Having a baby bird in the family can be exciting. New animals bring new personalities, new experiences and a new dynamic to your home. Keeping these animals healthy and happy is a new responsibility to the pet owner as well. There are many issues that baby birds can suffer from, one such issue is its crop being too full. If you’re currently taking care of a bird, or simply researching what you’d need to look out for when raising a baby bird, then, a crop that is too full is something to read up on. This article explores the topic of ‘baby bird crop too full, why and what to do’ 

A baby birds crop can get too full if the animal does not stop gaping while being fed, this can cause the person feeding the animal to accidentally overfeed it. If this happens, it is important to immediately stop feeding the baby bird and let them digest the food

Baby bird crop too full, why and what to do

Many bird owners hand-feed their newly hatched birds. There are a variety of easy to use, special baby bird formulas on the market that people can use to do this. But feeding the bird correctly, and feeding the bird the right quantity of food, can be just as important as feeding the bird the correct foods 

Baby birds have very small crops, small quantities of food can fill a baby birds crop. Feeding the bird too much food will cause the bird to develop an abnormally large bulge in its lower neck region. This bulge is a sign that the bird’s crop is too full. Baby birds will usually stop gaping once their crops have been filled. Sometimes, a bird will continue to gape even if its crop is full. This can lead to the crop becoming too full

If you notice that the baby bird is taking in too much food, and its crop is beginning to become too full, you’d need to immediately stop feeding the bird. Allow the bird’s crop to empty before feeding it again

How do you know when a bird’s crop is full?

The maximum amount of food that a bird should be taking in, prior to weaning, is 10 percent of its body weight, if you feed more than this, then the bird’s crop will be too full. 

Luckily, you can usually see and feel when a baby birds crop is full, baby birds do not have many feathers covering their bodies so everything is exposed. When a baby birds crop is too full the area will be expanded and have a full appearance, an empty crop will be flatter and more difficult to point out. If you’re holding the bird, and know how it feels with an empty crop, you may feel the difference in the weight of the bird. If the crop does not have a ‘give’ to it, but is hard when touched, it is likely too full.

Other signs that indicate that the crop is too full is the bird having an ill appearance, the bird vomiting frequently, a lack of appetite in the bird and inactivity on the bird’s side 

How do you empty a baby bird crop?

If the baby bird is not emptying its crop itself you may have to do it yourself, here are some ways to do that: 

Give the bird fluid: A crop that is not emptying can get this way as a result of dehydration. One solution to this problem is offering the bird a saline solution, warm water, Maalox / Digel or Mineral Oil (vet recommended)

Massaging the crop: This needs to be done with caution, if not done with caution you can cause the bird to aspirate. Start off by gently massaging the bird’s crop, care needs to be taken to avoid accidentally pushing the crop up during the massage. If the crop is pushed up, the baby bird can aspirate the food. To be safe, you may need to consult with your vet to walk you through how to do this correctly 

Conclusion

In conclusion, a baby birds crop can become too full if the animal fails to stop gaping while being fed, this results in the feeder accidentally overfeeding the bird and overfilling its crop. The feeder needs to immediately stop feeding the bird when they realize the crop is too full. A feeder can usually see or feel that a crop is too full. When this happens the feeder can rehydrate the bird or massage the crop if it does not empty itself 

If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other baby bird related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Baby bird crop not emptying, reasons why this happens, Baby bird crop full of air, why and what to do, Baby chick has a swollen crop, why this happens