# Babies with slow crop



## EllenJ (Jul 12, 2016)

Hi all,
I've been raising orphaned pigeons for years, but this year I seem to have issues with my babies having very slow crops and I don't know what to do. The breath on the babies smells fresh, not sour, their hydration levels seem good, but they are just not processing the food at a normal rate. I'll give you some info on what I'm dong so far, and maybe someone has suggestions:
They are on Kaytee Exact hand feeding formula. They are being kept warm with a heating pad at an appropriate level and their body temps seem good--not too hot or too cold. I always feed the formula to them when it's warm and freshly mixed, and I am careful not to feed it too thick, and thickness of formula has been based on age of baby. I try not to overfill the crop, and I've tried diluting the formula. Even so, there has been no increase in their rate of processing the food. I have a hatchling and an 8 day old who are not growing at the rate they should be. Their crops are very soft and squishy, not rubbery or hard. I've tried mixing baking soda with water and adding that to the formula. I've got them on oral Reglan (Metoclopramide) now, but I don't see it stimulating the G.I. tract. I've kept both babies in separate bins because there's a size difference and I didn't want the bigger one sitting on the smaller one by accident. However, I'm now wondering if putting them together might help. When I put them together just now, they spend time nuzzling each other, which makes me wonder if the extra activity might help them process their food. I might have forgotten to list some details here, but I can always fill in if anyone needs more info. Oh, and I'm adding bird probiotics to their formula, just in case that might help. Thanks for any thoughts or advice you all might have.


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## FredaH (Apr 5, 2016)

I put a squirt of baby apple sauce (Cow & Gate) in my home made mix each time I make it to try and prevent this because my last baby was slower at digesting than the first two, so now I add it anyway. They're all different I'm finding and that's just with raising the three from eggs, all have grown well and the youngest is now 3 1/2 weeks old. As long as the baby is warm enough I don't have the slower digestion now and her poop is lovely too. Try adding some apple sauce to one of the feeds, check the babies are definitely warm enough too.


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## EllenJ (Jul 12, 2016)

Hi FredaH,
Thank you so much for your note. How much applesauce do you add? For instance, if I make 1/4 cup of formula, how much applesauce should I add to that amount of formula? And thank you also for reminding me to check the bird's body temperature. I made them a bit warmer tonight, and I put the two babies together since they really enjoy each other. That, too, will add body heat. They have a heating pad, but I'll monitor the warmth more closely now that you mention it. I really appreciate your help, and I'm so attached to these adorable little babies.
Thanks again!
Ellen


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Not an exact measurement. Just add a good spoonful of preferably baby applesauce, without all the sugar and such added. Adding this once a day should help to move the contents of the crop through when the crop seems slow. If you are going to do it with each feeding, then of course it would be less. Not sure how much FredaH is using when doing it with every feed. I have done it once daily when needed. If the crop _isn't_ emptying at all, just give the warmed applesauce with a bit of water added to it, in place of a feeding.


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## EllenJ (Jul 12, 2016)

*Thanks, Jay3!*

Hi Jay3,
Thank you so much! I've been making sure the birds are warm as FredaH had mentioned, and am about to give the applesauce now. I really appreciate your reply, and I hope this works. 
Thanks again!
Ellen


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

You always wait till the crop empties before feeding again, and food must be warm. If it is slow, you don't want to add fresh food to old. If not emptying, then I just give the warmed apple sauce with a bit of water added to it, and gently, very gently message the crop a bit.


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## EllenJ (Jul 12, 2016)

*Thanks!*

Thanks again, Jay3.
I'm sure the baby will enjoy the taste of the applesauce, and I will definitely feed it warm to the baby. Although processing very slowly, he/she did make a big dropping this morning, so it's not complete stasis, at least.  I just want to see the normal frequency of droppings that pigeons are so good at doing, lol.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Let it empty before feeding again. If still slow, give a bit more warmed applesauce mixed with water, which will hopefully help to move things along.


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## EllenJ (Jul 12, 2016)

*Sounds good, thanks!*

Will do, Jay3, and it is a huge comfort to have you and the other people here, who are willing to help. Even though they will all be released back into the wild, I become extremely attached to them while I have them. I have a few others I've hand raised who are about to go to an outdoor flight cage before release. What great birds they are.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

*Please do let us know how the applesauce works.

It is so easy to fall in love with them, when you are meeting all of their needs from day to day and they are totally helpless and dependent on you. Watching them grow and thrive is really heartwarming, like watching my children grow up.

You can add a drop of organic apple cider vinegar to help if PH is off, and food is still not moving out of crop quick enough.*


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Often hand raised birds don't make it in the wild, as they have no idea of how to survive. They didn't have the parents to show them, and don't belong to an established flock. Just releasing them doesn't mean that they will have good survival rate.


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## EllenJ (Jul 12, 2016)

*Crops*

Thanks Skyeking and Jay3
I'll let you know if the applesauce works. It's in their crops now, so I'm waiting to see. 
They get released at a friend's house who has a huge flock of hand-raised pigeons that live at (and around) her house. They all fly into the garage at night, and fly free during the day. Most are hand-raised, and have been there for a few years. She lives way out in the country so it's a gorgeous spot for them. I bring her the hand raised young ones and she integrates them into the flock. The last time I drove out there, two pigeons were flying alongside my car (but about 100 feet away to the side of my car) and they flew with me all the way to her house. My friend told me they go down to the nearby farm to visit there, then fly home, and that's exactly what they were doing. So cute! And the farmer is nice to the pigeons so there's no danger there.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Gee, I wish I had a place to bring hand raised birds. Sounds perfect. Thanks for explaining that. Your friend sounds nice.

Let us know how the applesauce works.
How slow are the crops emptying? How many hours does it take?


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## EllenJ (Jul 12, 2016)

*Slow crop babies*

Hi Jay3,
I've given applesauce diluted with water (all warm) with a bit of probiotic powder added, but no luck so far. I gave another small feeding of that later on, but still no luck. They are only producing a dropping about twice a day, which is frightening. My plan is to talk to a vet tomorrow, but in the meantime, I had an idea this evening, and was able to get the birds to produce two droppings in an hour. Long story, but a friend of mine sent me a video showing her pet doves stimulating their baby to eliminate. I never knew doves did that until she sent the vid. That led me to try the same technique on my babies and it worked. I'll spare you and everyone the details.  But I have to say, I was amazed, and wonder if doing so for a short time might get the bird's G.I. tracts moving. 
I would not normally even add that strange detail in a forum, but maybe it might help someone else's birds in the future.


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## EllenJ (Jul 12, 2016)

*Ps*

PS, to my last note: The applesauce seems to be helping, so thank you for suggesting it! Food is starting to move through the system of the smallest baby (the hatchling) and things are a bit better with the older one. I think that a sick baby is one of the most stressful things to deal with. I don't want them to suffer at all, and it's sad when they are not well. However, I must say, both babies are looking chipper and alert this morning, and I'm happy. I really appreciate all the help you've given me, Jay3 and Skyeking.  I will continue to be extremely vigilant and keep applying remedies until I feel that they are in a safe zone (health-wise).


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

I'm so glad they are feeling better.


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