This is something I have never had personal experience with, but have read about. What our hen has doesn't seem to fit any of the really classic symptoms, but I think sour crop is what she has. She is a 4 1/2 year old Speckled Sussex, and she weighs about four pounds.
She has seemed fine, but we had a severe cold snap starting yesterday, and yesterday afternoon I found her lying in the barn, it seemed like she was dying. I brougnt her in the house, and did nothing except put her in pen with extra heat. This morning she was on her feet, so good sign. But she had a watery cough, and wouldn't eat. I figured she had a respiratory issue, so I laced some bread crumbs with Oxytet and left them with her for a while. This afternoon, she'd eaten half the Oxytet laced crumbs, and seemed much better, and brighter. I decided to give her the rest of the Oxytet that she should have eaten and didn't, by mixing it in
a slurry and syringing it into her. When I picked her up, I noticed that her crop was spongy and enlarged. It should not have been full from the little bit that she'd eaten. I didn't notice it being that way when I brought her in last night.
I gave her about 2 CC's of the slurry, then decided I should stop since I was worried about her crop. As soon as I set her down, she pooped, like what I had syringed into her ran right through her. So I'm assuming that her crop can't be impacted, since stuff is going through her digestve system. As of right now, her breath doesn't smell like anything.
So not sure if I should try her with syringing some oil and massage her crop, or giving her water and no food? Should I try ACV or probiotics? Stop the antibiotics?
I figured that for today at least, I should just give her just water, then see if her crop is empty tomorrow, or what it feels like.
She also has lost some weight.
She has seemed fine, but we had a severe cold snap starting yesterday, and yesterday afternoon I found her lying in the barn, it seemed like she was dying. I brougnt her in the house, and did nothing except put her in pen with extra heat. This morning she was on her feet, so good sign. But she had a watery cough, and wouldn't eat. I figured she had a respiratory issue, so I laced some bread crumbs with Oxytet and left them with her for a while. This afternoon, she'd eaten half the Oxytet laced crumbs, and seemed much better, and brighter. I decided to give her the rest of the Oxytet that she should have eaten and didn't, by mixing it in
a slurry and syringing it into her. When I picked her up, I noticed that her crop was spongy and enlarged. It should not have been full from the little bit that she'd eaten. I didn't notice it being that way when I brought her in last night.
I gave her about 2 CC's of the slurry, then decided I should stop since I was worried about her crop. As soon as I set her down, she pooped, like what I had syringed into her ran right through her. So I'm assuming that her crop can't be impacted, since stuff is going through her digestve system. As of right now, her breath doesn't smell like anything.
So not sure if I should try her with syringing some oil and massage her crop, or giving her water and no food? Should I try ACV or probiotics? Stop the antibiotics?
I figured that for today at least, I should just give her just water, then see if her crop is empty tomorrow, or what it feels like.
She also has lost some weight.