Blackening skin on Brahma rooster's head

[Papaye]

Hi.

I have a problem with Apache le Colosse - my light Brahma rooster : his skin is quickly blackening on his head (crest and wattles).

Look at the picture, and you can notice how his skin is dark compared with my dark Brahma :

If I am not mistaken, this is caused by a lack of oxygen in his blood...?

He has had some breathing problems since I bought him in July (I did not realize he had problems right away, because he did not sound sick at the time I bought him), so much so he can only crow in the mornings : he has literally no voice in the evenings.
But lately, he has been sounding like he is healing : a much better voice, and a "healthier" breathing... so I was surprised to see his skin blackening, and so fast...?
Could it be actually a cardiac problem? Brahmas are at risks because of their weight, no...?

I am 100% sure his problem is not from diseases, worms, lice, his food, the weather, or whatever...
So really : his heart is bad, or his difficulties breathing are worse I thought...?

...In order to help him, I have put sodium bicarbonate in my chickens' waterer for two days now.
(2,5-3 grams per liter of water...)

That's a first for me... so I am not sure I am really doing good by trying to help him with sodium bicarbonate?
...I don't even know how long will I have to keep putting baking soda in the waterer... How long is too much? 2 weeks? One month? One year...?
Actually, could an excess of sodium bicarbonate cause problems for my birds later...?!

...What more could I do to help my Apache?
I don't want him to die : he is so young his spurs are just beginning to grow, and... everybody love him!

If needed, I can give him herbs and spices... Calcium or Vitamins... But no antibiotics : I don't have any, and trust me when I say it is harder and harder to find what we need in France... (I don't even think I could obtain antibiotics for my rooster without a prescription!)
Drugstores dont always give what we need, and ... for now, I can't even take him to the vet : I absolutely don't trust the nearest vet, and the ones I actually trust are too far away from me, and I won't go to them for now because some of the roads until there are much too bad for me to drive on in this weather...

So... what do I do?
Do I keep putting baking soda in my flock's waterer? And if so, for how much longer...?
(How will I know my rooster is healed, if baking soda works? Because since what I once read is correct, his skin will stay black/purple even if he is better...?)

Please, help! Thank you!!
I am so worried for Apache... He is such a good boy...!!

 

[TwoCrows]

I would stop with the Sodium Bicarbonate, it's extremely high in Sodium, chickens have a difficult time expelling salt. Fowl Cholera will cause a comb to blacken. Here is a link to why combs turn black... https://learnpoultry.com/chicken-comb-turning-black/

You might get your flock on antibiotics, maybe some Amoxicillin. Hopefully someone else knows more and will chime in.

@Eggcessive

 

[Papaye]

Thank you for the link!!

Sadly, his problem is not fowl cholera... I could cure him if it was the case, but I really think it a breathing OR a cardiac problem. (Not even frost, despite the great cold in my department...)
(And the poor boy is really the only one to have a problem : all of my other chickens are in great form!)

So... sodium bicarbonate is bad? I thought so, but only if used during a long period...?
I actually found this solution on a French forum, and people looked like they were satisfied with the product...?

I don't think I could find antibiotics without prescription (or even WITH a prescription)... certainly no Amoxicillin : I actually recently wanted to have some for me, for my teeth, and the doctor "had" to write another product on the prescription... (medication shortage... supposedly, yeah...)

I wonder if I could just give garlic to Apache? Garlic is renowned good for oxygen...!!
(But the fact is... I need something who will work FAST. Because I'm worried my Apache will die if I'm stupid... I don't know if it IS a risk - I never had such a problem in my flock -, but I'm scared for him, so...)

...That's my fault.
Apache had breathing problems when I bought him, but I did not notice until I brought him home. And when I did notice, giving him back was not an option : my father saw him, and... yeah, he loved him. And me too... So, I kept him in spite of the fact he was breathing loudly.
Fact is : that took time, but he IS finally healing...! So, I really don't understand WHY his skin is becoming blackish now? I can only think he has actually a heart problem?

