Gape worm or respiratory disease??

[kristaleigh]

I have two chickens with this. However, the other chicken is a rooster and makes odd hiccup sounds with it. I am assuming this is a cough or a wheeze.

 

[Eggcessive]

That could be gapeworm. I would treat with fenbendazole (SafeGuard Liquid Goat Wormer) 1/4 ml for each pound of weight for 4-5 days. That is a big dose, but gapeworm requires it. It can also be treated with levamisole. I will double check with Dawg53 to make sure he agrees.

 

[kristaleigh]

Thanks for the response. I just went out there and tried the q tip down the throat. Without any results. Although I know that doesn't mean it's not gape worms. However, his breath was awful. Smelled sour. He's also scratching at his head. Jeez, I can never treat chickens. They always die once they get sick.

 

[Eggcessive]

Valbazen will also work. Some vets like to use SafeGuard at 10mg per lb, but others recommend 25mg per lb. The dosage I used above is the higher dosage, since SafeGuard is 100mg per ml, and may need to be more like 1/10 to 2/10 of a ml per lb, rather than the dosage in post #1. So, a 5 lb chicken should get 1/2 ml to 1 ml for 4-5 days. Here is another thread showing some studies done on these drugs in posts 9 and 10: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/877712/gapeworm-diagnosis

 

[Eggcessive]

Thanks for the response. I just went out there and tried the q tip down the throat. Without any results. Although I know that doesn't mean it's not gape worms. However, his breath was awful. Smelled sour. He's also scratching at his head. Jeez, I can never treat chickens. They always die once they get sick.

Could he have sour crop? Does his crop feel balloon-like and squishy? That might explain the gaping too. Sour crop causes a bad odor. I'm still waiting to hear from Dawg53 if he thinks it looks like gapeworm. Here is a link about sour crop: http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/04/answers-from-chicken-vet-on-impacted.html

 

[kristaleigh]

The thought crossed my mind that it could be sour crop but the hen in the video has it as well. She is mostly caged. He is free range. I was thinking it's possible they could have come in contact with gape worm but unlikely. More likely they share a respiratory disease. I don't know though. Why would he smell sour but she doesn't. Chickens are ao confusing. Lol I started tylan 50. Will worm as well and check the crop. Thanks sooo much.

 

[kristaleigh]

I'll try to get a video up of him. He's been doing it for 3 days now.

 

[dawg53]

Thanks for the response. I just went out there and tried the q tip down the throat. Without any results. Although I know that doesn't mean it's not gape worms. However, his breath was awful. Smelled sour. He's also scratching at his head. Jeez, I can never treat chickens. They always die once they get sick.

You're not going to find anything with a q-tip. Gapeworm are lodged in the windpipe, deep. Has he been eating and drinking? Any wheezing, sneezing, bubbly eyes, head shaking?

 

[kristaleigh]

It could be a wheeze. But it's not with every breath. Maybe some head shaking. But no other symptoms. Actually A little unbalanced. I'll send a video tomorrow.
Thanks for caring. Every chicken I've tried to treat always dies. We have about 3 loses a year.

 

[dawg53]

It could be a wheeze. But it's not with every breath. Maybe some head shaking. But no other symptoms. Actually A little unbalanced. I'll send a video tomorrow.
Thanks for caring. Every chicken I've tried to treat always dies. We have about 3 loses a year.

I recommend that you follow Eggcessive's directions in post #2 with safeguard as soon as possible, dose all your birds.