Older Hen with Slow Crop: Slow Crop Treatment with Updates

[rebrascora]

In my opinion, you are at the stage where you need to either take her to a vet or take the risk of emptying her crop by inverting her and vomiting her properly. Her crop is clearly so full that there is no room to massage the contents without them coming up, so you need to empty some out so that you have room to manipulate the rest to try to break it down. She is at risk of aspirating anyway, so yopu don't have a lot to lose. I would recommend that you do a search on You Tube for "how to vomit a chicken" and watch several different videos before you attempt it, so that you don't just pick a bad example. Be prepared for her to shake her head and fling vomit about so do it somewhere that is easily cleaned and wear old clothes or an apron or overall. It is best to tip them forwards and slightly to their right so that the oesophagus is very slightly lower than the trachea and vomit drains out of the right side of their mouth. I tend to hold them against my chest and bend forward with them so that we are both upside down and I can monitor her closely for distress and stand back up to give her a breather between bouts of vomiting. You will be unlikely to empty the whole crop.... aim for half but expect less. Once she has emptied some out, then bring her upright and massage.

 

[elissarules]

In my opinion, you are at the stage where you need to either take her to a vet or take the risk of emptying her crop by inverting her and vomiting her properly. Her crop is clearly so full that there is no room to massage the contents without them coming up, so you need to empty some out so that you have room to manipulate the rest to try to break it down. She is at risk of aspirating anyway, so yopu don't have a lot to lose. I would recommend that you do a search on You Tube for "how to vomit a chicken" and watch several different videos before you attempt it, so that you don't just pick a bad example. Be prepared for her to shake her head and fling vomit about so do it somewhere that is easily cleaned and wear old clothes or an apron or overall. It is best to tip them forwards and slightly to their right so that the oesophagus is very slightly lower than the trachea and vomit drains out of the right side of their mouth. I tend to hold them against my chest and bend forward with them so that we are both upside down and I can monitor her closely for distress and stand back up to give her a breather between bouts of vomiting. You will be unlikely to empty the whole crop.... aim for half but expect less. Once she has emptied some out, then bring her upright and massage.

Thank you. I did a little research and I think it’s also due to her eating and drinking a lot. Her water froze last night so she was thirsty all day.

Do you recommend waiting a certain period or should I just go for it now?

She stabilized for a little and stopped vomiting. I withheld food and water. I have to go and get new supplies for a better crop bra. I’ll induce vomiting when I get back.

 

[rebrascora]

If just handling her is making her vomit then you are not going to successfully massage the contents of her crop without her vomiting. In my opinion she is less likely to aspirate when she is vomiting whilst being held upside down and slightly to the right than she is in an upright position, so I would go ahead an try to empty some out so that your massage is more effective.
I personally do not think the crop bra alone will solve this problem and you need to use regular massage to get that crop to empty fully for several days before using the crop bra as a preventative measure. I also think this may not resolve even with massage. You might want to try a stool softener like Dulcolax to help shift whatever you are unable to remove via vomiting. I've had one that required surgery to physically remove a mass of soggy straw/hay that would never have come up or gone down with massage and was essentially acting like a plug or dam only allowing a small amount of fluids through each day even with regular massage. You might want to research crop surgery on You Tube as well. When you see what they get out it helps you to figure out if that is what you might be dealing with.

 

[elissarules]

If just handling her is making her vomit then you are not going to successfully massage the contents of her crop without her vomiting. In my opinion she is less likely to aspirate when she is vomiting whilst being held upside down and slightly to the right than she is in an upright position, so I would go ahead an try to empty some out so that your massage is more effective.
I personally do not think the crop bra alone will solve this problem and you need to use regular massage to get that crop to empty fully for several days before using the crop bra as a preventative measure. I also think this may not resolve even with massage. You might want to try a stool softener like Dulcolax to help shift whatever you are unable to remove via vomiting. I've had one that required surgery to physically remove a mass of soggy straw/hay that would never have come up or gone down with massage and was essentially acting like a plug or dam only allowing a small amount of fluids through each day even with regular massage. You might want to research crop surgery on You Tube as well. When you see what they get out it helps you to figure out if that is what you might be dealing with.

How much laxative would you recommend for me to give to her??

I have looked at some videos when I thought she had impacted crop. Would surgery be helpful even if her crop is very squishy? Whenever I do not feed her for a prolonged time, she is able to have a smaller crop. That’s why I believe she has a slow crop, rather than a sour one. Though I do know slow crop can be a breeding ground for sour.

I will be inducing her. I will update you on it! Thank you for your honest help!

 

[Kiki]

How much laxative would you recommend for me to give to her??

I have looked at some videos when I thought she had impacted crop. Would surgery be helpful even if her crop is very squishy? Whenever I do not feed her for a prolonged time, she is able to have a smaller crop. That’s why I believe she has a slow crop, rather than a sour one. Though I do know slow crop can be a breeding ground for sour.

I will be inducing her. I will update you on it! Thank you for your honest help!

Good luck!!

 

[rebrascora]

Just to be clear the below link shows which Dulcolax product to use and which not to use on chickens.....it is the Docusate Sodium product that you want....
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/dulcolax-confusion-beware.1036795/#post-15988588

 

[elissarules]

Good luck!!

