[Charlie's Chickens]

Hi,  Looking for a bit of guidence please.

I have 6 chooks just coming up for 3 years old and up until now all have been perfectly well.

I noticed the other day that one of our light sussex 'Ronnie' had dirty bum feathers.  She has had this before and as we had done before gave them a trim and clean up, checking the skin was all ok and thought no more of it.  She has 'long' bum fluff 

However since then,  I have noticed she has been spending more and more time huddled up not moving about much.  When free ranging around the garden she is near the rest of the chooks, but not 'involved.  When I offer treats she either ignores or wanders slowly over but rarley eats any.  She has been drinking.

More worryingly today I am sure I saw on to occasions her being sick!  After a bit of searching on here though she may have a sour crop so we went out to check her, but couldn't feel or smell anything.

Any other odeas of what may be going on or checks I could carry out?

Any help gratfeully received.

Thanks

[joyfull]

I would take her to a vets for a check over.

[Casey76]

Chickens cqn't vomit in the normal sense as they don't have a diaphragm.  If she is regurgitating food from her crop it is more likely she has a blockage in her crop somewhere (or the tubing leading the the stomach/gizzard), and this will certainly need veterinary attention.

[Charlie's Chickens]

Morning,

Thought I would post a quick update.

When I let them out this morning she was very reluctant to come out so I picked her up with that a load of yellow liquid came up out of her beak.  Then as described on here I tipped her forward for a couple of seconds at a time and loads more came out.  It took 4 tips before she seemed 'cleared out', so I guess she does have a crop problem.

I had a feel and I can feel a smallish lump but it is fairly firm.  I have spoken to my vet who suggested tipping her 2-3 times a day, massage and live yogurt.

She did however say to continue on layers pellets to help it grind up. I am sure I read that this is not a good idea?  I have just given her some mash potatoe with live yogurt and garlic mixed in which she lapped up.

Is there anything I can be doing to help her?

Thanks 

[orchardlady]

If at all possible keep her separate (but within view) from the other hens so she can have free access to the food you are giving her without everyone else crowding her out. When I had a hen with sour crop I gave her layers pellets but soaked them in warm water first so it was like runny porridge then mixed live yoghurt and garlic granules into the porridge mixture. Pop her back with the rest of the flock in the evening just before bed.

OL

[Charlie's Chickens]

Thank you for your advice.

I have emptied her this evening and some grass blades are coming up so I am hoping that is a good sign?

Also, I have read today someone strongly recomending white fishermans maggots.  Has anyone tried this?

[Casey76]

Sour crop is a fungal infection like thrush, so treating with nystatin (this should be fairly cheap from your vet) should be more effective than maggots, which probably will not survive the eating process

When you get hold of your hen have a really good feel of her crop.  If you can feel a fibrous mass in there, then she has probably eaten long pieces of grass (or hay/straw) and this has canused an impacted crop (different again from a crop blockage).  Impacted crop can be treated, but it is often a long drawn out process.  At least twice a day syringe some liquid paraffin or olive oil (unflavoured!) into your hen, then massage the mass.  your aim is to break it up into small enough pieces so it will pass through the crop.

While she is being treated like this feed her with a fairly wet mash (or pour hot water onto pellets so they "dissolve").  It needs to be a fairly runny porridge like consistence, so that she is eating the right nutrients, but it doesn't tax her system.

[Charlie's Chickens]

Thank you Casey76.

Having checked on her last night and saw she wasn't perching and that she looked pretty miserable, I wasn't sure she would be with us this morning 

Having lifed her out of the house this morning and tipping her like before, nothing actually came up and out of her beak!  I gave her some wet pellets as you suggested with a bit if live yogurt in which she scoffed then she drank a fair bit of water.  She still looks very sorry for herself!

Having been very lucky 3 years in with my chooks and no health problems, I am not 100% sure I am feeling for her crop in the right place.  When I looked online at a diagram it showed her crop as quite low in the breast, whereas from directions I have read on here it suggested it was higher in her neck......I am now very confused where to feel to see if it is compacted or sour? 

Help please.....

[Charlie's Chickens]

Managed to have a very ggof feel this afternoon and I am now convinced she has the squashy balloon feeling crop.

I did empty her this afternoon and whilst it wasn't as much as yesterday, she seems to going downhill    We even had to lift her into the house this evening as she hadn't even bothered to go in!!

I contacted 2 vets re Nystatin, 1 had never heard of it and the other told me that he thought it had stopped being used 

I am continuing with the garlic and live yogurt in with some mashed up layers pellets.

Is there anything else anyone thinks I should be doing???

Thank you

[Casey76]

The vet had never heart of nystatin??? 

It's the most commonly prescribed oral antifungal out there lol!

Did the vet who thought it wasn't used any more give any alternative recommendations?  Nystatin is certainly still used in humans (for oral thrush), there is no reason it shouldn't still be available for animal use.

I'd go pester another vet, if I were you!

[joyfull]

my vets prescribe Nystatin when some new chicks I bought had vent gleet (don't be mislead it can be all through the bird and not just the vent  ) however it is a human prescription and had to be signed for accordingly - they had to order it and costs about the same as a human prescription + approximately 10% which I assume was their markup for getting it.

[Charlie's Chickens]

I have just discovered the most wonderful 'chicken only' vet centre near me so have booked her an appointment for today.

I can't stand to see her going downhill any further.  She is now not eating and I have bought her inside to the kitchen in a box to help her rest.

Fingers crossed she is still with me when I get home from work to take her to the vets.

Sounds a wonderful place where they even hold courses for backyard chicken keepers!! 

Thanks for the replies.

[joyfull]

good luck, and if you want to give me your vets details I can add them to our poultry friendly vets for others to use them 

[Charlie's Chickens]

Of course  it sounds like a wonderful place.....  I will post an update to let you know how we get on.

The Chicken Vet
Nutwell Estate
Lympstone
Exmouth
Devon
EX8 5AN
Phone: 0905 187 0000
Web www.chickenvet.co.uk

[joyfull]

thank you Emma - have now added them to the list. Good luck for you both this afternoon xx