sadieatthebridge Posted September 8, 2020 Share Posted September 8, 2020 One of our new ex-caged hens might have sour crop. I say might as I've never had a hen with sour crop before so can't be sure what I'm looking for.... She is our littlest (only 1.4 kg) and when I went out this morning I noticed her crop was very large. Obviously because she is scrawny and low on feathers it was fairly noticeable. I had a feel and it was very squishy. A few weeks ago she had an impacted crop which I dealt with by isolating, massaging and giving a little olive oil. She'd had some porridge and corn and I cut back on the treats as she was obviously overdoing it! They free-range all day so have access to grass and windfall apples plus the usual garden plants too. So, back to this morning...I noticed her large, squishy crop but she had been out for around 3 hours already so could've had a considerable amount of food and drink in that time. She was also eating okay (apples). I've isolated her and just given her water which she's tipped over twice - she is very active - comb is floppy but has been floppy as long as we've had her (6 weeks) - she's pooed (looks normal) - hasn't laid - and tries to escape every time I check her :) So, she isn't acting particularly poorly. I was thinking that I starve her and keep her isolated until tomorrow and feel her crop again then. I can't get to the vet today but I could make an appointment for tomorrow, but to be honest I don't have much faith in our vet. We've taken chickens before to be PTS, for soft-shells (Calcium injections, Baytril) and for bumblefoot (bathe it twice daily in Epsom baths) but he never seems overly confident in his diagnoses. I've picked up all the windfall in case that is causing an issue. I can pick up some Daktarin Oral gel this afternoon - should I be giving her that? Starving her? Yoghurt? Massaging her crop? Clearing her crop? ACV? Every website/blog seems to have a different method....so any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadieatthebridge Posted September 8, 2020 Author Share Posted September 8, 2020 Quick update, I've just gone to give her a cuddle and some fresh water. Heard gurgling sounds from her crop (before she drank) but no yeasty smell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadieatthebridge Posted September 8, 2020 Author Share Posted September 8, 2020 Another update: I tried to clear her crop, got some grassy stuff up but not much. I stopped because I didn't want to hurt her, worried about her aspirating. She's still very perky, scratching about and very keen on escaping whenever I open the crate. She's had some water with ACV and a dollop of Daktarin. She had a normal poo after the crop clearing, then a liquid poo later on (after she'd had the water and ACV). Anyone? I'm going to keep her crated tonight and check her crop first thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cat tails Posted September 8, 2020 Share Posted September 8, 2020 @The Dogmother will know what to do! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted September 8, 2020 Share Posted September 8, 2020 Sure.... sorry folks, been a tad busy 🙄 Clear her crop as much as you can, then syringe in 2-3mls of neat ACV, keep her off food, but hydrated and given NutriDrops (now called Poultry Power Drops) and see how she is in the morning. Rinse and repeat if necessary. I would incorporate some Bokashi Bran into their diet to help with her probiotic balance and keep her off anything that isn't pellets, especially soft fruit. Let me know how you get on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadieatthebridge Posted September 9, 2020 Author Share Posted September 9, 2020 Brilliant thank you! She's still very bright this morning thankfully and her crop is still soft and squishy but much smaller, nowhere near the big balloon it was yesterday. I'll give her ACV and keep her off food today. And I'll get some Bokashi Bran ordered too. How long can she be without food? Seeing as she's a wee scrap of a thing? Thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadieatthebridge Posted September 9, 2020 Author Share Posted September 9, 2020 Oh, and she's had Daktarin oral gel too. Thanks so much for your help! Nothing is ever straightforward in Chickenland 🙄 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted September 9, 2020 Share Posted September 9, 2020 I’d say 48hrs without food - 3 days at the absolute most but you don’t want to risk her digestive system shutting down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadieatthebridge Posted September 9, 2020 Author Share Posted September 9, 2020 I caved and gave her a teeny bit of pellets and warm water this evening. She was trying to eat the Daktarin lid, and my watch, and my ring, and my eyes and a random smudge on my hand. And she is just so skinny 🙁😣 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted September 10, 2020 Share Posted September 10, 2020 If you are using ACV, then you shouldn't need the Daktarin @sadieatthebridge I would give a max of 24 hours without food, and then re-introduce it carefully. Alpha-Conditioning Feed is formulated to nourish ex-batts and poorly hens; it can be fed neat to build up an ailing bird, or mixed in with their regular feed 2-3 times a week as a conditioner. Sour crop usually rights itself fairly quickly with the regime I recommended above, but just occasionally recurrent sour crop can be indicative of more serious digestive issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadieatthebridge Posted September 10, 2020 Author Share Posted September 10, 2020 Thank you. She's still pretty annoyed at being in the crate so I'm going to do one more night and then let her out with the other ladies tomorrow morning. Her crop this morning was smaller but still a little squishy - I'm wondering whether I can just feel it more as she doesn't have much flesh on her? However, the small amount of pellets she ate last night had gone (I think - I need to have a rummage around in the crate and look for poop 🙄). I'm also a bit concerned that she's been eating a bit of the straw in desperation so I'm going to clear all that out and give her a couple of small meals. Can she have a bit of yogurt, or scrambled egg or is that a no no? Or just pellets in warm water again? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted September 10, 2020 Share Posted September 10, 2020 Not yoghurt as they can’t digest it. I’d stick to softened pellets If I were you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted September 10, 2020 Share Posted September 10, 2020 3 hours ago, mullethunter said: Not yoghurt as they can’t digest it. I’d stick to softened pellets If I were you. Yep, just pellets are fine. So long as her crop doesn't feel like a balloon full of liquid, she'll be OK. Chopped up boiled egg is good too. There's a lady posting on my FB group with much the same problem; she managed to get the bird to pass a coil of grass, and it seems to be improving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadieatthebridge Posted September 11, 2020 Author Share Posted September 11, 2020 Righto, I'll avoid yogurt - there is so much conflicting advice out there! She's had a few small meals of softened pellets, some normal poos and after 3 days in the crate I've let her back out today. Her crop felt faintly squishy this morning but to be honest I don't know if that was a normal empty crop on a skinny hen 😕 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
