Sick Little Chicken

[vchambers]

Hi there! I am new to raising chickens. I currently have 4 11 week old mille fleurs. A few days ago I noticed that one of them was behaving a bit different. It was scratching and eating but looked like its neck was slightly retracted. I didn't think tooooo much of it because it was peaking off the ground. A few days later I noticed the this chick was still doing the same thing with its neck, wings looked droopy and that it didn't look as big as the others but seemed as though there was bulge above its breast. It was eating and drinking and it's vent was slightly poopy but I couldn't find evidence of runny poop anywhere. Unfortunately, I had to go to work but called my local farming supply store and they suggested maybe it was a crop issue. Last night I took her out of the run and discovered how incredibly thin she is and that her crop was full....however, she was eating and drinking all day. I fell terrible at how thin she is. I gave her some ACV in her water and some scrambled eggs with some olive oil. Her crop was a bit squishy but no smell. I did massage it and separated her from the rest. She pick at the eggs and drank normally. This morning had a really big poop....not runny - firm but long. Her crop is down but her neck is retracted (tucked in). Do you think it could be something else?

 

[vchambers]

Thank you both very much for your suggestions. I really appreciate it. I will stop and get the yogurt after work. I certainly hope she pulls through this ..... poor thing

 

[Wisher1000]

Separate her, keep up the eggs and olive oil until you notice her droppings are a bit oily. Then, she may benefit from some plain yogurt to help her build some beneficial gut fauna. All of this is not to "cure" her, but to support her while her body fights the problem on it's own.

 

[TwoCrows]

Hello there and welcome to BYC!

Sorry about your baby. Sounds like it could be a simple crop issue, although many other issues can cause a crop to slow or sour. Chickens can't vomit and if this stuff isn't going anywhere, it will rot and poison her. So you might want to try to vomit it out of there. Hold her like a football, beak forward in one arm and support her at the crop with the other hand. Lean yourself and the bird forward and down and gently massage the crop toward the breast. As SOON as something starts to come up, count to 2 or 3 and then stand back up so she can breathe. Don't hold her in this position when the gunk is coming up more than 3 seconds or they can aspirate. Give her a moment to catch her breath and do it again to see if you can get more out. You will never get it all out, but if you can relieve her of some of it, she will feel better.

Then you need to confine her so she can not eat anything but chicken feed. Nothing that is hard at all and that requires the gizzard action. Soft foods only until you get this cleared up. Dampen the feed to so it starts to break down faster in the system. No oil. Oil is not good for crops even healthy ones. Yogurt on hard boiled eggs is good for them, although yogurt produces mucus, so go easy on that.

Better than yogurt is probiotics in the water. Human capsules work well. Empty one capsule into a quart waterer and fill with water. You will need to make a fresh batch daily.

Check her crop first thing tomorrow morning. If it is still full, give her another vomiting. Then again only soft foods and just damp chicken feed and probiotics. Usually a few days of this treatment will clear up a slow crop.

Keep us posted in case she cannot move her crop and possibly has an impaction further on down in the tract.

 

[Mountain Peeps]

Welcome to BYC! Please make yourself at home and we are here to help.

Two Crows has given you great advice.

Best of luck!

 

[Wyandottes7]

Welcome to BYC!

We're glad to have you.

Good luck with your chicken! I hope she gets better.

 

[BantamLover21]

Glad you joined us!


I'm sorry about your chicken.

TwoCrows gave you good advice. Good luck with her!

 

[Kelsie2290]

Hello and Welcome To BYC! Sorry about your chicken, hope she recovers.

 

[drumstick diva]

TwoCrows has given you great advice.

 

[vchambers]

Sorry to report my little one died before I got home from work yesterday. I noticed one of the others sneezing so I went out first thing this morning and got them some antibiotics......hopefully it gets rid of whatever they have.