Hi Joan,
This is a paste of the reply to your PM just in case someone else might benefit from it.
Basically it sounds like this hen has an impacted crop and if you have been feeding long fibrous grass this could well be the cause. Never feed cut grass they need to snip it off in small pieces, same goes for hay too. Never leave cut grass in their run as Joy rightly says as it ferments very quickly especially at this time of year when it contains lots of sugar & moisture.
Does the crop feel large (pendulous)and firm when pinched and if so it's almost certainly impacted crop.
Impacted crop is caused by a blockage in the hens crop or gizzard (the lower RHS front of the neck/ breast where the food is stored prior to passing into the gizzard and digestive system). It is caused by eating something inappropriate like string nails or fibrous grass or even large shavings. Some birds can be genetically disposed to crop impaction. Sour crop occurs when the food in the crop ferments and this will cause a foul smell you may notice if you open her beak. The bird generally stops eating and looks miserable and the crop feels stiff and solid. Spooning warmed olive oil into the beak while gently massaging the crop can help free it. Hold the bird upside down, massage and gently squeeze her crop to try and disgorge the contents. Serious impaction which can’t be shifted in this way can be surgically cleared with a simple operation which should only be performed by a veterinary surgeon.
One novel treatment I’ve heard of involves feeding live maggots which eat the contents. I 've no experience of this procedure but it was featured on a rescue hen site I once saw.
Forget the probiotic yogurt, apple cider vinegar garlic and other potions which will do no good and quite likely will do harm as a treatment. the priority should be to clear the blockage and until that happens packing down more food will only make things worse.
Water is the most urgent requirement and will help with the blockage. You might need to evacuate the crop three or so times before it returns to normal.
Once the bird is OK feed on moistened pellets for a couple of days before returning to the normal dry pellets and, it's most important if they are fed corn and are not free to range, to ensure they have insoluable grit available (crushed gravel from a feed merchants if necessary) so their gizzards are able to grind up their food properly. Birds fed a proper diet are unlikely to have impacted crop so keep nutrition SIMPLE, layers pellets ad lib all day and mixed poultry corn in an evening a handful each no more and restrict treats and kitchen scraps to a very small amount in an evening only. Don't worry about giving them grass, when all's well give them COOKED greens and potatoes rice, pasta or any thing with seeds in like peppers or melons all in moderation and the odd hung up cabbage. They don't absolutely need greens despite what people say all the nutrition they need is in the pellets. Treats such as cat food shouldn't be fed at all unless as a specific treatment for gross protein deficiency in an emergency.
Best of luck
HF
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August 26, 2012, 14:48