Please Help!!!

[happyfeet]

we got a rooster and he was introduced to the flock the first day we got him, not my choice i would have like to quarrentine him first, but the man just tossed him in my front yard. after about a week of him being here some of my hens started wheezing and sneezing. i gave them antibiotics, per the package. everybody got better, but laying diminished to maximum 2 eggs a day since August 3 when they got sick, from 17 used to be good laying hens that would give me 14-17 eggs per day. i was doing some chicken reading and the disease infectious bronchitis can cause infertility with hens and reproductive systems being destroyed. is it possible that they could have had infectious bronchitis and it ruined there reproductive systems? when the rooster came he showed no signs of illness and never did even when the hens were ill. i do love my chickens but i can not keep them if they do not "do their part", i wish i had alot of money but i do not. could infectious bronchitis cause a hen to become an internal layer too?can salpingitis have been caused by infectious bronchitis as well? could she have contracted it from the rooster? are they also always carriers of infectious bronchitis even if there are no signs of the disease? my daughter was also diagnosed with adenovirus 2 summers ago, i was reading that is a disease a chicken can get. could my daughter have contracted it from my hens? i would also like to be able to eat them when we kill them. if they ever had a disease and was treated are they still good to eat?

 

[happyfeet]

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[sammi]

what antibiotic did you give?
my choice for respiratory illness is Tylan..or erythromycin..(gallimycin)
Tylan comes in injectable..(best IMO)..and water soluble powder...as does the gallimycin..

describe the droppings..in detail (including the rooster)..color and consistency

have they been wormed? if so, when? and what was used?
have they been checked and treated for mites?

what ALL do you feed?

could they be going thru molt? any feathers around?
the light has shortened and season changed..this can account for lack of egg production.
what ages are the hens?

try not to panic...
the rooster could have been carrying a strain of something that your hens had not been exposed to.
or...exposure to dusts, feather dander, molds or chemical dusts (lawn/garden dusts/sprays) or mold from leaves, etc..
ammonia fumes..
has the coop been cleaned recently? any chemicals used?

what bedding do you use?

I doubt the chickens got sick from your daughter..
withdrawal times for slaughter is usually about 2-3 weeks..

there is no way to know if they have IB, or just a respiratory infection or a virus without vet tests..
but here is some info about IB..(this does not mean I think they have IB..)

http://fowlfacts.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=afflictiondiseaseff&action=display&thread=1197

Tylan and gallimycin (sometimes called Ery-mycin) are available at most farm/feed/livestock stores in the LIVESTOCK section..
or online at:

http://www.firststatevetsupply.com/store/

and:

http://www.poultrysupplies.com/

I would strongly suggest getting some Oxine..available at both sites with info for uses.

have a read..

http://www.shagbarkbantams.com/page11.htm

for now..give extra protein, such as eggs mixed with feed, a little canned cat food (beef) or baby food beef..or higher protein feed, such as game feed mixed with layer..maybe some plain yogurt or cottage cheese or buttermilk..
and poultry vitamins.

hope this helps.