Odd twitching, sideways behavior

[ljkraemer]

I have a 1 year old chicken who has been doing this odd movement for the last couple of days. I noticed it late at night on Wednesday night, assumed it was her adjusting her crop, so made a note to check her the following morning. Her crop was completely empty. She did this same sideways movement this morning after being fed scrambled eggs. I just checked our coop cam and it appears she’s doing it quite a bit right now. Please see the video. She’s in the top row of birds, second from the left. Is she adjusting her crop? Anyone else’s birds do this? Normal? Concerning? Eats, drinks, poops, lays eggs all like normal. No other health concerns. I’m a tad worried as it’s keeping her awake at night while everyone else is getting sleep. https://pin.it/4pqoIY5

 

[MysteryChicken]

I have a 1 year old chicken who has been doing this odd movement for the last couple of days. I noticed it late at night on Wednesday night, assumed it was her adjusting her crop, so made a note to check her the following morning. Her crop was completely empty. She did this same sideways movement this morning after being fed scrambled eggs. I just checked our coop cam and it appears she’s doing it quite a bit right now. Please see the video. She’s in the top row of birds, second from the left. Is she adjusting her crop? Anyone else’s birds do this? Normal? Concerning? Eats, drinks, poops, lays eggs all like normal. No other health concerns. I’m a tad worried as it’s keeping her awake at night while everyone else is getting sleep. https://pin.it/4pqoIY5

I see this sometimes when they get a lump of food stuck in the esophagus.

Other reasons for this movement is adjusting the crop, or an attempt to clear a blockage causing an impacted crop.