A healthy crop is essential for normal digestion, if there is something wrong with the crop, for example, sour crop, then you’ll need to treat the bird. The question on your mind may be ‘baking soda for sour crop, does it work?’ This article looks into it 

Baking soda can definitely be used to treat sour crop in birds. This treatment is natural, easy and can be done in the comfort of your own home. Sour crop can cause birds to foam at the mouth, this foam is acidic and can burn the bird’s mouth, because baking soda is alkaline, it neutralises the bird’s mouth.

Baking soda for sour crop, does it work?

Birds can come down with a variety of illnesses, some more dangerous than others. If you notice a sudden awful smell coming from your bird this may lead you to suspect that the bird has sour crop.

We know, from bird anatomy, that the digestive system of most birds includes an organ called a crop. The crop is where food is held before it gets to the later stages of the digestive system.

Food can get stuck in the crop for a variety of reasons. When food is stuck in this area it breaks down and ferments, this causes an overgrowth of Candidia. This overgrowth causes an awful smelling yeast infection in the bird’s crop. So, can baking soda help with this? 

Baking soda and its treatment of sour crop:

Baking soda is sometimes used as a yeast infection treatment in humans. A 2013 study found that this product has antifungal effects, so yes, baking soda can be used as a treatment for sour crop in birds, in fact, using baking soda to treat sour crop in birds is a very common practice 

One common symptom of sour crop in birds is foaming at the mouth. Sour crop foam is acidic, when it reaches the bird’s mouth it causes a burning sensation.

Baking soda is alkaline, when you use baking soda to treat sour crop you’re both treating the illness and neutralizing the pH in the birds mouth relieving it from the burning sensation. 

To treat sour crop, you’d need to create a neutralizing drink to give to your bird. Do this by mixing a tablespoon of baking soda into a few litres of water. Serve this to your bird using a syringe a few times a day 

Although baking soda is often recommended to treat sour crop in birds, if this treatment doesn’t work you’d need to see a vet. If the bird has had sour crop for over a week a vet visit is definitely needed.

Your local vet will examine your bird and be able to treat the infection. This can include flushing out the crop using saline or using a medication called nystatin which is an antifungal 

Is apple cider vinegar good for sour crop?

Apple cider vinegar is another safe and effective sour crop treatment that you can give your bird. Sour crop is a fungal infection, apple cider vinegar will be helpful in treating sour crop as it is antifungal.

You can feed your bird this treatment by mixing it in with their drinking water and allowing them to drink this mixture three times a day. You can also feed it to your bird through a syringe. 

Is olive oil good for sour crop?

Yes, olive oil can also be used to treat sour crop.

To do this, warm up some olive oil to a medium temperature and syringe it into the side of your bird’s beak. Proceed to massage the bird’s crop to loosen the blockage. Do this very gently and massage upwards.

This massaging can be done three to four times a day. If done consistently, eventually, the blockage will be loosened

How else do you get rid of sour crop?

Another effective sour crop treatment is feeding the bird white maggots, white maggots will clear the crop by eating away at the blockage. You can also serve garlic water to the bird, garlic is a great antifungal and an excellent antibiotic.

Other treatment options include serving the bird oregano oil or giving the bird 2% miconazole cream orally for seven days

Conclusion

In conclusion, yes baking soda can be used to treat sour crop in birds, it not only treats the sour crop, but it also helps neutralize acidity in the birds mouth.

Other treatments for sour crop include apple cider vinegar, olive oil, oregano oil, garlic water and 2% miconazole cream

If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other crop related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Do crows have a crop?, Treating an impacted crop with olive oil, does it work?, Sour crop in pigeons, how this happens, Sour crop treatment: apple cider vinegar, effective or harmful, Is sour crop contagious?, Antibiotics for sour crop, are they needed?, Sour crop medication, safe and effective ways to cure your bird