Omlet Smart Autodoor - New in box

[madchickenlady]

My black pekin, Maeve, vomited up what looked like 'cuckoo's spit'. It was all over her face/chest. I investigated further, and it seems that she had a impacted crop. I massaged etc, and she brought up a lot more thick, stringy mucus (sorry), and then a tight ball of grass/pellets. No more mucus since. Is it common for a impacted crop to have this mucus? We've been to the vet, and he's told me to starve her overnight and see how she is in the morning (as her crop was almost empty when I took her). Her breathing is fine, and she has no other symptoms.

[Egluntyne]

As you've got rid of the tight ball of pellets and grass, you might have got away with it.

 

I'd be inclined to keep her on water only and then see how she is tomorrow.

 

I would make sure that all areas where she can access grass are mown r strimmed so that she cant eat long strands of grass.

[madchickenlady]

I'll be cutting the grass as soon as it stops raining again Will keep her confined to the run for a couple of days with just pellets, I think. In fact, I might make her a pellet porridge, so it's soft. Is the mucus usual, then Egluntyne? She certainly seems decongested now

[The Dogmother]

The mucous is normal - ordinarily it would have drained away down from the crop and into the gizzard, but the grass plug probably blocked up the exit from the crop and it all started to back up.

 

Add some Apple Cider Vinegar to the water to be safe, but it sounds as if she will be OK now.

[madchickenlady]

Thanks for the reassurance Claret I was googling for ages trying to find out if the mucus was normal She seems a lot better now, and her crop is soft (and sloshy with water! No food meant she went crazy at the drinker ).

[Egluntyne]

Has her crop emptied again this morning?

[madchickenlady]

Yes! I am so pleased! I think her crop is slightly inflamed, as I can 'feel' the skin of it, but it's definitely empty (it feels a bit 'baggy' but empty, IYSWIM?). Have given her a sloppy porridge for breakfast, which she dived in to. I think I'll keep her confined to the run for a couple of days on sloppy food just to give her crop a chance to heal. I'm afraid that in my panic about the vomiting, I held her upside down and rubbed her crop down towards the ground to empty it. I had read that somewhere as the correct response. I now know that this is actually quite dangerous, and I could have suffocated her This rough treatment is probably what has inflamed her crop more than it would have been. I'm so happy that her crop has emptied, but I feel awful that I did something so dangerous. Never again!

[The Dogmother]

I wouldn't worry too much, they can be remarkably resilient

 

The crop is just a thin-walled sac and is easily blocked by fibrous or stringy material. Luckily you managed to get this plug out of your girl's crop before the situation worsened. Apple Cider vinegar and/or Avipro in the water will help to keep any yeast infections at bay. Make sure that she has plenty if grit in her diet - while this is only really utilised in the gizzard, it helps to keep things moving through the crop.

[madchickenlady]

I always use ACV, they love it! It's a bit of a miracle cure all, isn't it? I am just so happy to see her pottering/harassing the others as usual I've never had a crop problem in the flock in over two years of chook keeping, so it was quite a shock how quickly it came on I'll certainly keep my eye out from now on.