# curious about croppers



## tuxedobaby (Sep 9, 2008)

hi,can anyone tell me some facts about croppers?they are funny little pigeons and unusual,what makes them inflate the crop,or is it like that all the time,anyone got any good cropper pics to share?thanks


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Here is a link with lots of info and pictures.

http://www.angelfire.com/ia/npcc/


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## jbangelfish (Mar 22, 2008)

*They're interesting birds*

Croppers and pouters have been referred to as the clowns of the pigeon world because they are always showing off, both cocks and hens like to blow their crops up and strut around, fly and act silly. Many are actually flying breeds and swing pouters clap their wings when they fly (as many pigeons do) but then they'd sort of drop and swing back and forth. They are fun to watch. You don't see alot of them anymore.

I used to raise norwich croppers, hana pouters, swing pouters, reversewing pouters, dutch croppers, voorburg shield croppers, brunner pouters and pigmy pouters. I may have even forgotten one or two. They were fun pigeons to raise. The biggest blowers were the norwich and I'd guess that they probably still are.

They blow up their crops to show off and it seems for fun. They are more prone to crop injuries and sour crop than most pigeons. I won't say it's common but more so than for other breeds that do not inflate their crops.
Most, if not all of them are good breeders and parents. I'm not aware of any that need foster parents. The bigger they blow, the more likely they are to injure themselves or to get sourcrop.

Bill


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## tuxedobaby (Sep 9, 2008)

i have been watching some vids on you tube with norwich croppers,what a size they can inflate to!they look real freindly too,what is sour crop btw(excuse my ignorance)


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

tuxedobaby said:


> what is sour crop btw(excuse my ignorance)



http://www.siegelpigeons.com/asked-sourcrop.html

http://www.auspigeonco.com.au/products/veterinary_medicines2.html (you'll have to scroll down to find sour crop on this page)

http://www.pigeonnetwork.com/vetdirectory/vetusa/drdavidmarx/fluidcrop.cfm

Terry


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## jbangelfish (Mar 22, 2008)

*Thanks Terry*

I don't know where you find the time to find all of this stuff.

I haven't checked the sites but sourcrop is a condition that results from food being in the crop too long or from something gone bad before they ate it. Croppers and pouters are more prone to this because their crop is so large that it hangs lower than most pigeons when it is not inflated. Their crops are so big that they will hang below the breast bone and allow for food to sit in pockets and not gravitate to their lower digestive system. It is normally easily remedied by giving them pepto bismol. This is a cure that never failed for me. The injuries are less likely to occur but if you keep pouters and croppers, it is best to keep all sharp edges or nails (not that you'd want exposed nails in any coop) or whatever out of their coops. Round edges on perches instead of square, etc. It is just something that you have to be aware of and to pay attention to how they act. If they are unable to or unwilling to blow, something is wrong.

Bill


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Regarding croppers and pouters: http://www.cichlidlovers.com/birds_sour_crop.htm

Terry


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## tuxedobaby (Sep 9, 2008)

pepto bismal!guess its a bit like indigestion then,what happens if the crop is caught on a sharp edge as someone mentioned?can crop be repaired if this happens?


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## jbangelfish (Mar 22, 2008)

*It's a bit like indigestion*

Only worse, it can actually kill them if they don't get better. It can cause a serious infection and rot right through their crop, if they live long enough. it is easily remedied.

The tears can be sewn with a needle and thread. I did this to a couple of birds myself and they healed very quickly. You could take them to a vet and let them do it but that's what they would do. It does have to be done correctly.

Not trying to scare anyone, these are rare occurances, but they can happen. I used to keep some of my birds in large barns that had been previously used for hogs, horses and cattle and there were pens, wood posts and objects that probably should not have been in a pigeon coop. The birds loved the space but I had to learn to eliminate hazards that seemed safe enough until a blowing cropper ran into them. They are a bit clumsy when they fly with an inflated crop. Mostly because it is so large that they can't see all around it.

Bill


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## tuxedobaby (Sep 9, 2008)

do they inflate a lot,say when they are happy?they look like quite friendly birds,my daughter(age 7 )thinks they look"proud of themselves"lol or is the crop inflation a mating thing?


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## jbangelfish (Mar 22, 2008)

*Yes*



tuxedobaby said:


> do they inflate a lot,say when they are happy?they look like quite friendly birds,my daughter(age 7 )thinks they look"proud of themselves"lol or is the crop inflation a mating thing?


All of the above. They are proud, they do it for mating, they do it when they are happy and healthy. Often. Norwich especially seem to blow almost at all times. Some others do as well and they all do it at least very often.

Bill


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## loftkeeper10 (Jul 31, 2004)

I have raised several of the pouter cropper breeds and the norwich are the hardest to raise due to the sour crop to raise norwich it best to have fosters not that they can't it just better .Alot of breeders have quit when they go out to the loft and find there best bird full of feed and water which is the begining of sour crop To get the feed out you must turn bird up side down and try to gentlely squezze the feed out. Then place the bird in a cone with head up so the feed can be digested hopefully . i switched to pellets so get the feed out was much easier If was looking for a pouter breed for a seven year old i would look at brunner, voorburgs or pigmy pouters small birds and very friendly and can raise there own brunners come in many colors and markings voorburgs are sheild marked only with many colors and the pigmys are pied marked with feathers on the legs and covers the toes


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