sick chicken

[chicken hero]

Hi all,
I have a small flock of 6 chickens they are Isa brown.
I have had these birds for about 3 years now. They have a big yard are well fed etc.
I have noticed lately that one of them has seemed a bit quite for about a week but for the last couple of days she has been staying onside the hen house. I went inside to look at her she didn't show to much resistance for me to catch her. At first I couldn't see anything wrong, so I put her back down and gave her a small piece of bread. When she tried to eat it she regurgitate it back up with all this green/black slime and tried to eat it again.
You can see she is jerking her neck and head trying to shake this stuff out of her throat and jerking her neck looking like she is trying to swallow something.
I have read about sour crop and impacted crop but I'm not sure what is going on with her.
All other birds look fine. She has no discharge from her eyes.
Please forgive my writing I hope that all make sense.

Thanks
Gilbert.......

 

[Eggcessive]

It may well be sour crop. That can sometimes happen after an impacted crop from eating long grasses or food that gets stuck in the crop. Do you use poultry grit to help with digestion? There are many good articles here on BYC and elsewhere on treating sour crop. She need s to drink lots of water, and put some electrolyte and vitamin powder in her water. Don't feed any whole grains while she is suffering from this, but only a little plain yogurt and some egg or feed mixed with water.

 

[chicken hero]

Hi and thanks for the reply,
yes she is really getting stuck into the water. That's all she does is stay inside the coop next to the water. I tried massaging her crop but it's not really that big nor does it feel hard.
In some ways I think she may have something that may have lodged in her throat, or a infection in her throat.
Thanks
Gilbert....

 

[jamesbender]

This sounds like my hen right now. Another member said she had airsaculitus. I'm in route for meds. However, I remember that about 2 weeks ago, I fed my chickens Wheatgrass and bean sprout fodder. Wonder if this contributed?

 

[Eggcessive]

Hi and thanks for the reply,
yes she is really getting stuck into the water. That's all she does is stay inside the coop next to the water. I tried massaging her crop but it's not really that big nor does it feel hard.
In some ways I think she may have something that may have lodged in her throat, or a infection in her throat.
Thanks
Gilbert....

Can you look into her throat for anything unusual such as yellow or gray patches that might be canker or something else? How warm is it where you live right now? Are there any mosquitoes out? There can be obstructions in the crop or gizzard, as well as fungal infections of the GI tract.
Here is a good link about canker to show what it looks like, and also crop impaction: http://www.chickenvet.co.uk/health-and-common-diseases/digestive-problems/index.aspx

 

[chicken hero]

Hi Thanks,
I think I might be that canker. I looked inside her mouth and there was something similar to it I just scraped it out.
It wasn't yellow more like a black.
For water inside the cage I have a 5 gallon container that has a PVC pipe that runs along the back wall and that has nipples on it.
Outside I have 2 large plastic tubs that are full of water. in summer I normally come home from work and just lean over the fence and run water into them to top them up. They prefer the open water containers.

The water containers outside will always have wild birds taking a drink or having a bit of a drink or if the water is shallow enough having a bit of a wash. They don't care about me there are some white doves that just about land on me and take a drink.

The weather here at the moment is stinking HOT.

Thanks
Gilbert.......

 

[Eggcessive]

Have you seen any signs of fowl pox scabs on the combs or wattles. The wet or diphtheritic form of pox can cause lesions inside the beak, throat, and airway that can look similar to canker. Pox is a virus that lasts a few weeks, while canker is a protozoan that needs treatment of Fish Zole (metronidazole, Flagyl) 250 mg orally given daily for 5 days. To help prevent other chickens from getting sick from canker n the flock, acidified copper sulfate 1/4 tsp. per gallon of water can be used for 3 days a month. Below are some links for you:
http://www.amazon.com/Fish-Fish-Zole-250mg-30-Count/dp/B014V9RCYM
http://www.jefferspet.com/products/acidified-copper-sulfate-1

 

[chicken hero]

Hi and thanks so much for your help and concern,
I think she's getting better now I have had her separated for a while now and she is eating a lot more now.
That black crap that was in her beak has not come back it was also down her throat a bit.
The next time the vet comes past her for the dog which will be about a month for the dogs injections I will do a sneaky and get him to have a look at my birds whilst he's here. Well he's already getting enough out of me for the dog HAhhah.
Thanks
Gilbert.....