Please help- special pet hen- SICK- big object in crop?

[SeaChick]

Thank you.

I flushed the poop (after scooping it up in my bare hands and examining it: the things we do for our chickens, huh?) so i don't have a pic. I will try to get one though.

I don't think she got into anything.... she has not been anywhere unusual and the yard area they have is small, fenced, and has no other traffic/activity in it.

We did get a new bag of feed, and new shavings on Saturday. But none of the other girls is even slightly sick...

 

[Wynette]

Is she still clicking her beak? That seems very odd to me, I've never heard of that before, and it makes me just slightly inclined to wonder if it's neurological(?)

As far as her not eating, that is of course not good. If she were my hen, I think I'd get some baby bird handfeeding formula, and feed it via syringe into her beak. This should be quite easy, especially since you seem to have a very close relationship with her - seems like she does not mind you handling her at all. Baby bird handfeeding formula can be found at any pet store, and it's loaded with vitamins, minerals, and all sorts of stuff that will give her a boost. You mix it with water until you get the consistency you want, then suck it up in a syringe and squirt it into her beak, little by little. WHen you first start doing it, she'll probably not want to open her beak; pull a bit on the feathers below her bottom beak. Once she understands what's going on, it should be easier. I always put them on my lap when doing this, and it's a good bonding experience, too. I believe it's imperative that you get nutrition into her...fast. You can use her water with Avia CHarge to mix up the formula if you want, but you'll need to make sure the syringe hole is big enough to suck up the formula. I had to have my DH drill out the hole with a bit just a hair bigger than the hole to get the bits up. If this works, you can gradually feed thicker formula, and then eventually you can squirt it on top of a small dish of feed. It's worked very well for me in the past.

Also, I would discourage feeding her layer feed at this time. She needs to concentrate ALL her energy on healing, not laying.

It's likely she has some sort of a laying issue, but she definitely needs the nutrition now.

You should search on her for "eggbound" and "internal layer" - you'll find lots of good info. on it. GOOD LUCK - she sounds like a sweetheart!

 

[SeaChick]

Uh-oh.

Definitely a crop issue, thanks for the clue.

I felt her crop again and now after all that water it did feel like the Sour Crops I have had before. So I went outside and did the upside-down "milking the crop" thing, and she vomited up tons of nasty liquid.

Now her crop is mostly empty BUT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There is a large, foreign-feeling object in there!!!!!

I have had a bird with sour crop before, and one with impacted crop, so I have certainly felt my share of crops. Ophelia has a large, hard, sharp-edged object in her crop.

I would say a little smaller than a dime, irregularly-shaped and flattened. I guess that could be a large piece of oyster shell or something she picked up from the yard.

What does this mean, what should I do?

I guess if this thing was clogging her up and keeping her from absorbing nutrients and water, that would explain the weakness and thirst. I noticed some feathers falling out when I handled her, too, which I know is a malnutrition sign.

Help!! Will this chunk of whatever-it-is eventually dissolve? Does she need surgery? Should I continue crop massage every couple hours???

 

[SeaChick]

I have done the syringe-feeding thing with several other birds, thanks.. it may come to that.

I now think the beak-clicking is because she had a vomit-y feeling in her throat... she did it more after drinking and also after I "milked" her crop and she vomited.

She is not doing it now.

 

[Wynette]

Oh my goodness... I would personally not try to remove it if she were on my farm, but I'm no good at that sort of thing. I'd take her to an avian vet and pronto. JMO. GOOD LUCK!

 

[AHappychick]

maybe some bread soaked in olive oil would help the crop? or push through whatever it is?

 

[LynneP]

Apple cider vinegar in her drinking water should take the edges off that oyster shell, if that's what it is. A normal dosage would be 1 Tbsp in 1 gal water but I'd use about 50% more for a day or so. Olive oil will not hurt and has some caloric value. When my Maggie had too much hen grit in her system a couple of weeks ago she bahaved like this, except not so much water. And as AHappyChick has suggested, bread soaked in olive oil, if she will accept it.

The Avia Charge will have helped a bit too and you can add a bit of sugar to the ACV in the water for caloric value. Oh my...

After Maggie was ill, hubby made me a colander out of an old coffee can perforated at the base with nail holes, and I strain any hen grit though it first. Would work for bags of oyster shell too.

 

[SeaChick]

I am so upset.

her crop was full again so I tried the milking procedure again which I done many times on another hen who had sour crop. but she aspirated some of the liquid!!! I was so careful but this happened. i could hear the liquid in her lungs. Now she is sort of OK, but I am really afriad I have done something that will kill her. she still seems to be breathing labored and every once in a while makes a sneezy wheezy noise.

Even if she is Ok I know I won;t be able to turn her upside to get rid of the sour crop now, I am too scared.

 

[Wynette]

I'd take her to an avian vet. I honestly don't think there's anything else you can do.

 

[HorseFeathers]

Hello, thanks for your replies everyone (I'm SeaChick's daughter). We've been doing some research and came across something that says it may be kidney or liver failure. Could this be? And if so, is there anything at all we can do to treat it?