Sunflower seeds - a problem?

[micstrachan]

Grit. I think you have found at least part of the problem. The potential problem with "natural" grit that is found in dirt is that the edges might be rounded from wear. Granite grit has nice jagged edges. Can you get some? If her crop is painful, this concerns me. Is an avian vet an option? Impacted crop is usually treated with gentle massage, but if this causes pain, it's possible she will need it emptied surgically. I do think it could be the sunflower shells if there isn't good grit available. Do they have access to grass or anything else besides the feed and treats you give them? Good luck. Others with more experience than I have have already been tagged. There are others, as well, but this is a good group. I hope we can help you help your girl.

 

[CSAchook]

Two crows has an excellent article on crop ailments and how to treat them. I recommend checking it out.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...d-sour-crops-prevention-and-treatments.67194/

 

[azygous]

She needs to be given some granite grit immediately. Put it in a little cup and hold it under her beak. She will recognize it and her urgent need for it and should eat it. Do not waste any time doing this as her gizzard is likely impacting as we speak.

Then introduce some coconut oil into her. The reason why I prefer coconut oil over olive oil is it's easier and safer to give without risk of getting oil into her airway. Try to get two teaspoons down her. Try to do this tonight.

 

[iosRANDALL]

@micstrachan , @CSAchook , @peckpeckpeck ... Thank You. Very much. I’m reading that article on sour crop. It’s ‘impacted’ with a lot of good information! Things I was never aware of.

 

[aart]

Not sure that granite grit does much in the crop, the gizzard is where that happens. So don't think it will do much for an impacted crop, not much moving thru it.

Have never had an impacted crop here, there's some BOSS in the scratch grains I feed and I sprinkle some around on occasion. Moderation in everything.
If I did, I would go for the coconut oil and....

I'd isolate bird in a wire cage within the coop for a day or two....so you can closely monitor her intake of food and water, crop function(checking at night and in morning before providing more feed), and her poops.

Best to put crate right in coop or run so bird is still 'with' the flock.
I like to use a fold-able wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller mesh(1x2) on bottom of crate under tray.

Then you can put tray underneath crate to better observe droppings without it being stepped in. If smaller mesh is carefully installed, tray can still be used inside crate.

 

[azygous]

The thing is, if this hen hasn't been getting grit, her gizzard isn't going to be grinding stuff and processing it. This can be a reason why the crop is not emptying. The gizzard can't process the contents so they don't move.

I had a favorite hen long ago with serial crop disorders. She slowly was starving, and I finally had to euthanize her when she could barely walk from being so weak. I decided to open her up to see what I could see, although at the time, I knew zero about the inner workings of a chicken. Besides her crop being full, her gizzard was impacted with what appeared to be fine sand. Even to my uneducated eye, I could see the stuff in her crop had no place to go since the gizzard was packed.

Grit for an adult chicken needs to be on the order of an eighth of an inch in diameter, give or take, with sharp edges. Granite grit fits this requirement. Baby chicks need grit the consistency of sand, also with sharp edges, not rounded. Processing un-shelled sunflower seeds is no problem for chickens that have access to proper grit. To see if your soil has suitable grit look at a sample through a magnifying lens. If it's smaller than an eighth of an inch or has rounded edges, you need to buy grit for your chickens.

After your hen has consumed some grit, then you need to start treating the crop disorder. That can be involved, so I wrote an article about it to save time and space on threads like this one. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

 

[aart]

Here's another good article on crop problems:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...d-sour-crops-prevention-and-treatments.67194/

 

[iosRANDALL]

@aart @azygous @micstrachan @leighks @lazy gardener @peckpeckpeck (and anyone else who offered their words of wisdom that I might have missed), Thank You. I very much appreciate your experienced advice!
Update on ‘Lacy’— I got up early to check her crop. She was still on the roost with her young Black Copper Maran coop-mate so I got to them before they had eaten. The firm lumpy ‘wad’ that was in her crop yesterday evening was still there. I brought her into the house where I have quite a large box set up for her with a light and water. Tried to get her to take a couple teaspoons of coconut oil but only got maybe one into her. Then I gently felt her crop and was surprised that although it still had the same firm-lumpy wad in it, it wasn’t painful to her anymore for me to touch it. So I commenced to gently massaging it and she actually seemed to like it! In about 3 minutes it had broken up and moved out leaving her crop empty. I was extremely pleased but reserve the ‘releaved’ part for later as I don’t know what’s in her gizzard. I don’t have any crushed granite and being Sunday I don’t think I can get any today (not sure where I can find any either). But will definitely check around for some tomorrow. Not sure what to do at this point. She’s in her big box here in the house with water and a light on for her. She’s preening her feathers a bit now and then so not too down and out. I’m not sure about feeding her yet. If there’s a wad of shells or straw in her gizzard that’s causing some of the issue, I’m not sure if I should feed her and possibly cause more problems before getting some granite in her hopefully tomorrow (providing I can locate any).

 

[azygous]

That's great news! This may be all you need to do. Her gizzard may be just fine as long as her crop appears to be functioning and her appetite returns to normal.

Offer her some chopped boiled egg. This is the first thing I feed a sick chicken to get them eating again. It will restore her strength and crop function. If she poops normally, not runny and watery, you can assume the gizzard is okay.

By days end, she should be eating her regular food again with no problem. Have you collected a sample of your soil to take a look at what sort of grit is in it? It's easy to take a kitchen strainer out, dig a half cup of dry dirt and sift it. What's left in the strainer can be examined for size and quality. Give this gravel to her until you have time to get to the store for some granite grit.

 

[Kiki]

Woot!
I am glad you massaged and broke it up.
Hopefully things are on the mend.
Look for this: