chicken with crop issues - next steps

[babybop11]

I've been posting on here for about a week now. My 5-month-old buff initially had what I believe was an impacted crop. The vet gave us a medication to assist with motility, gave the last dose last night. I believe it turned sour. It feels balloon-like and full of air, when I massage it makes bubbly noises and sometimes forces up a burp. It deflates now and then and just feels flat but maybe some fluid in there. I've been giving Monistat for a couple days. She isn't interested in eating much (tried egg, soft food, Greek yogurt) and she hasn't layed an egg in a week. I've been giving Vitamin E and B Complex.
All of this aside, she is behaving somewhat normally and I've taken her for field trips out to the other birds to socialize. I'm wondering what to do at this point. She seems happy in the run. I let them out to free range, and she wanted to be with them, but I'm concerned about her eating grass and such... though maybe it would be better than not eating anything? We had an issue with this same chicken a few months ago not eating anything and then we tube fed her for a couple days and she was suddenly fine. Should I keep her separated and crated inside and just keep doing what I'm doing, or should I put her outside with the rest of them and see how she does? I don't want them to reject her and I'm wondering if the problem might right itself with the Monistat treatment. I felt the others' crops and they all felt either empty or really full. Maybe it's the food? I recently put them on Nutrena layer feed pellets. Should I switch to crumbles? I'm just completely frustrated and at a total loss at this point. Maybe she has a chronic crop issue. @azygous @Wyorp Rock @Eggcessive sorry to tag you all in again. Would really appreciate your advice at this point.

 

[azygous]

A chicken kept away from their flock can quickly become depressed. For that reason, I never recommend they be isolated unless they are being severely bullied and risk injury. So, let her go back with her pals.

I've found that a chicken with crop issues, with rare exceptions, will self regulate what they eat. I generally offer my crop patients their normal diet and let them decide what to eat. Offer plain yogurt or give a daily probiotic following crop treatment to help restore good gut microbes. Don't forget to make grit available.

If the appetite is slow to return and the chicken is weak, offer cooked egg and rice to jump start them.

 

[babybop11]

A chicken kept away from their flock can quickly become depressed. For that reason, I never recommend they be isolated unless they are being severely bullied and risk injury. So, let her go back with her pals.

I've found that a chicken with crop issues, with rare exceptions, will self regulate what they eat. I generally offer my crop patients their normal diet and let them decide what to eat. Offer plain yogurt or give a daily probiotic following crop treatment to help restore good gut microbes. Don't forget to make grit available.

If the appetite is slow to return and the chicken is weak, offer cooked egg and rice to jump start them.

Okay, thank you so much for the response. That helps me feel better. I will let her adventure with her pals and check her crop periodically. If she hasn't eaten, I'll try offering something later. What feed do you use for your chickens? I'm thinking I don't love the one we're using.

 

[azygous]

Purina Flock Raiser.

 

[babybop11]

Purina Flock Raiser.

Pellets?

 

[azygous]

Crumbles.

 

[Eggcessive]

Azygous is the crop expert. When I am forced to separate a chicken that has been sick or picked on I usually place them in a wire crate with their own food and water, and secure those to the crate. If she can be with the others in her crate, they can remain familiar with each other. Has she ever had symptoms of coccidiosis? That can sometimes affect or slow down the crop. Has she ever laid eggs? I have used Nutrena layer, and Purina layer and Flockraiser feed, and my flock seemed to prefer all of them. They go for the all flock/flock raiser feed a little better since it has a little more protein, but you need to have crushed oyster shell available for the layers to eat when they need some. It would not hurt to worm her as well, since worms can slow down the crop, and may cause damage to the intestines.

 

[babybop11]

Crumbles.

Awesome thank you so much

 

[azygous]

Chickens actually do have taste preferences. Long ago, I experimented with layer feed and pellets vs crumbles. My chickens were very decisive. They hated the taste of layer feed, and they were extremely annoyed by pellet forms. I could almost detect some bad words.

I've stuck with Purina Flock Raiser all these years, and the chickens are content with it. One time the feed store was out of Flock Raiser, so I looked on the label of a bag of chick starter and compared it to Flock Raiser. It was nearly identical except for a tiny bit less protein than Flock Raiser. So file that info away in case you need it.

 

[babybop11]

So I ended up doing crop surgery. She was declining fast and I felt I owed it to her to do anything I could. This is what came out. It’s possible she ate some of this today, but could at least some of this have been causing the issues? (sock for scale)
***ALSO, do i give her any water or food right now? i don’t want her to leak out her incision but she’s so skinny and i suspect nutrient deficiency @azygous @Wyorp Rock