I've posted on facebook asking for advice on one of my particularly large Cochin hens. I bought her as a novice chicken owner, she's just over a year old. I think, now, after research that she once suffered from a Pendulous Crop that won't ever fully be normal - despite my efforts to keep her crop healthy, and no sour crop symptoms, its quite large and swings just like Pendulous Crop (from what I've read). She's had it since I had her, but I didn't know better.
On top of that, she's been sneezing constantly for about a month. I have 4 other hens who have absolutely no sneezing symptoms, either. I freaked out at first, and I quarantined her from the flock and went by the advice that with some TLC, minimal stress and a dust-free environment, it'd likely go away. I chose to follow this advice after discovering no other illness symptoms other than her sneezing - no discharge, no runny nose, no puffy eyes, nothing I can see in her ears, in fact she appears to be a normal, sociable, laying hen. I kept her quarantined and the sneezing subsided almost completely for a couple weeks, and she went back into the flock because I could see being away from them was causing her more stress. It was fine until last 2 weeks, when I noticed her sneezing again. Actually, I heard it in rapid succession. I know its only her, because I spy on the girls from my home office for at least an hour a day. She always sneezes when she's drinking. She drinks, sneezes, then keeps her beak slightly ajar (much like people do just before another sneeze comes on). It worries me. I tried her on crumble food in isolation, but I can't stop her eating her normal food when she's in with the girls. It's a mix made from my local fodder store, and it's quite expensive and very good for hens I was told. They all love it, lots of seeds and yummy things. They also get garden scraps from my neighbours.
Are the pendulous crop and sneezing at all related? We don't have any poultry vets where I live, and they simply can't recommend anything in terms of treatment when I ask. No one else has even peeped a sneeze once. Any natural remedies I should try?
On top of that, she's been sneezing constantly for about a month. I have 4 other hens who have absolutely no sneezing symptoms, either. I freaked out at first, and I quarantined her from the flock and went by the advice that with some TLC, minimal stress and a dust-free environment, it'd likely go away. I chose to follow this advice after discovering no other illness symptoms other than her sneezing - no discharge, no runny nose, no puffy eyes, nothing I can see in her ears, in fact she appears to be a normal, sociable, laying hen. I kept her quarantined and the sneezing subsided almost completely for a couple weeks, and she went back into the flock because I could see being away from them was causing her more stress. It was fine until last 2 weeks, when I noticed her sneezing again. Actually, I heard it in rapid succession. I know its only her, because I spy on the girls from my home office for at least an hour a day. She always sneezes when she's drinking. She drinks, sneezes, then keeps her beak slightly ajar (much like people do just before another sneeze comes on). It worries me. I tried her on crumble food in isolation, but I can't stop her eating her normal food when she's in with the girls. It's a mix made from my local fodder store, and it's quite expensive and very good for hens I was told. They all love it, lots of seeds and yummy things. They also get garden scraps from my neighbours.
Are the pendulous crop and sneezing at all related? We don't have any poultry vets where I live, and they simply can't recommend anything in terms of treatment when I ask. No one else has even peeped a sneeze once. Any natural remedies I should try?
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