I have a 2-year old Speckled Sussex that’s having some issues. Specifically with her legs/balance and her appetite and crop. I am most concerned about her appetite because she is starving herself.
Overall her temperament is good - usually sits with her tail up unless she falls asleep. Very alert and eager to do chicken things when I let them out. Still food motivated. She is drinking water pretty normally. She preens herself and attempts to dust bathe, it seems like she doesn’t have the leg strength to do so.
Took her to the vet. She got a concentrated B12 shot because the vet said it could be vitamin deficiency. Then I found the lump in her crop. This is a reoccurring issue that I imagine is a slight case of pendulous crop. I gave her 1cc of Rooster Booster Poultry Cell per day. Also added 1/2 a capsule of digestive enzymes to whatever food she would eat every day. I crated her for a week inside the run with the flock. Made sure she got enough water, rest, pooped, etc. Her leg issues have improved and her crop lump is reducing, very small now. She still won’t eat most foods and I need help figuring it out. I’m going to have the vet put her down if I can’t find a solution, which is a bummer because she’s really sweet.
Leg Issues
She seemed slightly unstable or unaware of her feet. As if her hips are really hurting. Sometimes she’ll stand on her own foot. She stopped roosting but she’s also at the bottom of the pecking order.
She is capable of walking, running, and jumping. After standing for a few minutes, she lays down and stays there for a while. Things have improved but I can tell she’s not 100%.
Crop Issues
It feels like a slightly hard ball of playdough that gets looser with a lot of massage and liquids. Feels like there’s grit and other things stuck in it. It can take a week or two to clear it. She’s never developed sour crop.
Appetite
She will literally go hungry all day rather than touch the feed. I see her eating pine shavings! It’s like she went from loving her feed to hating it while she was sick. Won’t eat mash or anything with mash mixed in. Right now I’m mostly feeding her fruit, oats, and mealworms, but that’s not enough and I can’t keep making her individual meals all day every day. She’s starting to turn away from the oats. I’m at a loss.
There’s a list below of what she’ll eat and won’t eat. There’s some fluctuation in it. I’d appreciate any advice y’all have.
She will eat:
She will NOT eat:
Overall her temperament is good - usually sits with her tail up unless she falls asleep. Very alert and eager to do chicken things when I let them out. Still food motivated. She is drinking water pretty normally. She preens herself and attempts to dust bathe, it seems like she doesn’t have the leg strength to do so.
Took her to the vet. She got a concentrated B12 shot because the vet said it could be vitamin deficiency. Then I found the lump in her crop. This is a reoccurring issue that I imagine is a slight case of pendulous crop. I gave her 1cc of Rooster Booster Poultry Cell per day. Also added 1/2 a capsule of digestive enzymes to whatever food she would eat every day. I crated her for a week inside the run with the flock. Made sure she got enough water, rest, pooped, etc. Her leg issues have improved and her crop lump is reducing, very small now. She still won’t eat most foods and I need help figuring it out. I’m going to have the vet put her down if I can’t find a solution, which is a bummer because she’s really sweet.
Leg Issues
She seemed slightly unstable or unaware of her feet. As if her hips are really hurting. Sometimes she’ll stand on her own foot. She stopped roosting but she’s also at the bottom of the pecking order.
She is capable of walking, running, and jumping. After standing for a few minutes, she lays down and stays there for a while. Things have improved but I can tell she’s not 100%.
Crop Issues
It feels like a slightly hard ball of playdough that gets looser with a lot of massage and liquids. Feels like there’s grit and other things stuck in it. It can take a week or two to clear it. She’s never developed sour crop.
Appetite
She will literally go hungry all day rather than touch the feed. I see her eating pine shavings! It’s like she went from loving her feed to hating it while she was sick. Won’t eat mash or anything with mash mixed in. Right now I’m mostly feeding her fruit, oats, and mealworms, but that’s not enough and I can’t keep making her individual meals all day every day. She’s starting to turn away from the oats. I’m at a loss.
There’s a list below of what she’ll eat and won’t eat. There’s some fluctuation in it. I’d appreciate any advice y’all have.
She will eat:
- Papaya
- Tomato
- Oats soaked in water (sometimes)
- Mealworms
- Black Soldier Fly larvae
- Plants and grasses
- Beetles and other live bugs
- Scratch
- Blueberries
She will NOT eat:
- Layer feed (Dumor Organic pellets or Natureserve)
- All-flock feed (Kalmbach)
- Scrambled egg
- Yogurt
- Blackberry (a favorite treat)
