Infectious Bronchitis?

[Brenda Jones]

@Brenda Jones, it would be best if you could copy and paste your post and start a new thread of your own so we don’t get confused about giving advice. Here is where to start a new thread:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/emergencies-diseases-injuries-and-cures.10/post-thread

Your hen definitely sounds like she is having problems with her oviduct she’ll gland or suffering from salpingitis. These shell problems can cause infection in the egg tract, especially when an egg has broken inside. They can start laying internally as well if the egg changes direction.

Thank You @Eggcessive
I posted a new thread
Is there anything I can do to treat an oviduct issue?

 

[Eggcessive]

It is kind of guesswork exactly what is going on. Vet’s are usually ridiculously expensive running tests and X-rays that may or may not be helpful, or don’t know that much about laying hens. Many of today’s hatchery hens who are bred to lay almost daily, tend to have reproductive disorders often. Hopefully, she will get better, or stop laying altogether. Some vets will give expensive hormone implants that stop laying so they don’t have more problems or infection. Some people use antibiotics such as Aqua Mox amoxicillin found online to treat infection if they have had an egg break inside or if salpingitis is suspected. Enrofloxacin is another that is used. Both require an egg withdrawal time. Antibiotics will be very hard to get without a vet starting next month.

 

[Brenda Jones]

It is kind of guesswork exactly what is going on. Vet’s are usually ridiculously expensive running tests and X-rays that may or may not be helpful, or don’t know that much about laying hens. Many of today’s hatchery hens who are bred to lay almost daily, tend to have reproductive disorders often. Hopefully, she will get better, or stop laying altogether. Some vets will give expensive hormone implants that stop laying so they don’t have more problems or infection. Some people use antibiotics such as Aqua Mox amoxicillin found online to treat infection if they have had an egg break inside or if salpingitis is suspected. Enrofloxacin is another that is used. Both require an egg withdrawal time. Antibiotics will be very hard to get without a vet starting next month.

My vet (though he doesn't treat chickens per se) said that if I ever gave the girls an antibiotic we would never be able to consume their eggs again (???)

 

[Winchikn]

Follow up on my original post...

I have been dosing my hen having the most issues (original post pics above) with calcium since Friday (carbonate and then citrate + D3 once I got some) - and I think she laid an egg with a shell today. Rough looking, but this still seems like progress.

I will continue for another 3-4 days and hope I can bring her out of the woods!

 

[Winchikn]

Please help - my hen is doing poorly.

I have continued with the calcium but she has not laid any more eggs since Sunday. Her energy levels have been deteriorating and when the chickens went into the coop last night, she appeared to be straining when she was breathing - either laboured breathing or straining to move matter through. On reflection, I realized she has been breathing with her beak open on and off for about a week, which I attributed to the intense heat we were having last week.

I brought her in last night and gave her a warm bath. She stayed in for the night and had a fair amount of watery poops with a lot of urates and some bits of more formed fecal matter. See pic below.

Her crop has been slow/squishy and not empty in the mornings on and off over the last week. This morning I though I could smell sour crop so decided to administer ACV. Unfortunately, I think she aspirated some and her breathing that was already laboured is now very rattling/raspy. She is outside, separated from the flock but not eating or drinking much and mostly lying down.

I gave some canned dog food this morning with her calcium citrate + D3 crushed in, which she ate, but I'm not sure she's eaten much since then.

Questions:

• can I do anything about her breathing/aspiration of ACV?
• should I consider antibiotics? (we can't get any for pets without a script and no vet will see chickens, but we might have human amoxicillin on hand)
• what else can I do for her slow crop if is it resulting from reproductive tract issues?
• what are her chances of recovery if she has crop and egg and apparent respiratory issues resulting from IB (if that is what is wrong - the remainder of the flock seems mostly recovered now)
• if she is not sneezing, is she a risk to the rest of the flock?

Thank you. Her name is Chili and she's always been a spicy little hen and I really don't want to lose her...

 

[Eggcessive]

Never give undiluted ACV to a chicken. It is too strong, and it would make anyone probably choke on it. It is not even necessary for crop problems, but if people give it in their water, it is only about 1 TB per gallon. I would put her back in with her flock, unless they pick on her. Amoxicillin is frequently used for treatment of reproductive infections. It is not true what the vet said about antibiotics. Amoxicillin has a 2-3 week egg withdrawal time, as do most antibiotics. Aqua Mox or fish Mox is the equivalent found online. Baytril (enrofloxacin) is another that treats reproductive infections, but with it, I would wait at least a month to use eggs. In the US, it is banned by the FDA for chickens due to emerging antibiotic resistance of some bacteria, especially campylobacter common in chickens in undercooked meat. Another commonly used antibiotic Tylan/Tylosin for treatment of respiratory and some gut diseases, has no egg withdrawal time at all, plus it is actually approved for chickens. Soon next month June 2023, most antibiotics will not be available without a prescription from a vet.

 

[Winchikn]

Never give undiluted ACV to a chicken. It is too strong, and it would make anyone probably choke on it. It is not even necessary for crop problems, but if people give it in their water, it is only about 1 TB per gallon. I would put her back in with her flock, unless they pick on her. Amoxicillin is frequently used for treatment of reproductive infections. It is not true what the vet said about antibiotics. Amoxicillin has a 2-3 week egg withdrawal time, as do most antibiotics. Aqua Mox or fish Mox is the equivalent found online. Baytril (enrofloxacin) is another that treats reproductive infections, but with it, I would wait at least a month to use eggs. In the US, it is banned by the FDA for chickens due to emerging antibiotic resistance of some bacteria, especially campylobacter common in chickens in undercooked meat. Another commonly used antibiotic Tylan/Tylosin for treatment of respiratory and some gut diseases, has no egg withdrawal time at all, plus it is actually approved for chickens. Soon next month June 2023, most antibiotics will not be available without a prescription from a vet.

Thank you. I feel more horrible now. I had read the crop treatment article last week and had written down ACV, but failed to remember that it was only to be administered in drinking water (which I do regularly for my hens anyway). I'm not even certain her crop is sour, it is definitely slow - and she is definitely not doing well today.

We have tried to get amoxicillin here before with no luck. It can't be purchased in Canada anymore and I have read it doesn't usually clear customs. I think the only med we have on hand is some expired doxycycline.

It sounds like the best I can do it continue with the calcium, and hope for resolution of the reproductive issues, which might mean the rest resolves. Given her condition today, I am not hopeful. I will keep her separated as the flock is picking on her because she sounds funny - but she is outside and within line of sight. I will bring her in again tonight so I can monitor her and hopefully get some food into her.

 

[Eggcessive]

Let us know how she gets along. Hopefully, the calcium will help.

 

[Winchikn]

She managed to push out this sad 'egg' late this afternoon. Things don't seem to be going in the right direction...

 

[Eggcessive]

Well, the calcium may have helped her pass the collapsed egg. In hens with these types of laying disorders, it could be a shell gland problem in the oviduct or even salpingitis. Those go together with infectious bronchitis, although they can happen without salpingitis. If the calcium for a,week or two, doesn’t help, then it might be assumed that calcium won’t help. She might be lucky if she eventually stops laying altogether. That is why some vets with use hormone implants that last 4-6 months. That is what happened to some of my hens who had IB as younger hens.