Quiet, tired hen with droopy comb and vomiting liquid

[suebmoe]

One of my 4 year-old Rhode Island Reds is sick! Her comb is droopy and she's lackadaisical and low-energy. Yesterday she was separating herself from the other hens as well (we only have four hens, total).

Yesterday afternoon, my husband picked her up and what looked like water just poured out from her beak. We used an eyedropper to give her some olive oil and also gave her a little bread dipped in olive oil. She seemed to feel better after that, and ate some blueberries and grapes. We also put 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar in a gallon of water in a plastic waterer for all the hens to drink from.

This morning, she was in a nesting box and we think she laid an egg, but I'm not sure if it was hers or not. Her crop was swollen and my husband picked her up again and this time brown liquid came out.

We don't have a chicken vet anywhere nearby that I know of and there's no way we're doing surgery on her. Should I continue with the olive oil or are there any other things we can try? I also read about boiling 10 garlic cloves, letting the water cool to room temperature, then giving her some of the water by eyedropper, but is that a good option?

Any help is appreciated!

 

[TeamChaos]

I haven't experienced it first hand, but it sure sounds like sour crop. I hope someone with direct experience can come along and help, but I thought I'd give you the term "sour crop" to search in the meantime.
Best of luck!

 

[scratch'n'peck]

She probably has an impacted or sour crop, which it sounds like you already suspect. I would give her even more olive oil, maybe with a dropper and really massage her crop to help break up the impaction. I would hold off on feeding her much especially giving her anything fibrous like fruit until it is clear that her crop is emptying properly.

Here is a link to another idea on dealing with sour crop short of surgery: https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/ailments-such
I haven't tried it because massaging the crop has worked for me.

You may want to add some grit to the chickens' diet to help their digestion and avoid impaction.

 

[suebmoe]

Hi Everyone,
Just wanted to provide an update on my hen. She's hanging in there. We've given her olive oil twice a day every day and continued the vinegar in her water. I can't tell if she's better or the same. Her comb was all droopy yesterday but today it seemed a little less droopy.She might've been a little more perky today. I don't know. But she's not vomiting anymore and her crop feels normal.

If it's sour crop, how long until she starts to feel and look better? How do I know if she's getting better?

Thanks!

 

[suebmoe]

Hey folks, just wanted to provide an update on my sick hen. She's much, much better and I think she's almost completely healthy again. We gave her olive oil with a medicine dropper three times a day for about three days and put about 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar in a gallon of water for her, and just let her be, and she's doing really well. She did lose quite a bit of weight, but we think she's gaining it back.

Thanks for the help!

 

[scratch'n'peck]

i'm glad that she has improved

 

[PearlsMama]

I have the exact same problem with my RIR this morning. Lots of vomit, blue comb. She was the first to start laying after winter vacation but stopped shortly thereafter. I think she's about 5 years old.

 

[JacksonPearce]

I know this is an old thread, but I'm relieved to have found it-- my chicken is doing the same thing, and I feel better knowing it's a solvable problem!

 

[chickcrack]

Here's a great article to help determine if your girl has a crop issue and if so whether it is blocked/sour/or both. There's some great treatments recommended.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/impacted-slow-and-sour-crops-prevention-and-treatments

 

[Mother Clucker Connie]

Hey folks, just wanted to provide an update on my sick hen. She's much, much better and I think she's almost completely healthy again. We gave her olive oil with a medicine dropper three times a day for about three days and put about 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar in a gallon of water for her, and just let her be, and she's doing really well. She did lose quite a bit of weight, but we think she's gaining it back.

Thanks for the help!

Hi, Sue. I'm having what seems like sour crop with my 4 y/o barred rock, Little Booty Trudy. I'm curious how much olive oil you should give your hen. I know you said 3 times per day, but how much? What does the olive oil do? Is this for lubrication purposes, to pass the blockage?