One person tube feeding.

[Shadrach]

Understand. I did recently have to tube a 5 week old pullet chick, and for that 1 I modified my approach by sitting in a chair and wedging her between my thighs so that I could apply that same sort of pressure and keep her under control and then used both hands in the same way.

By the time I get to actually feeding her, if she doesn't start eating more on her own once her crop is flushed out I'll probably do something like that. She's not at all used to being handled. She's semi feral and super feisty I think Americans call it.
The other times I've had to tube feed they've been to sick to care or struggle much.

 

[Shadrach]

Anyway, thanks for the suggestions. It's bed for me. Rooster fights to break up in the morning.
It's fight season.
I'll post when I've checked her over in the morning.

 

[Shadrach]

Checked her over this morning. Crop flat but still has tiny lumps.
Vent clean and good color.
Internal check; no egg, or bits,or blood
Belly firm.
Poop in coop watery with some bits. Given her crop was filled with water earlier this would seem normal.
Comb and wattles bright and firm.
Eyes bright and ears clean.
No nasal discharge.
Underweight by feel.
She's out and about with her tribe. She eat three mouthfuls of normal feed.
She'll eat crushed walnuts, cus cus, desiccated coconut and cheese. Wont touch meat, or fish today but did yesterday. Won't eat from a dish but will eat from the ground.
There is something going on between her and her youngest son who is preventing her from eating in preference for the laying hens.
I'm going to do it all again tonight and worm her.

 

[Shadrach]

I thought this might help anyone else having to tube feed.
The small syringe with the flexible tube attached was fine for water.
The long thin syringe came with Metacam and this proved to be best for pureed feed. It's small enough to slide past the passage to the lungs and being stiff, I found it easier to control. The end of the Metacam syringe has got a rounded edge as supplied. I rounded it further with some fine sandpaper.
The plastic tub is an old 35mm film container and this was what I used first to get the hen to drink.
It was a bit messy so a towel on the lap is a good idea.
I found the kneeling on the floor with the hen between my thighs the easiest way of tube feeding in the end. I did it in the dark with a head torch. This seemed to keep the hen calmer.

 

[Nbugaj]

I wondered if anyone has any tips for tube feeding when you only have one pair of hands.
I have a very uncooperative semi feral old lady (9 or 10 years old) who is not used to being handled.
She has some stones in her crop that are not moving down to her gizzard. This seems to have put her off eating her normal feed. While foraging is filling her crop before roosting time her crop still has the stones and some residue 'mash' in it in the morning. I'm trying to flush her crop and massage gently to get things moving.
The thing is I'm having to do this on my own. I've coped before with better tempered hens, but this one is a shocker and isn't at all cooperative. she has already partially severed one tube when I had to remove my finger from her beak.
Any tips from the pro tube feeding people?

Wrapping a towel around her body and wings tightly enough so she can’t flap away. Depending on how much fight they have you can also hold her under one arm while wrapped. I usually hold the push end of the syringe in my mouth as I use both hands to raise her head up and elongate the neck. Use your pointer and thumb to get her beak open and keep it open. Make sure your joy grasping to tight or around the front of her neck or you can cut off her air way. Once she stops resisting and just allows her beak to be open I feed the tube in with my second hand. Mind you push side of syringe I’m still holding in my teeth. Once the tube is down (and using some coconut oil will make this smoother), then I grab the syringe with my freehand and administer. Hope that helps! It took me a while to get it down by myself, but you can! Sometimes you will have to go through those steps several times before the lady just gives up and let’s you do what ya need to do. Good luck!

 

[Shadrach]

Wrapping a towel around her body and wings tightly enough so she can’t flap away. Depending on how much fight they have you can also hold her under one arm while wrapped. I usually hold the push end of the syringe in my mouth as I use both hands to raise her head up and elongate the neck. Use your pointer and thumb to get her beak open and keep it open. Make sure your joy grasping to tight or around the front of her neck or you can cut off her air way. Once she stops resisting and just allows her beak to be open I feed the tube in with my second hand. Mind you push side of syringe I’m still holding in my teeth. Once the tube is down (and using some coconut oil will make this smoother), then I grab the syringe with my freehand and administer. Hope that helps! It took me a while to get it down by myself, but you can! Sometimes you will have to go through those steps several times before the lady just gives up and let’s you do what ya need to do. Good luck!

I'm not sure my detachable sets of teeth are up to this method.
As you mention, the temperament of the hen makes for an interesting battle.
I sort of got a method sorted in the end.
Unfortunately despite all my efforts she continued to decline in health. In the end it was kinder to put an end to her suffering and the ignominy of being a helpless patient after at least nine years of being the leader of her tribe, the most prolific egg layer here, a mother 4 times and ready to fight all comers including her poor long term devoted partner Harold.

 

[Nbugaj]

We do the best we can! I have a sick chicken right now I haven’t been able to diagnose yet and I’m hoping it doesn’t come to that. But when it does it’s never easy. Keep that in mind for future tube feeding! And also holding the chicken between your legs wrapped in a towel works too. The feistier the hen, the larger the towel wrap

I'm not sure my detachable sets of teeth are up to this method.
As you mention, the temperament of the hen makes for an interesting battle.
I sort of got a method sorted in the end.
Unfortunately despite all my efforts she continued to decline in health. In the end it was kinder to put an end to her suffering and the ignominy of being a helpless patient after at least nine years of being the leader of her tribe, the most prolific egg layer here, a mother 4 times and ready to fight all comers including her poor long term devoted partner Harold.

 

[CCUK]

I'm not sure my detachable sets of teeth are up to this method.
As you mention, the temperament of the hen makes for an interesting battle.
I sort of got a method sorted in the end.
Unfortunately despite all my efforts she continued to decline in health. In the end it was kinder to put an end to her suffering and the ignominy of being a helpless patient after at least nine years of being the leader of her tribe, the most prolific egg layer here, a mother 4 times and ready to fight all comers including her poor long term devoted partner Harold.

Sorry that despite your best efforts for her she still declined. She had a good innings and her legacy continues. This does also make a good informative read that may help people in the future. Just to say also, when I had a vet, he needed to put fluids in one of my hens and he got what I think was a 2 cl syringe and pulled head up and put two syringe fulls down without a tube like it was nothing! I don't think I could do that. I be more likely to get it the wrong way.

 

[Shadrach]

Sorry that despite your best efforts for her she still declined. She had a good innings and her legacy continues. This does also make a good informative read that may help people in the future. Just to say also, when I had a vet, he needed to put fluids in one of my hens and he got what I think was a 2 cl syringe and pulled head up and put two syringe fulls down without a tube like it was nothing! I don't think I could do that. I be more likely to get it the wrong way.

I got better at it towards the end. Practice and all that.
Getting the right kind of tube proved to be difficult here. Catheter tubes was what I ended up with and that took a couple of goes to get the right diameter.

 

[Nbugaj]

If you can figure out tube feeding or get a friend to hold the chicken while you tube feed it is much safer not syringing properly right into the birds mouth means you could actually get it down their windpipe and aspirate the bird. They could die... so if doing this way only do very very small amount at a time let the bird swallow or if you are confident in your chicken anatomy knowledge and ability to get is syringed far back enough over the windpipe hope. I don’t feel confident enough to do that so I have chosen to tube feed

I got better at it towards the end. Practice and all that.
Getting the right kind of tube proved to be difficult here. Catheter tubes was what I ended up with and that took a couple of goes to get the right diameter.