking each morning to see how it's emptying. If the crop fails to empty, you may need to tighten up the fit. I suggest treating her with miconazole if you are in the US. It's easily found with the women's hygiene products. If in Europe, you may need to hunt for Nystatin or Medistatin which is a pigeon yeast med.

Thank you. I put the crop bra on her last night and the crop was full this morning. I am in Australia and she is on Nilstat which is Nystatin. I massaged the crop and she vomited up a bit of liquid But since I put the bra on the neck movements have got a lot worse.

 

[azygous]

Maybe the bra is too tight. Crop bras almost always need several days of adjusting to get the correct fit. But you could let her go without the bra for a couple of days until the Nystatin reduces the yeast and the crop isn't so full and uncomfortable.

 

[Marion Cooper]

Maybe the bra is too tight. Crop bras almost always need several days of adjusting to get the correct fit. But you could let her go without the bra for a couple of days until the Nystatin reduces the yeast and the crop isn't so full and uncomfortable.

She has been on the Nysatin for about a week now but the crop keeps filling up that is why I am trying the crop bra.

 

[Marion Cooper]

She has been on the Nysatin for about a week now but the crop keeps filling up that is why I am trying the crop bra.

I have also been giving her soft foods, ACV and yoghurt but nothing seems to make a difference.

 

[azygous]

Can you increase her dosage of Nystatin? Sometimes, a yeast is just too numerous and heavy for standard dosage.

There may also be a blockage farther down the tract that's keeping the crop from emptying, thus perpetuating the yeast. You might think about doing a Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate) flush to try to push out any blockage in the gizzard or intestines.

 

[Marion Cooper]

Can you increase her dosage of Nystatin? Sometimes, a yeast is just too numerous and heavy for standard dosage.

There may also be a blockage farther down the tract that's keeping the crop from emptying, thus perpetuating the yeast. You might think about doing a Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate) flush to try to push out any blockage in the gizzard or intestines.

I have been giving her 2.5 mil twice a day. Can you please let me know how to do the Epsom salt flush.

 

[Marion Cooper]

I have been giving her 2.5 mil twice a day. Can you please let me know how to do the Epsom salt flush.

Do I empty her crop first?