# Chest (crop) reduction sour crop?



## Regina L (Jul 6, 2013)

I've read every "sour crop" symptoms here and followed your advices
This one chicken has progressively growing a HUGE chest (I learned the term is "crop") and after learning as much as I could, I decided to make her vomit. She has had no behavior or feeding or pooping problems throughout these past 5? Weeks!
You could see her breast was dragging on the ground! 
I did it step by step and BEWARE!!!! I have vomit on my glasses, mouth YUKKK, my legs and feet!!
She vomited so so much!
I held her securely around her wings, and with the other hand I held on to her breast bone and gently squeezed a soft growth bigger than a tennis ball and she would throw up liquid, grass, and grains.
I've read here that sour crop has a horrible smell. (Here I was trying to smell a chickens breath!! LOL what a site!! I didn't smell anything awful. 
My chickens are all around 11-12 months old, and I've been successfully feeding them Fermented Feed for the last 7 months. 
They eat food leftovers, fruits, veggies, and sometimes I let them free range for a couple hours.
After I was able to get her crop to be normal sized, I could still feel a lot of little pebbles (smaller than a BB pellet) in her crop. I couldn't squeeze her anymore, but she already seems to feel better. 
Even her scratch I let ferment a bit, so that it's not so hard on their bellies!
Any advice?






































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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

With sour crop they stop eating. What I think she's suffering from is what they call pendulous crop. I don't remember a lot about it so you will have to look that up. 

I read that it was recommended to wrap in ace bandage for a period of time to see if that will help it tighten back up.


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## Regina L (Jul 6, 2013)

Ohh... Is that like a hernia then? Like her crop lining blew a bubble on place where the tissue is thinner?? Hmmm. I'll look it up, thanks Robin. 
Yesterday I was on this site and noticed it has changed completely and I tried finding your name (and Apyl, and Bee and a few other knowledgeable trustworthy people I've talked with), but there were 100 Robins and Bees


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Nothing like having a common name for anonymity. 

From what I remember the muscle that comprises the crop becomes weak and stretches. The longer it goes on the less likely they say it is that the ace bandage will help. But that's about the extent of my knowledge on the subject.


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## Regina L (Jul 6, 2013)

I'm thinking,,, if I were to bandage her, I would probably have to go under legs as a crisscross way, because she would wiggle out of it in a hurry, right?


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## Regina L (Jul 6, 2013)

Like a sports bra?


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## Regina L (Jul 6, 2013)

I looked up pendulous crop, and sure enough it looks like what my girl has. 
I laughed so hard at one picture of a lady making her hen vomit, and she was wearing gloves!! LOL lol. That was the only place I didn't get vomited on LOL She would shake her head and all that throw up went everywhere literally!!
And now I even saw a "crop bra" it looks different than what I was picturing in my head, but I be to can make one. (Wish I had the measurements and how much pressure would I need in the elastic bands)



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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

I was trying to find a pic of one that was wrapped but no luck. I did find where someone actually sells a crop bra though. Having the warp go up under the wings helps hold it in place. 

The negative? It sounds as though this will more than likely be a non reversible issue. Check what they say about slow crop which is evidently the reason this happens.


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## Regina L (Jul 6, 2013)

Thank you Robin!
I saw some pictures, and they look pretty simple to be made. 
I just wish I knew how much pressure should that bra have..
I already had to cull her sister when she had an eye infection last summer. She is such a sweet chicken, I'll try to keep her if she's not hurting too much. Or if she's not eating well. All my chickens laid all winter long. And this one has big big eggs (maybe that's why she developed this condition? From grunting when she lays her eggs? )
Thanks again for all your help


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

It doesn't look like its real tight. There has to be enough room for when the crop swells when they eat and drink. 

I did some more reading on this. Problem is all of the information was based on caged birds which often is different from chicken problems. 

But its got me wondering what would happen if you treated her for sour crop. Sulmet is available to us over the counter, Nystatin is only available through the vet. 

I saw a reference to giving lactobacillus to see if that balances the crop.

Besides the odd looks of the crop there is the potential for bacterial or fungal infection setting in. If your girl is drinking tons of water then I would suspect there is more going on that you can't see and that she might benefit with a treatment of Sulmet or if your vet will sell it to you, Nystatin.


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## Regina L (Jul 6, 2013)

Now that you mentioned it, yes she seems to be drinking more than the other girls!
And although her vomit was mostly liquid, there was a little stage where it may have looked a little yeasty..
Her face has always looked like that. Hahaha maybe she's been having a fungus all her life?? How negligent of me...
Hmm I'll call the doctor first thing Monday and see if I can get the nystatin. 
Also, when other people recommend anti fungal meds like Monistat, Lotramin etc, those are typically topical or vaginal medicines. If I was to administer Lotramin, would I use it orally?? I'm sorry I'm a bit confused about the usage



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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

What you can buy over the counter will not work orally, its is not compounded in a way that it will work and could also be a poison since it was not meant to be ingested.

If your vet will not sell you the Nystatin without seeing her then use Sulmet. I had a sour crop bird years ago. All she would do was drink water and was obviously not feeling well. Several days of Sulmet had her cured and back out in the coop within five days after starting the treatment.

Did she always have it? I don't think so. There would be other signs that something was wrong. From what I can see your set up is small enough you would have caught it without really trying to.


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