 

[townchicks]

Why are you so sure it is not fowl cholera? That can cause breathing problems, as well as black comb. Here in the states we also have difficulty getting antibiotics without a prescription, but we can get fish antibiotics. I don't know if it's the same for you, but look online or at a pet or aquarium shop for a product with amoxicillin. Here it is called fishmox, maybe something different there, but the ingredients will be listed. Good luck with your rooster.

 

[TwoCrows]

Thank you for the link!!

Sadly, his problem is not fowl cholera... I could cure him if it was the case, but I really think it a breathing OR a cardiac problem. (Not even frost, despite the great cold in my department...)
(And the poor boy is really the only one to have a problem : all of my other chickens are in great form!)

So... sodium bicarbonate is bad? I thought so, but only if used during a long period...?
I actually found this solution on a French forum, and people looked like they were satisfied with the product...?

I don't think I could find antibiotics without prescription (or even WITH a prescription)... certainly no Amoxicillin : I actually recently wanted to have some for me, for my teeth, and the doctor "had" to write another product on the prescription... (medication shortage... supposedly, yeah...)

I wonder if I could just give garlic to Apache? Garlic is renowned good for oxygen...!!
(But the fact is... I need something who will work FAST. Because I'm worried my Apache will die if I'm stupid... I don't know if it IS a risk - I never had such a problem in my flock -, but I'm scared for him, so...)

...That's my fault.
Apache had breathing problems when I bought him, but I did not notice until I brought him home. And when I did notice, giving him back was not an option : my father saw him, and... yeah, he loved him. And me too... So, I kept him in spite of the fact he was breathing loudly.
Fact is : that took time, but he IS finally healing...! So, I really don't understand WHY his skin is becoming blackish now? I can only think he has actually a heart problem?

I have had several heart disease patients in my flock, unknowingly I watered my first flock with our well water which is high in sodium and over a few years many of them developed enlarged hearts and congestive heart failure. Their combs turned different shades of purple when the respiratory system was strained, never turned black. When circulation becomes restricted but blood is still getting to tissue, it will blue to purple. I would think black has no circulation at all, and with heart disease, the deepest purple meant they were on their last days. I am not a vet so I can't be sure but I am not leaning toward heart disease on his condition.
And even if it was, the last thing you want to give a heart patient is salty water.

 

[Papaye]

@townchicks :

Hmm... I am sure it is not fowl cholera, because he has no other symptom than his breathing problems... also because the pictures of blackening skin for fowl cholera I found on the Internet do look different from the skin of my rooster...?
But do you think I could be wrong? Do fowl cholera can manifest without other symptoms...?

For some years, I have been regularly treating my chickens with natural products to prevent disease. For the time being, looks like it is working...
(I had a case of Salpengitis some years ago... my beautiful Gournay hen was dying, and I have been able to save her only thanks to herbs and spices... Since then, I have been taking prevention very seriously, because I was afraid to kill my chickens by neglecting their health!!)

So, I FEEL 100% sure Apache has not some kind of virus or bacteria.
(Sure... I could be mistaken - I am no expert!! But he really has no other symptoms than his hard breathing...? Even his droppings look normal...?)

Actually, I have learned that bigger breeds are particularly at risks of heart problem. So, I thought it would be only logical my Apache would have some kind of heart disease, since he has no particular symptoms?

I don't know...
I will clearly have to learn a lot of more than I know!!

Also : a big thank you for the information about fish antibiotics!
I did... not think about that. Actually, I don't know nothing about fish antibiotics... Do people really give them to their chickens? Is it a thing...?

I will do some research, then I will ask to drugstores (first) if they can sell me some! Otherwise, I will ask to my straw supplier : his business is also a pet store, so even if he does not have fish antibiotics, maybe he could tell me if he knows something...?

Thank you!!!

@TwoCrows :

Thank you for telling me that.
I did not know you could hurt your birds with water from WELL...!!
You really had no luck...!

...I write my rooster skin is blackening, but maybe it is, in fact, purple?
Hard to tell with my pictures, and brightness is not so good in my department for now to tell the difference... (I really can't tell...!!)
I don't know what to think...