THANK YOU! I’ll need some prayers!

Just to be clear the below link shows which Dulcolax product to use and which not to use on chickens.....it is the Docusate Sodium product that you want....
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/dulcolax-confusion-beware.1036795/#post-15988588

Thank you!!! I’ll definitely pick some up for later.

*UPDATE:* Just finishes having her throw up with the help of my brother and fiancé. They helped me count, gauge the angle, and gave me emotional support. I did see a strand of grass in her crop - which leads me to believe she’s been having this issue since the summer/fall. I think we emptied about 1/4-1/2 of her crop!!! I was so nervous my heart was pounding the entire time. She did very well. I ended up naming her Bernice/Bernadette and calling her Bernie. So Bernie was doing SO well. I like to think she knows I’m trying to help her.

I’m planning on withholding food and water and depending on how her crop looks tomorrow morning, I may induce in the afternoon. Then I’ll do the Dulcolax after I induce vomiting then. PLEASE CORRECT ME if those plans aren’t in her best interest. Thank you guys again. You really helped me stay as calm as I could with the circumstances.

EDIT: Her crop didn’t smell bad or odd. Just smelled the way her feed smells. I gave her scrambled eggs this morning and poor thing had to throw up some chunks. ALSO! I somehow managed to not get any on me!!! She didn’t shake her head at all. Bernie was amazing!

 

[Kiki]

Good job!

Did the grass come out?
What actually came out...I'm curious.

Do you offer grit?

 

[rebrascora]

Hi again.
Well done to both of you.

Do not withhold water.....some of the water she is drinking will be filtering through the blockage and she needs water to survive, so it is important she has access to it. If she gets too full, you may have to vomit her again but it is vital she gets fluids . Most of what she regurgitated will have been liquid, so it is important that she has access to more and electrolytes would be good but give her the option of plain water too.
Did you massage her after you vomited her?

It is good that it didn't smell sour. The impacted crops that I have dealt with were the same..... squishy, soggy fibrous material like grass and straw which had also trapped sediment from their food which was hanging in the lower front portion. It took me 2 weeks of massage with one to get her clear and the other I had to perform surgery, which is pretty scary, but very rewarding when it is successful. Just like the videos you see, there was a HUGE matted mass of soggy strands in there.... it's hard to believe it until you start trying to tease it out. I got a mound of it the size of a soft ball out of a bantam cochin. It was heavier than she was.... mind you, by then she was skin and bone apart from the huge crop. I used super glue to stick the crop back together and left the outer skin incision open to drain, just in case the super glue failed..... it didn't and was infinitely easier than stitching. She was up and running around and eating sloppy food within minutes of finishing closing her up.
I know it is not something everyone can get their head around, but when you get to the point that they are going to die if you don't, it helps to motivate you.

 

[elissarules]

Good job!

Did the grass come out?
What actually came out...I'm curious.

Do you offer grit?

Thank you!!! I gave her scrambled eggs and dampened layer feed. Mostly the feed mixed with her water and saliva. It looked yellow-brown and was light in color. Poor thing, at one point I made her throw up a bigger chunk of egg and when I let her breath she swallowed it up again!!! talk about GROSS!!

EDIT: Just a piece of grass otherwise came out. Once I saw it, I was relieved. I now know exactly what’s causing her issue!!

Do you mean in general or for her? I started after I put her in a cage but the rest of the flock knocked the thing over and the grit is gone. I was giving her grit in her food til someone suggested otherwise.

I have to go buy more.

Hi again.
Well done to both of you.

Do not withhold water.....some of the water she is drinking will be filtering through the blockage and she needs water to survive, so it is important she has access to it. If she gets too full, you may have to vomit her again but it is vital she gets fluids . Most of what she regurgitated will have been liquid, so it is important that she has access to more and electrolytes would be good but give her the option of plain water too.
Did you massage her after you vomited her?

It is good that it didn't smell sour. The impacted crops that I have dealt with were the same..... squishy, soggy fibrous material like grass and straw which had also trapped sediment from their food which was hanging in the lower front portion. It took me 2 weeks of massage with one to get her clear and the other I had to perform surgery, which is pretty scary, but very rewarding when it is successful. Just like the videos you see, there was a HUGE matted mass of soggy strands in there.... it's hard to believe it until you start trying to tease it out. I got a mound of it the size of a soft ball out of a bantam cochin. It was heavier than she was.... mind you, by then she was skin and bone apart from the huge crop. I used super glue to stick the crop back together and left the outer skin incision open to drain, just in case the super glue failed..... it didn't and was infinitely easier than stitching. She was up and running around and eating sloppy food within minutes of finishing closing her up.
I know it is not something everyone can get their head around, but when you get to the point that they are going to die if you don't, it helps to motivate you.

THANK YOU! I’ll go right now and give her water back.

Your experience is so incredible! It’s relieving hearing this and hearing how it worked!!

How often did you message her and for how long (minutes)? How did you know to keep going? It seems insane for it to take so long, even though I understand.

Also how did you know it was time to do surgery? If I ever have to do the surgery thing, I’m definitely going to do my research but I’m also going straight to you!

How am I supposed to give her electrolytes? Right now all we have is either plain water or plain water mixed with probiotics (I figured it wouldn’t hurt to keep her flora up just in case it turns sour).