[poultrygeist]

One of our Amberlinks is making a honking noise instead of squawking.

She looks to have a pretty full crop (not felt it yet) and is making circular motions with her neck as if uncomfortable.

She is, of course, still pecking at things and presumably eating !

If anyone knows if this indicates impacted crop or anything else, I'd be grateful for first aid advice.

Will go and perform an examination and report back.

Thank you

Rob

[poultrygeist]

Not even sure now whether the same chook is making the noise as was making the neck movements.
All their crops are nice and full as you'd expect at this time.

I'll keep an eye on them all.

Reading all these threads is makign me paranoid !  :roll:

Rob

[Vember]

when mine had a full crop i gave her some oil and then then gently massaged the crop until it didn't feel as solid. Took a good 1/2 hour but she was fine after.

Don't know if it'll help yours but it's worth a try

[poultrygeist]

Thanks vember.
She seems to be bright enough in herself. Eating, drinking, tail up and good colour in her comb so other than this honking noise and teh neck thing, she's fine !!

I'll keep an eye on her for now. Would she be showing any other symptoms (tail down/pale comb etc) or do they just carry on until they really are poorly ?

Rob

[GrannieAnnie]

Best time to feel her crop Rob is when you let them out in the morning when their crops should be just about empty.  I don't have a lot of knowledge about impacted or sour crop, as the only chook we had with sour crop died, but impacted crop is when the crop feels full and hard, and sour crop is when it feels full and all squidgy.  Aunty is the one who knows more about it, but with sour crop I think they say antibiotics, and with impacted, like vember said, try some oil and massage it.  I think they also say turn her upside down and stroke the neck gently to try to make her vomit, but luckily, I've never had to try it.

Hope she'll be okay!!!!!

[poultrygeist]

I'll check her in the morning. It was the noise that caught my attention first. Thought a goose had got in !!

Then the funny neck thing. They must do it just to get me going.  

Rob

[GrannieAnnie]

How's your chook today Rob?  In this magazine I got today, it said if your chook has impacted crop, segregate her from the others and give her just plain water for 48 hours!!!!! to help flush whatever the obstruction is through her system.

[poultrygeist]

Sorry. Should have updated. Julie let them out and reported that she was looking and acting normally.
She seems to be fine so it may have been a temporary obstruction or nothing to do with the crop at all.
The more I learn about chickens, the more I don't understand !

She was definitely not right yesterday, but is right as rain today.
Obviously they don't always need us to interfere which is a good lesson in hubandry.  

Thanks for all the advice. It's bound to be needed one day.
I was reading elsewhere that you may need to squirt veg oil down their throat but need to avoid the opening to the lungs at the base of the tongue. You can kill 'em or cure 'em with a slightly wrong aim !  :shock:

Rob

[GrannieAnnie]

Oh I'm glad she's okay!  They do worry you don't they?

[poultrygeist]

Worse than kids anyday. Wouldn't know our DD was here.

We zoomed past your house this morning. En route to folkingham. We went to the Belgian Chocolate shop which has intrigued us ever since we first saw it.
Bloomin expensive but very nice chocolate.

Rob