Post sick chicken still not eating good.

[Sweet Road Island Reds]

My hen who is almost 2 had sour crop last Sunday. We got that all cleared up and Sunday was her last day of meds. She really didn’t want to eat when she was receiving treatment. And now she’s eating about a golf ball size a day. Now a whole lot but enough to keep her going. She won’t eat when it’s me and her but she’ll eat when it’s her and the other hens. When she gets a price of cooked egg she runs away with it and then eats it. But she eats seeds like normal with them even getting into a few pellets. My question is what’s going on? She’s no egg bound I just checked her. She’s drinking on her own and acting like she wants to eat. She’s pretty much herself just not eating well.

 

[Aunt Angus]

Is their food in her crop at night?

Honestly, if she'll eat with the rest of the flock, I'd let her.

 

[Sweet Road Island Reds]

Is their food in her crop at night?

Honestly, if she'll eat with the rest of the flock, I'd let her.

Yes there is and it’s empty in the morning. She will usually eat more in the evening. I try and pull her aside to eat a little. She not the competitive type. But I don’t see any bulling going on. My family think she’s still recovering and that she’ll eat when she wants too. Or when she starts to feel better.

 

[Aunt Angus]

Yes there is and it’s empty in the morning. She will usually eat more in the evening. I try and pull her aside to eat a little. She not the competitive type. But I don’t see any bulling going on. My family think she’s still recovering and that she’ll eat when she wants too. Or when she starts to feel better.

If she has food in her crop at night, then she's eating. She sounds like she's doing ok. You might weigh her to see if she's gaining at all as she recovers. You can also feel for her keel bone. If it's very prominent and sticks out a lot/feels sharp, she's underweight. She may be underweight since shesrevovering from her crop issue, but she should put weight back on rather quickly now.

The other thing you want to keep in mind is that crop issues are sometimes a symptom of another problem. If she's eating and acting pretty normal, she's probably fine. But keep an eye on her in case anything else goes wrong.

 

[Sweet Road Island Reds]

What else could it be a sign for?

 

[Aunt Angus]

What else could it be a sign for?

All kinds of things, honestly. Reproductive disorders, infections, worm overloads, diseases.... There are so many things that.can go wrong with chickens. That's why I suggest keeping an eye on her and taking note of her crop function, weight, body condition, and behavior for a while. If something pops up, you'll catch it quickly and have better success.

 

[Sweet Road Island Reds]

I think she’s molting her body looks good she feels built. Sturdy her belly is small and not hard. Her color looks good Her vent looks fine just a little dry skin. We are having some incredibly weird wether in the US right now. I’ve had a couple girls molt early like September and a few molt in November and it looks like she’s starting too. She did eat more I just checked her crop and she’s ever so chatty like her normal self. But I’m thinking she’s molting her feathers just come off like when a chicken molts. She ate some more seeds for me and was walking around in our 1/2 ache. And she came running to me when I came out which is normal. If I’m missing anything or wrong please tell me. I love my little chicken farm and I only want the best for them.

 

[Aunt Angus]

Sounds like she's fine, then. I don't think you need to worry!

 

[Sweet Road Island Reds]

Thank you for all the help! This is my little lady sweet girl. (The one we’ve been talking about)

 

[Aunt Angus]

Thank you for all the help! This is my little lady sweet girl. (The one we’ve been talking about)View attachment 2929666

Ooooh! Look at those shiny feathers! She's a beauty!!!