To me, Apache really looks like he has respiratory AND/OR heart disease... But again : I'm no expert.
I just hope he is not dying...!

I am going to take your advice, and I won't put sodium bicarbonate in my chickens's waterer anymore.
Thank you for the information. I now feel so stupid to have thought it was a good idea...
I think I am now going to try to help him with garlic and thyme... at least...!

 

[coach723]

Garlic, if too much is given, can also be toxic and cause a specific type of anemia, so caution there also. There are many respiratory diseases that they can commonly get, mycoplasma, coryza, infectious bronchitis, etc, as well as heart problems. Some of them are chronic and symptoms can be treated but they are not cured and are carriers. They can also get aspirgillosis which is fungal. Heart problems can be genetic, or from diet, just like humans. I've not found my brahma's to be more prone to heart problems than other breeds, but the specific genetics can matter. Since you know he had breathing issues I would suspect something respiratory, but without testing, it's impossible to tell for sure. For many of the respiratory ailments, in the US we treat with Tylan or Tylosin, or Doxy-Tyl, or doxycycline, which we can get for pigeons without prescription. Not sure what kinds of resources you have there.

 

[Papaye]

@coach723

I don't know where my Brahmas are from...
I bought them in a pet store. I never have had problems with the store or the animals they sold me...!
I know they are not at fault for my Apache. I don't even think their producer is at fault, because trust me : my Brahmas looked like they were very much cared for...!

But I don't know for the environment they lived in before coming to the store, nor for the genetics...
The dark Brahma I bought WITH Apache has some yellow on the back, so I think he is the result of the cross between two different colours...?
Don't think that's matter, but if it's the case, maybe there were no separations for breeding, and so, there could be a possibility of some inbreedings...? (Or maybe not...?)

...Thank you!
I will ask around to see if I can get these products in France. Hope my drugstore can propose something...
(I never have been able to buy something for my chickens in drugstores. And I'm in the countryside... Could believe SINCE we are in the countryside, they would have some vet medications for all kinds of birds, but noooooo... ah, ah!)

My chickens are so used to garlic they now prefer to eat food I put it in...
I'm cautious with its use, because I read about toxicity... I don't really know if it's true, since personally, I never had problems with the use of garlic. I use it regularly to help boost the immune system in my chickens...
(Some people use garlic like dewormer for their chickens!!)

 

[TwoCrows]

@coach723

I don't know where my Brahmas are from...
I bought them in a pet store. I never have had problems with the store or the animals they sold me...!
I know they are not at fault for my Apache. I don't even think their producer is at fault, because trust me : my Brahmas looked like they were very much cared for...!

But I don't know for the environment they lived in before coming to the store, nor for the genetics...
The dark Brahma I bought WITH Apache has some yellow on the back, so I think he is the result of the cross between two different colours...?
Don't think that's matter, but if it's the case, maybe there were no separations for breeding, and so, there could be a possibility of some inbreedings...? (Or maybe not...?)

...Thank you!
I will ask around to see if I can get these products in France. Hope my drugstore can propose something...
(I never have been able to buy something for my chickens in drugstores. And I'm in the countryside... Could believe SINCE we are in the countryside, they would have some vet medications for all kinds of birds, but noooooo... ah, ah!)

My chickens are so used to garlic they now prefer to eat food I put it in...
I'm cautious with its use, because I read about toxicity... I don't really know if it's true, since personally, I never had problems with the use of garlic. I use it regularly to help boost the immune system in my chickens...
(Some people use garlic like dewormer for their chickens!!)

Keep us posted on the outcome!

 

[coach723]

My chickens are so used to garlic they now prefer to eat food I put it in...
I'm cautious with its use, because I read about toxicity... I don't really know if it's true, since personally, I never had problems with the use of garlic. I use it regularly to help boost the immune system in my chickens...
(Some people use garlic like dewormer for their chickens!!)

Garlic doesn't work as a dewormer, though I know people claim it does.
My understanding is that in amounts more than .5% of the birds body weight, it can be toxic and cause Heinz body anemia. That's for all alliums, garlic, onions, leeks, shallots.
Garlic can also cause a change in the way eggs taste.