[silverteen]

one if my silkies has gone broody and i noticed when lifting her out of the coop her crop was swollen and she sermed skinny. i checked the other hens and they had swollen crops but not as bad as the broody one.

the other hens I've noticed sneezing too.

what can i do?

I've put vinegar in the water.

how do i try to make them sick?

please help

[wildwitchy]

She sounds like she has got a impacted crop. I used fresh white maggots from a fishing tackle shop, the once. The maggots will clear the blockage by eating the rubbish in the crop sounds disgusting but it works. Hens can't be sick.

Afterwards give her some live yoghurt to settle her tummy. If she's been eating long grass this can cause impacted crops and they shouldn't eat it. If the maggotts dont work, try massaging the crop to break the obstruction down. Failing that, its a visit to the vet.

The others could have a respiratry infection and need a/biotics. Phone your a local vet too. I will PM you.

[ehs284]

I second the maggots. Have tried other solutions with limited success e.g. oil , but a pint of white maggots at £2-70 with gentle massage (which she seemed to like) had a fantastic effect and within 3 days the bird was back to normal.

[ANHBUC]

If the crop is swollen at night that could be just a full crop.  If you check her in the morning before she begins to eat her crop may be smaller as she processes her food overnight.   

[Casey76]

It is possible your silkie is just taking longer to digest her food than usual as she isn't moving around so much.

As long as her crop is flat in the morning it is nothing to be worried about.  Sometimes the crop can look and feel very large and hard.

Keep a track of her weight.  Broody hens eat approximately 1/3 of their normal ration and can lose lots of weight while brooding.  If you think she is getting too thin, switch her onto a high protein diet (chick crumb) and add a few fatty seeds like dehulled sunflower seeds.

Good luck