Suspected sour crop- could anyone verify?

[gardengal22]

Hello friends! My hen Jewel is not feeling well and I'm suspicious sour crop could be the cause. Jewel is 2 years old, molting, and not currently in lay because of the winter weather- we just moved cross country, which I know had to be stressful on them. They also have not been dewormed in a bit- I am trying to pick up some dewormers and get that done in case that is the problem! I noticed yesterday when cleaning their cage that she was occasionally moving her neck like she was trying to swallow, but otherwise not moving around much and mostly standing in one place fluffed up with her head down- the poor thing looked miserable, so I separated her from the others and put her in a heated hospital cage with water with Poultry911 in it (a supplement with oregano oil and electrolytes). She was without food for about 12 hours because I was suspicious of sour crop then, but not completely sure. Upon putting my hands on her and taking a closer look, she smelled really bad! I never did figure out where the scent was coming from, but I *think* it was her breath? She felt concerningly skinny, much more than I had realized, but there were no abnormalities towards her back end or around her belly. Her crop was not empty but definitely not very full- there was a little in it and I could move it around, but it certainly wasn't huge or impacted or tense. She had a bowel movement earlier that afternoon that smelled the same as she did for lack of a better term, but that otherwise looked pretty much normal? It wasn't loose or anything. There appeared to be grit in it which I did think was a little odd. She also wasn't arguing or anything, unlike her usually ferocious self, and seemed really weak- her toes were curling under a bit (although that could have been stress because she is not by choice a cuddly girl, exactly!) and her feet felt a bit cold to the touch although that could be normal for chicken feet?? (Not actually sure) After that, I gave her meloxicam (a painkiller) because she just looked so miserable and Clavamox (antibiotic), which I do realize probably wasn't the right treatment if it is sour crop because antibiotics only make candidiasis worse, but I also have never dealt with sour crop before and wasn't sure what to do at the time! After this I offered her a little whole-grain bread soaked in coconut milk sprinkled with garlic powder, which she seemed interested in! She would eat voraciously for a few seconds and then stop and seem to take a bit to recover. After she finished, she acted like she wasn't feeling great again and started moving her neck around like chickens do when they ate too fast and are trying to swallow. I massaged her crop for a few minutes and put her back in to settle down for the night. Today I gave her some chicken feed free-choice- to be so honest I was really sleepy at the time and didn't think about checking her crop to see if it had emptied, but I definitely should've
So- do yall think that this likely is sour crop, or should I be considering something else? I'm a bit scared to take her off the antibiotic in case a bacterial infection is making her feel so bad- if it is sour crop, would it be the end of the world if I keep her on the antibiotic while treating for yeast as well or should I just stop the antibiotic and put all my money that it is sour crop? My plan currently after seeing what others have done to treat this issue is to add ACV to the water, dose her with miconazole cream, continue massaging the crop, and let her eat the soaked bread with garlic powder and thyme oil. I may continue with meloxicam because she really seems to be in pain. I just am so suspicious because the crop is not that big or that hard at all. It feels soft to the touch- not moldable, but liquidy I think. Do yall think this actually is sour crop?

 

[gardengal22]

Hello friends! My hen Jewel is not feeling well and I'm suspicious sour crop could be the cause. Jewel is 2 years old, molting, and not currently in lay because of the winter weather- we just moved cross country, which I know had to be stressful on them. They also have not been dewormed in a bit- I am trying to pick up some dewormers and get that done in case that is the problem! I noticed yesterday when cleaning their cage that she was occasionally moving her neck like she was trying to swallow, but otherwise not moving around much and mostly standing in one place fluffed up with her head down- the poor thing looked miserable, so I separated her from the others and put her in a heated hospital cage with water with Poultry911 in it (a supplement with oregano oil and electrolytes). She was without food for about 12 hours because I was suspicious of sour crop then, but not completely sure. Upon putting my hands on her and taking a closer look, she smelled really bad! I never did figure out where the scent was coming from, but I *think* it was her breath? She felt concerningly skinny, much more than I had realized, but there were no abnormalities towards her back end or around her belly. Her crop was not empty but definitely not very full- there was a little in it and I could move it around, but it certainly wasn't huge or impacted or tense. She had a bowel movement earlier that afternoon that smelled the same as she did for lack of a better term, but that otherwise looked pretty much normal? It wasn't loose or anything. There appeared to be grit in it which I did think was a little odd. She also wasn't arguing or anything, unlike her usually ferocious self, and seemed really weak- her toes were curling under a bit (although that could have been stress because she is not by choice a cuddly girl, exactly!) and her feet felt a bit cold to the touch although that could be normal for chicken feet?? (Not actually sure) After that, I gave her meloxicam (a painkiller) because she just looked so miserable and Clavamox (antibiotic), which I do realize probably wasn't the right treatment if it is sour crop because antibiotics only make candidiasis worse, but I also have never dealt with sour crop before and wasn't sure what to do at the time! After this I offered her a little whole-grain bread soaked in coconut milk sprinkled with garlic powder, which she seemed interested in! She would eat voraciously for a few seconds and then stop and seem to take a bit to recover. After she finished, she acted like she wasn't feeling great again and started moving her neck around like chickens do when they ate too fast and are trying to swallow. I massaged her crop for a few minutes and put her back in to settle down for the night. Today I gave her some chicken feed free-choice- to be so honest I was really sleepy at the time and didn't think about checking her crop to see if it had emptied, but I definitely should've
So- do yall think that this likely is sour crop, or should I be considering something else? I'm a bit scared to take her off the antibiotic in case a bacterial infection is making her feel so bad- if it is sour crop, would it be the end of the world if I keep her on the antibiotic while treating for yeast as well or should I just stop the antibiotic and put all my money that it is sour crop? My plan currently after seeing what others have done to treat this issue is to add ACV to the water, dose her with miconazole cream, continue massaging the crop, and let her eat the soaked bread with garlic powder and thyme oil. I may continue with meloxicam because she really seems to be in pain. I just am so suspicious because the crop is not that big or that hard at all. It feels soft to the touch- not moldable, but liquidy I think. Do yall think this actually is sour crop?

A couple things I forgot to mention- her bowel movement was a greenish color but totally normal in size & solidity. She did have access to grass when I moved their tractor coop day before yesterday, but it was not long grass, it's trimmed fairly short. We have been finding all sorts of nails and glass and junk all over the yard at the new house- yall don't think she could've eaten something dumb? We haven't seen so much of that where their coop is, but that doesn't make it impossible.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

It may be sour crop.

I'd check to see if her crop is emptying overnight, if it's not, then address that symptom according to the article below.

Often molting birds don't feel well and seem poorly, but, if possible, take a sample of her poop to a vet for a fecal float, see if she needs deworming or treated for Coccidiosis since you are on new property.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/