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What is sour crop in chickens? It’s a yeast infection in the crop of your chicken that prevents your hen from digesting food. The yeast causes fermentation in the crop that produces an awful sour smell, hence the name. Without treatment, your hens could suffer serious consequences. Today we are going to talk about diagnosing and treating sour crop in chickens.
Before diagnosing and treating sour crop, we need to know chicken anatomy. The crop in a chicken is below the neck in the chest area. It feels like a small empty sack in normal circumstances.
The crop is a temporary holding place for food before it travels down to the gizzard. The crop’s primary function is to start the digestion of carbs. Due to its location and position, it is very prone to infection.
What is the sour crop in chicken symptoms? Below we have the most obvious signs. The faster you get a diagnosis, the faster your hens could be on the mend.
Finding the cause helps choose the right path in diagnosing and treating sour crop in chickens. This part takes a little investigation because the sour crop is usually the result of another underlying illness.
One leading cause of chicken sour crop is a genetic disorder called a pendulous crop. The position of the crop prevents it from draining naturally. If your hen gets sour crop regularly, you might investigate this as the cause. To prevent any more issues, your chicken will have to wear a crop bra. And yes, that is as funny as it sounds. A crop bra can be bought or made to support the crop in the correct position. Solving this issue will prevent all future problems.
Another leading cause is the result of an impacted crop. If your hen has eaten something that can’t digest, it will stay in the crop. After a few days, any other food will begin to ferment. As a result, yeast and bacteria form into a sour crop. Luckily treatment for an impacted crop is similar to sour crop.
If your chicken has been on antibiotics recently, all of their beneficial bacteria is depleted. Without good bacteria, your hen is more prone to yeast infections. Giving a good probiotic will resolve this issue quickly.
In some cases, other underlying diseases can cause repeated sour crop. If your hen seems to get sour crop often, it might be worth it to visit the vet for x-rays. Ruling out deformities and other diseases will help your hen recover quickly.
And finally, the last cause of chicken sour crop could be parasites. Certain types of worms and internal parasites cause sour crop and other digestion problems.
When diagnosing and treating sour crop in chickens, the first order of business is to isolate your hen. She is likely stressed and sluggish, and isolation will give your hen time to heal.
Next, you will want to stop all feeding until the crop has drained. Once you do these, you can choose a home treatment plan that works best for you. Below we have some of our favorite treatment options.
Sour crop is a fungal infection, so you want a natural antifungal for chickens to combat it. Putting a couple of tablespoons of raw apple cider vinegar in drinking water is a great way to combat it. If your hen has stopped drinking, you can syringe feed them with a little infused water three times a day.
Garlic is another known antibiotic and antifungal. To make garlic water for chickens, you need to crush fresh garlic and place it into the water dish. After a few minutes, the garlic enzymes will penetrate the water. So when your hen drinks it, they are getting all of the great healing properties they need.
If there is a lot of foam coming from your hen’s mouth, their throat is likely burning. Just like heartburn from stomach acid hurts us, it will also burn your chicken. And in severe cases, it can even cause chemical burns. To reduce the acidity levels, you can make baking soda water.
You can have a neutralizing drink by mixing a tablespoon of baking soda with a few liters of water. You can then give a few syringes a day to save your hen’s throat.
Oregano has fantastic healing and antifungal properties to it. But it can be a little challenging to give. Ideally, you would want your hen to eat a bit to heal from the inside out. But with a sour crop, this can be difficult.
Instead, you should use the oil of oregano and mix it into a little olive oil. The olive oil is a carrier to make it more palatable. Giving this to your hens helps reduce yeast build-up and help guide things along.
If none of these treatments seem to work, you can go for medication. Miconazole is available over the counter in the feminine hygiene aisle. The best dosage is the 2% cream tube. And since this medication works specifically for yeast, it should kill sour crop quickly.
To give miconazole to your hen, you want 1/2 inch cream orally for seven days. The cream won’t taste nice, but it is effective and safe for consumption.
If your hen has had a sour crop for longer than a week, it is time to see a vet. They will better examine your bird and gently remove the infection. Many vets can do a saline flush of the crop. Or they might prescribe an antifungal such as Nystatin.
There are a few methods of curing sour crop that can have serious consequences. The primary treatment that you shouldn’t do is “vomiting” your hen. Since chickens can’t throw up, they don’t have the instinct to do it safely. Many chicken owners will swear that flipping the bird upside down and coaxing the crop to empty is the fastest cure.
But here’s why you don’t want to do that. Many chickens aspirate on the fluid when done incorrectly. They will choke and possibly have permanent damage. Not to mention it will also come out of their nose and cause a lot of pain.
The other treatment that a lot of people swear by is yogurt. Yogurt is beneficial for its live cultures of good bacteria that help break down the bad. But scientifically, it doesn’t work the same if you already have an infection. Adding good bacteria to an area with a lot of harmful bacteria only turns the good bad. And once you join the dark side, you don’t go back. It is better to kill all bacteria and restart fresh in this case.
Preventing chicken sour crop isn’t an easy thing. But you can do something every day to keep your chickens healthy and digestive health up to par. Here is an excellent list of preventative measures for a happy crop.
Diagnosing and treating sour crop in chickens doesn’t have to be hard. With fast thinking and patience, your hen will be better in no time. But if the situation is out of control, always be sure to contact your vet.
Below is a Pinterest friendly photo…. so you can pin it to your Backyard Chicken Board!!
