Swollen knot on chick

[Corrie W]

This morning I went out to feed the chicks and noticed that one now has a swollen knot right between her neck and wing, it almost looks like fluid underneath the skin. She is also stumbling over to that side when she tries to walk. Shes also bot as active. It was not like this yesterday. I'm not sure if it's an injury or what. I did consider it possible ly being the crop but it concerns me with the way she is acting.

Any ideas on what it could be? How I could help to fix it if its curable? I'll try to post the best picture I can of it.

 

[Corrie W]

This may be a better picture!

 

[FarmerGirl101]

That is the crop. It seems to be a lot bigger than normal for this chick. Can you make sure that it empties overnight. Do watch her

 

[Sneebsey]

As @FarmerGirl101 says, that is the crop, and it does look swollen. How's her bum looking? I have seen this issue only in cases of 'poopy-butt', where the digestive system gets 'backed up'. Are you feeding chick crumbs only? If you feed any 'treats' whatsoever, you need to provide chick grit; try putting a little dish of it in their brooder, even sand will do. It'll stay in the crop and help the chicks to grind up their feed.

 

[Corrie W]

That is the crop. It seems to be a lot bigger than normal for this chick. Can you make sure that it empties overnight. Do watch her

Upon further inspection of all my others, since my initial reaction was to panic, they all have it and I came to my senses lol

I'm more concerned for this one since she isn't wanting to walk and stumbled to the side. This only happened after I fed them. Maybe it's a similar feeling to a belly ache? I don't know.

What is the next step if it doesn't empty?

 

[Corrie W]

As @FarmerGirl101 says, that is the crop, and it does look swollen. How's her bum looking? I have seen this issue only in cases of 'poopy-butt', where the digestive system gets 'backed up'. Are you feeding chick crumbs only? If you feed any 'treats' whatsoever, you need to provide chick grit; try putting a little dish of it in their brooder, even sand will do. It'll stay in the crop and help the chicks to grind up their feed.

Everything else looks normal about her and shes trying to get up and play with the others. I don't feed them any treats yet, just medicated chick feed crumbs

 

[FarmerGirl101]

I think the reason is that it looks to be quite heavy in a way so she is messed up

 

[Sneebsey]

As she has that swollen crop, I would still add some chick grit to the brooder, just as a precaution. For the lethargy, I'd try boiling up an egg and mashing it, shell and all and feeding it to the chicks as a protein-rich treat. There are also poultry vitamins available to add to their water, though I'm unsure what you have available in the USA.

Although you are feeding medicated crumb, Cocci is still a possibility, particularly in damper climates. If you see any bloody or unusual poops, that would be indicative of a possible outbreak.

 

[Saaniya]

Too much food in crop cause it swallon ND then it slows down it's work or stop it massaging crop in with very lite finger in circular motion in downwards .
And for at least 24hrs do not give anything in food

Give chick grit ND check the crop first in the morning it should be flat

He's stumbling cause he ate too much ND cause of it's weight he unable to walk

Do not give anything


Is it hard or like a water ballon ?

Cause sour crop in this tiny age difficult to heal

 

[Eggcessive]

How old is she? I would add some SaveAChick to your water or give her a drop of NutriDrench for the next 2 days. Massage her crop carefully a few times a day, and set her in front of the water and dip her beak a few times to get her drinking. What type of bedding are you using? Sometimes they will eat a little of the bedding, and get a crop problem. Her crop doesn’t concern me as much as her lethargy, so keep her drinking and watch her.