What is happening to my chicken?

[rebrascora]

I would agree that it looks like an impacted crop. I would isolate her into a cage so that she does not have access to food or bedding and initially just offer water or a very runny slurry made with pellets/crumble and water. Massage the crop for 10-15 mins 4 times a day if you can. Most chickens with an impaction will enjoy their crop being massaged, so if she appears uncomfortable you are either being too rough and need to ease off a bit or there is another issue. Better to start gentle and get firmer and be guided by her response. Once the crop is empty on a morning, then you can start to add a little more feed to her slurry to make it firmer but I would wait 3 days after her crop emptying completely overnight before giving her access to dry food again or more lumpy food like scratch or vegetation which needs breaking down. Impactions can occur as a result of food or water running out. Without food, they will sometimes eat bedding which forms a knotted mass in the crop, preventing food from passing. Lack of water means the dry pellets will form a hard mass in the crop. Some people experience problems with chickens eating hay bedding or alfalfa, particularly in winter when they don't have access to any greenery. Short chopped lengths are not a problem but anything over an inch or two long has the potential to clog them up.
Good luck with your girl.

 

[UncleDougsChickens]

I did a few things.

I massaged her crop and inverted her to assist in vomiting and some nasty liquid came out but it only seemed like a drop in the bucket compared to whats left inside the crop.

I isolated her away from hay and food and I will leave her like that overnight and see what happens. Their bedding is hay so I assume that caused the impacted crop but I give them access to food 24/7...maybe a little hay here and there built up.

My understanding is that an impacted crop doesn't allow food to pass by and they get malnourished but is that the only way they die from it? In other words if I leave her like this overnight and in the morning its going down so I leave her like that again for the entire day and it goes down again can I start feeding her?

Honestly and I feel kinda bad but like I said its been about 10 days since this has happened and she doesn't seem noticeably thinner so I'm guessing some food is getting by? I guess I just didn't realize how much this was affecting her

Oh and just to answer the question, yes the crop was still very full this morning.

 

[micstrachan]

Totally agree this is likely a crop issue. So is it full and hard first thing in the morning? Can you remove the feed one night so you can check in the morning?

 

[diamondsilkies]

I had an EE that did this. She was pretty young, I got her from a local feed store at around 5 months old. Unfortunately, the feed store doesn't take the best care of them since they have so many, and it was the only and last time I ever got older birds from them (my preferred feed store was out of the breeds I wanted).

Her crop was also very hard and she actually had some weird scabs on the outside of it. She seemed healthy otherwise, but passed away after about 7 months of having her. However, I do think you can save your girl, since mine had that weird scabbing and I was (and still am) rather a novice and crop issues. Best of luck to you and your girl.

 

[Dawnclucks22]

I have never seen this before but just thinking that she might be egg bound in some way but she looks healthy and active. Maybe she is struggling to swallow food??

That's what I was thinking. Maybe there's something she's trying to get down. Could be something else though.

 

[rebrascora]

Offer only water with vitamins or very sloppy food with vitamins and keep massaging. I would not vomit her unless she is refluxing when you massage in an upright position. She needs those fluids to go through her system.... she can survive for quite a while without food but not long without water, so you need to as much fluids through her system as you can. Usually if it is a plug of tangled vegetation like hay it will strain the solids out making the crop large and hard but at least some of the liquid will filter through... massaging will help that. You are looking to make her food as liquid as possible so that those nutrients will filter through with the fluids. Oil is sometimes beneficial both to add liquid calories and also to help lubricate and break up the impaction. I haven't used it but coconut oil is supposed to be beneficial for this and easily administered as a solid when cold from the fridge and the bird will either eat chunks of it voluntarily or it can be swiped into their beak for them to swallow. Followed by massage. I think @azygous recommends a good teaspoon of coconut oil at one go.

I would not offer dry feed until about 3 days after the crop is completely flat and empty in the morning. If this is due to hay, it may not disperse even with regular daily massage and if it does, it may take over a week but surgery is sometimes necessary with those when it is bad. I had one take 2 weeks to clear and another that would not shift and I had to do surgery, so don't expect a sudden and miraculous recovery but be very thankful if you get one!

Yes it will cause death by malnutrition as the bird effectively starves or dehydrates. Keeping fluids going through is the most important thing in these early stages and a vitamin supplement.

 

[azygous]

This is the article I was drafted into writing a week ago. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/
It has all the information in one place so you will know how to treat crop issues. Hope your girl starts to feel better soon.

 

[UncleDougsChickens]

her crop is still impacted. impacted when she got out of the house, impacted when she went in. I have not allowed her to have food except a slice of bread saturated in olive oil. She ate a lot of it. I also squirted olive oil down her throat. I am massaging her crop several times a day. I will do the best I can but its hard to keep her away from food while giving it to the others. The other chickens are becoming aggressive without food. I will have to start leaving food out like normal because Im away a lot of the day. Also, surgery (as a last resort) probably isnt an option so I just hope she recovers..

 

[azygous]

Before you resort to surgery, although it's not as complicated as it might seem, try a stool softener. Wait about half an hour for it to work, then massage. That usually breaks up the mass, and you should feel the crop empty as you do this final massage.

 

[UncleDougsChickens]

Before you resort to surgery, although it's not as complicated as it might seem, try a stool softener. Wait about half an hour for it to work, then massage. That usually breaks up the mass, and you should feel the crop empty as you do this final massage.

you mean human laxatives?