- Oct 26, 2007
- 683
- 11
- 161
So sorry for your loss.
Yes, chickens definitely hide their illnesses. I've had chickens that would have been killed by the others, if I hadn't noticed something wrong early and isolated them. Its amazing how sick they can get before they show any signs. I don't have very many chickens, but there are a few things I always look for on each of them: Are their combs healthy looking? Are their tails up? Are they staying apart from the flock, do their crops look big, even when they first get up in the morning? Do they have alot of poop collected around their vents? Are their feet swollen? Is there any watery stuff dripping from their beaks? All these things can be checked out at a distance.
If you suspect something is wrong, then catch them and feel their crops and their lower abdomen. Look at their vents, and check for mites/lice. Check their feet for bumblefoot.
If one of them gets a big crop again, I would just do the olive oil and intense massaging. Sometimes that's all that's needed. I wouldn't immediately start antibiotics.
Do you know what a swollen abdomen feels like? Its not uncommon for them to develop ovary problems and other problems that can fill their abdomens with fluid. The pressure of that can keep any food from going through. Sometime feel a healthy one's abdomen. Its soft. If there's fluid in there, it will feel hard or like its full of water.
It sounds like yours had more going on than just an impacted crop.
I do know that lots of my chickens got impacted crops when I used to feed them scratch. I quit doing that and just use black oil sunflower seed now for a treat, and no one has gotten impacted since.
I occasionally give my chickens oatmeal with a fair amount of olive oil in it. They love it and I think its good for their GI tracts. I also give them plain yogurt sometimes.
Having chickens is a learning process. It takes time. I'm sure you did all you could for your chicken. Sometimes things just happen beyond our control. And I know how sad it can be. I cry like a baby every time one of mine dies.
Yes, chickens definitely hide their illnesses. I've had chickens that would have been killed by the others, if I hadn't noticed something wrong early and isolated them. Its amazing how sick they can get before they show any signs. I don't have very many chickens, but there are a few things I always look for on each of them: Are their combs healthy looking? Are their tails up? Are they staying apart from the flock, do their crops look big, even when they first get up in the morning? Do they have alot of poop collected around their vents? Are their feet swollen? Is there any watery stuff dripping from their beaks? All these things can be checked out at a distance.
If you suspect something is wrong, then catch them and feel their crops and their lower abdomen. Look at their vents, and check for mites/lice. Check their feet for bumblefoot.
If one of them gets a big crop again, I would just do the olive oil and intense massaging. Sometimes that's all that's needed. I wouldn't immediately start antibiotics.
Do you know what a swollen abdomen feels like? Its not uncommon for them to develop ovary problems and other problems that can fill their abdomens with fluid. The pressure of that can keep any food from going through. Sometime feel a healthy one's abdomen. Its soft. If there's fluid in there, it will feel hard or like its full of water.
It sounds like yours had more going on than just an impacted crop.
I do know that lots of my chickens got impacted crops when I used to feed them scratch. I quit doing that and just use black oil sunflower seed now for a treat, and no one has gotten impacted since.
I occasionally give my chickens oatmeal with a fair amount of olive oil in it. They love it and I think its good for their GI tracts. I also give them plain yogurt sometimes.
Having chickens is a learning process. It takes time. I'm sure you did all you could for your chicken. Sometimes things just happen beyond our control. And I know how sad it can be. I cry like a baby every time one of mine dies.
