I lost my rooster yesterday due to what I believe to be "sour crop". What I have read this could be due to other things. It took him fast. I am just trying to figure out the root of what could have caused this.Last Friday he had become a loner. his thought this was odd due to the fact he is a constant watcher over his hens(very VERY protective over them) His leg was also swollen but I couldn't find anything there.Saturday he quit crowing. Odd because he was a talker. I noticed a sweet smell in coop so, I cleaned it out even though it looked relatively clean and noticed a lot of flies. Dusted it as well. Sunday i noticed he wasn't eating much and hid in the coop with his face hidden. And he stunk.. flies were starting to surround him. I isolated him because normally you couldn't come close to him and he let me pet him and pick him up. I noticed his backside looked raw and the swelling was worse in let. Tried the Epsom salt soak.. didn't help. Monday, I noticed his crop was really swollen and mushy. I flushed his crop almost causing my stomach heave as the smell was over bearing and noticed the smell in coup was him as it had disappeared when I moved him to isolation.Tuesday, he wouldn't even look at me his face in corner his crop was swollen again.And flies everywhere! He died 2 hrs later.
I went to clean and sanitize coop as I didn't want the hens to catch anything having already isolating one hen because she was beside him thoughout most his sickness. Upon cleaning, in one of the laying boxes there were thousands of long gray maggots. This was new straw and new bag of pine chips.T hat only had been in coop 3 days. He was a very Healthy Rooster. Good protector of his hens. There had been no food change. I did throw out some heels if bread for the dogs Thursday but he ate one. I have been feeding layer food instead of the other for meat birds. And had gotten two chicks 3 weeks earlier but had them quarantined until they were proved to have no diseases. I had seven dusted blackberry bushes due to Japanese beetles, he was a 3 yr old Dominique .. when I looked at his leg afterwards there was a big yellow looking sack with blood near as well as one by his backside. I am wondering if this sour crop is secondary.. if maggots could have caused the initial infection.. just want to know to continue protecting his hens. The coop is off limits until I figure out were the massive amount of magnets came from. I burned all the bedding that was down. And replaced water/feeder container due to noticed small leak... any information or ideas are needed.
I went to clean and sanitize coop as I didn't want the hens to catch anything having already isolating one hen because she was beside him thoughout most his sickness. Upon cleaning, in one of the laying boxes there were thousands of long gray maggots. This was new straw and new bag of pine chips.T hat only had been in coop 3 days. He was a very Healthy Rooster. Good protector of his hens. There had been no food change. I did throw out some heels if bread for the dogs Thursday but he ate one. I have been feeding layer food instead of the other for meat birds. And had gotten two chicks 3 weeks earlier but had them quarantined until they were proved to have no diseases. I had seven dusted blackberry bushes due to Japanese beetles, he was a 3 yr old Dominique .. when I looked at his leg afterwards there was a big yellow looking sack with blood near as well as one by his backside. I am wondering if this sour crop is secondary.. if maggots could have caused the initial infection.. just want to know to continue protecting his hens. The coop is off limits until I figure out were the massive amount of magnets came from. I burned all the bedding that was down. And replaced water/feeder container due to noticed small leak... any information or ideas are needed.
