Possible Pendulous Crop?

[ika]

Hi everyone,

We have a RIR that is 3 years old that lost a lot of weight these past weeks. She's now very light and having crop issues.

2 prior issues to note:

3 months of so ago: Resolved itself, but she was having crop problems (swollen, full of water, foul smell) and lethargy. She refused to eat for several days. We took her to the vet and they couldn't really find anything, she got better soon after.

2 weeks ago: She again showed similar symptoms (with addition of laying somewhat sideways) after 3 days she got her energy back.

My wife and I recently welcomed our first baby (human kind ) so it has been hard to keep a closer eye on her. But at this point I was able to confirm that:

• She eats very little
• Crop is always full of "water"
• Crop has a foul smell and gas
• She's not pooping a lot; Poop looks normal
• Crop is not emptying in the morning (she had no access to water or food)

We also did torpedo feeding last night and this morning.

I'm suspecting that she has a pendulous crop. Does this diagnostic makes sense? Any advice on helping her gain weight fast?

Thank you!

 

[DLA]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi everyone,

We have a RIR that is 3 years old that lost a lot of weight these past weeks. She's now very light and having crop issues.

2 prior issues to note:

3 months of so ago: Resolved itself, but she was having crop problems (swollen, full of water, foul smell) and lethargy. She refused to eat for several days. We took her to the vet and they couldn't really find anything, she got better soon after.

2 weeks ago: She again showed similar symptoms (with addition of laying somewhat sideways) after 3 days she got her energy back.

My wife and I recently welcomed our first baby (human kind ) so it has been hard to keep a closer eye on her. But at this point I was able to confirm that:

• She eats very little
• Crop is always full of "water"
• Crop has a foul smell and gas
• She's not pooping a lot; Poop looks normal
• Crop is not emptying in the morning (she had no access to water or food)

We also did torpedo feeding last night and this morning.

I'm suspecting that she has a pendulous crop. Does this diagnostic makes sense? Any advice on helping her gain weight fast?

Thank you!

Welcome To BYC

Congratulations on your baby!

Can you post photos of your hen and her poop?

Does your hen lay eggs? When was the last one?

I'd first treat the sour crop and see if the issue resolves before you decide it's also Pendulous. Sometimes a crop bra is necessary, but you still want to address the yeast infection first.

Do keep in mind that often a crop that is slow or sour is a symptom of an underlying condition. A few common problems are reproductive disorders (cancer, Salpingitis, Internal Laying, EYP, etc.), infection, worms and/or coccidiosis.

Since this seems to be a reoccurring issue, then she's got something going on.

I always start with coconut oil twice daily, if her crop is foul, then begin treating with an anti-fungal/yeast medication - Nystatin, Miconazole, Fluconazole or Clotrimazole are some of the more common ones used to treat sour crop. Some folks use Acidified Copper Sulfate.

This article will help walk you through determining the treatment(s) needed:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

 

[ika]

Thank you for the replies! Unfortunately I only saw this now as I was not notified over email.

Here some updates on our chicken:

She has been sleeping inside ever since this started so I could monitor her and also provide her with better temperature (Somedays outside is 100+ until 1AM)

For the first 2 days or so I massaged her crop and her on the crop bra. This (or something else) really helped empty her crop by morning. She now has been emptying her crop on her own.

Like I mentioned above, her crop is now behaving normally. No weird noises or smells and it's empty by the morning. Also, her poop in the morning looks normal and at the right quantity given how much she ate.

Unfortunately, she's not eating as she should. Her crop after bedtime is far from full when I get her from the coop.

Before we put her in her cage we torpedo feed her. But before that we give her a chance to eat the food on her own. She only goes for the smallest of the pieces. She has been eating more and more every night but still far from what she needs.

@Wyorp Rock :
Thank you!

Any specific angle for her picture? As for her poop looks normal. I can take one tomorrow morning if you'd like.

We have 5 hens. 2 laying. She's not one of them.

They overall struggle during the summer to lay. Too hot. Most days this summer were about 115, with some 118. The misters, fan, and wet dirt works great outside but not inside the coop or overnight.

I have been suspecting some sort of reproductive disorder. My primary suspect once was EYP but she still alive weeks after I suspected and the only symptom of EYP left is the cyst on her abdomen by the back of her right leg. Which still feels the same as it was weeks ago.

With all that said, any recommendations as what to do with her?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm glad her crop is emptying.

Sounds like she's slowing improving. Try offering her soaked feed to see if it's more interesting to her.
You mention she's picking out the smaller pieces, so do you feel she's having a hard time eating larger pieces of feed - any lesions, canker or mucous inside the beak or throat?

Often crop symptoms do appear when a hen has a reproductive problem, so it's possible that she may have more going on.
Do what you can to keep her hydrated and encourage her to eat. Sometimes they need something else to sort of kickstart their interest in eating - some find that melon or tomato are highly favored when they are being picky. Bits of egg or fish can be enticing as well.

 

[ika]

Last night she ate the most I've seen since she started having issues.

Her crop was a decent size and it was empty by the morning. I think there were some leftovers there but just a little.

She ate grinded feed first and then I poured some water over it and she ate even more. I didn't have to torpedo feed her this time. However, she was eating for like 40 minutes.

Poop normal the next morning.

Her mouth looks normal as far as I can tell. It almost seems like she's looking for solids when picking out the pieces but at the same time she's not eating enough of her normal pallets. So maybe she's looking for medium pallets? This has been puzzling.

I'll give those suggestions a try if she stops improving. I'm hoping that, like you said, with this kickstart, she starts eating her normal feed again.