Straw - Good or Bad? What's your take?

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I'm sitting here in my living room next to my Jersey Giant who spent the day at the vets office. She was clearly not right this morning and her crop was all squishy and bloated. I took her to the vet who ran some tests. He didn't feel she had an impacted crop but had clearly eating a fair amount of straw and an excessive amount of sand and pebbles. He gave her some meds and something to help break up the mass and push it through the system. So she'll spend the night inside in a dog crate.

My question is, do you use straw?
Have you had issues w/ your chickens eating the straw?

I had read not to use it when they were chicks because they might eat it. So I only bought a bale of straw 2-3 weeks ago. My girls are 9 months old. And while I saw her with some pieces in her beak, I just didn't believe that she was really eating it. So I've spent the evening raking up as much as I possibly could from their run.

I'm so upset with myself because I did this to her. The only reason I bought the straw was to give them something to scratch in. There was no other purpose. I had been putting big piles of leaves out there for them to play in. But leaves are tough to come by this time of the year.

I'm curious what your take is on straw.

Hi. Last week I took my hen to the vets her crop was Size of two hard tennis balls, croaky voice . I only noticed this when liquorice my hen stopped eating. Vets said her crop was not moving unless she had surgery they would not know if it is a tumour or somthing simple has foot not breaking down. I opted for meds and scans which costs me hefty £500. After a week her crop is now small and softer. Liquorice still lives in my shower when I placed the straw for bedding I realised she was eating it not chewing it!!! I finally realised what was coursing the crop, the straw had pine oil which probably why its attracting her to eat it evan though I had grit already for them to eat to.
I have chosen go give pine shavings for bedding and hope to god this works. I will never use straw .. period!!