Sick hen and traveling

[boatagor]

I just found my 2 year old speckled sussex hen lethargic in the coop. I picked her up and immediately noticed her crop was huge and squishy, and it felt like a water balloon. I took her to the porch while I did some googling and figured it's probably sour crop. I held her on my lap for about 30 minutes and she vomited clear liquid probably 5 times. Her crop is much smaller but she's still very lethargic, panting and definitely not herself. I put her in the cool basement in a dog crate with water mixed with ACV.

My problem is that I'm going out of town this weekend and won't be home from Friday afternoon to Monday afternoon. I have a fully enclosed and predator proof coop and run, so I was not at all worried about leaving them for 2 days. I've done it many times in the past with no issues (although at a different house). Now, with her being sick, I'm not sure what to do. My one friend who also keeps chickens is going out of town, too. I really don't have any one else who could keep an eye on her. Would she be able to go back in the coop with the others for 2 days unsupervised? I'm worried she will get worse and they will injure her. Or, god forbid, she will die and be left outside in 100 degree weather for 2 days.

I could also leave her in the basement with food and water, either in the dog crate or I could set the brooder back up. I have a camera I can use to monitor her, and if she gets too bad, one friend said she would check on her (but doesn't want to have her at her house or anything). I'm worried about leaving her with free access to food in case this makes the problem worse.

I don't really like either option but canceling the trip isn't happening at this point. What would you do?

 

[Eggcessive]

It can be very dangerous to make a chicken vomit. They can choke and die. Since the liquid that came out was clear, she might not necessarily have sour crop, but maybe she had been drinking a lot of water for some reason. Her crop may have just been full or slow to empty. To determine if her crop is sour or slow, check it in the early morning after she has gone all night without eating, and before she drinks anything. Smell her breath—does it smell sour or bad?

 

[boatagor]

It can be very dangerous to make a chicken vomit. They can choke and die. Since the liquid that came out was clear, she might not necessarily have sour crop, but maybe she had been drinking a lot of water for some reason. Her crop may have just been full or slow to empty. To determine if her crop is sour or slow, check it in the early morning after she has gone all night without eating, and before she drinks anything. Smell her breath—does it smell sour or bad?

She smelled sour and is not acting at all like herself. She's normally very sassy and today I noticed her just standing around. She's almost always the first to run to me when I go outside, but last night I actually had to carry her to the coop. There's definitely something going on. Since she's in the dog crate with no food, I should be able to see in the morning if the crop is empty.

 

[Eggcessive]

Give her some water with electrolytes today to get her rehydrated. You might want to get some Monistat cream and give her 1/2 ml orally twice a day to treat any fungus. Here is a good article about crop problems:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

 

[boatagor]

I came down to do night check and she had a bloody poop in the crate. I took her out to clean it and she had another, really nasty one on the floor. Her crop is also very, very big again. Is this something else on top of sour crop?

 

[Eggcessive]

Her crop does look very enlarged. The blood in the poops could be from worms, coccidiosis, or from eating something sharp. Cannyou see a vet tomorrow or take in some droppings for a fecal float?

 

[boatagor]

Her crop does look very enlarged. The blood in the poops could be from worms, coccidiosis, or from eating something sharp. Cannyou see a vet tomorrow or take in some droppings for a fecal float?

I don't know if there are vets around here who will see chickens. It's even getting hard to find a vet to see horses and cattle. If she makes it through the night, I'm going to set the brooder back up for her and treat her separately. But I'll be getting corid for everyone tomorrow just in case.
I'm hoping I can convince my friend to check in on her while we are gone. I can't cancel the trip at this point.