2 dead, more ill, HELP!

[aoxa]

This looks like severe mite infestation to me.. Like they have anaemia. I've lost one hen to mites. Definite cause of death. She wouldn't roost because she was missing toes, so slept in a kennel with hay - mistake #1. Hay and straw are ideal habitats for mites.. So she went to bed happy and normal. I reached in to pet her good night (she was a real pet) and mites were crawling all over me. I was going to tackle it in the AM. It was late. Didn't think 1 night could make a difference. Boy was I wrong.. In the morning she was lethargic. Mites EVERYWHERE. Little reddish crawling disgusting things.. They would get on our skin and it was hard to get rid of them all. I took her right in - washed her and dusted her, but she was too far gone. Too anaemic. Her face looked very similar to your girls.

Mites suck blood from the host at night, so you wouldn't find an infestation on the chickens in the day unless it's northern fowl mites.

 

[realsis]

I would seek a labs opinion. Seems they have more than one issue. Usually swollen face and bad smell equals Corzya in addition to the bumps. Sounds very serious and needs to be contained before its spread to the whole flock. I know how fast things can spread in a flock sadlly I recently lost my whole flock all but one bird to a serious respitory illness. It spread like wild fire. You will want to make sure and seperate any bird that has ANY signs of this to protect the restof your flock. And do get some prprofessional advice about what's happening here. Please keep us posted and let us know how things are going. I'm very sorry you have to go through this. I know what its like to have bird after bird fall ill and its devastating. Prayers are comming your way. I wish you the best and pray you can get this figured out and stopped soon. Best wishes and please keep us posted and let us know what you find out from the professionals. God bless

 

[speckledhen]

I agree. My point is that no matter what any of us here think, none of us can be sure of what is going on with your birds over the internet. You need an expert up and close opinion. Some problems are easy to diagnose, but some are just not really possible with 100% certainty over the web.

 

[aoxa]

I agree. My point is that no matter what any of us here think, none of us can be sure of what is going on with your birds over the internet. You need an expert up and close opinion. Some problems are easy to diagnose, but some are just not really possible with 100% certainty over the web.

When in doubt, necropsy.

You can try to do one yourself and see what kind of internal damage is done, but I suggest having it done by a vet. They can take samples and have them analyzed if you can't tell by looks alone.

 

[rancher hicks]

If it is mites. Might I offer these solutions to avoid mites.

1. Use DE to dust at every cleaning.. Into corners and dark places heavily. You can order a 50# bag on line and have it delivered if it's not available in your area.

2. On wooden roosts paint with mineral oil especially in crevices and underneath.

3. Keep things dry. I put a hygrometer in my coops to monitor the humidity.

4. Dust all birds with DE and rub legs and feet with Vaseline or Bag Balm. This is best done a night while they are roosting so you don't have to chase them through the yard.

5. Use large wood chips on the floor and toss lots of DE into the mix.

6. Nest boxes should be cleaned often and dusted. I sometimes leave one or two empty and dusted so it can dry thoroughly. Never let birds sleep in nest boxes.

7. Remember Stress kills. Stress reduces birds immune system. Keep them calm. Don't allow children or uneducated adults to chase them. If you must mess with them do it a night and in the dark. By all means be gentle.

8. I prefer Ivemectin pour on. I do this at night with and eye dropper and wear a head light. This keeps both hands free. If you live in a wet area like I do, do this more often. Perhaps twice a year or every four months. There is no egg withdraw.

Remember an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Don't wait til you see mites.


I wish you well.

 

[Michael Apple]

Rancher, how could you possibly throw DE all over the coop without causing respiratory problems for the birds? With Ravap EC or Permectrin II, you can dip the birds and use it as a premise spray. Both are labeled for poultry. Even if you would prefer a flea shampoo for dipping, Ravap wipes out mites, lice, or any other external parasite, and has the best residual. Emulsified concentrates penetrate wood.

 

[rancher hicks]

Rancher, how could you possibly throw DE all over the coop without causing respiratory problems for the birds? With Ravap EC or Permectrin II, you can dip the birds and use it as a premise spray. Both are labeled for poultry. Even if you would prefer a flea shampoo for dipping, Ravap wipes out mites, lice, or any other external parasite, and has the best residual. Emulsified concentrates penetrate wood.

Certainly each to his/her own. So far DE has not presented a problem. I do this when cleaning while the birds are out ranging. My birds are out everyday, snow, rain or shine. I suspect more respiratory problems are caused by warm damp coops and poorly ventilated coops.

I dust the floors BEFORE I put in the chips. It's wet here in the NE and a coop would be hard to dry after spraying with a liquid.
Not all areas of the yard are like this but it does get wetter than I like.

 

[aoxa]

Rancher, how could you possibly throw DE all over the coop without causing respiratory problems for the birds? With Ravap EC or Permectrin II, you can dip the birds and use it as a premise spray. Both are labeled for poultry. Even if you would prefer a flea shampoo for dipping, Ravap wipes out mites, lice, or any other external parasite, and has the best residual. Emulsified concentrates penetrate wood.

Anything dusty can be a cause for concern. I don't clean my coop. I use deep litter and would not use DE in it. I've heard of neem oil on roosts. White wash helps keep mites out of the crevices also (lyme). Ample dust bath areas are also great. I use wood ash and plain old dirt to keep it from getting airborne. More dirt than wood ash. In summer months they dust bathe outside.

 

[Michael Apple]

Certainly each to his/her own. So far DE has not presented a problem. I do this when cleaning while the birds are out ranging. My birds are out everyday, snow, rain or shine. I suspect more respiratory problems are caused by warm damp coops and poorly ventilated coops.

I dust the floors BEFORE I put in the chips. It's wet here in the NE and a coop would be hard to dry after spraying with a liquid.
Not all areas of the yard are like this but it does get wetter than I like.

I understand your logic. What about when birds are kicking up litter in the coop? There's some breakdown of litter that naturally gets dusty, but DE just added to the airborne dust particles in my experience. I have good ventilation and dry coops too. I used DE for awhile some years ago and just saw it as impractical and not very effective.

 

[casportpony]

Here are some more pictures. Could we have both pox and mites?? This is my son's hen "Peckers". Her throat looks clear to me (but I'm very inexperienced), maybe some bumps under the wing? Her face is beginning to get the white spots. Brownish specks by her vent (mites?). All the birds looked slow and damp this morning (it is quite foggy this morning, though). Planning to shop for mite treatment, and maybe I'll grab some antibiotics and vitamins as per the advice above. Really appreciate all the help!!

Doesn't look like wet pox, but there are a couple of funny looking spots inside her mouth, so keep an eye on those. The face pics do look like many of mine with dry pox and I read that they get bumps under their wings from sleeping with their heads tucked under. So it does look like pox to me and yes, you could have pox, mites, lice, worms and another disease all at once. When I find a bird that's "off" it gets weighed, dusted for mites and lice *even if I cannot see them* and de-wormed with fenbendazole 10% (Safeguard or Panacur, liquid or paste) 50mg/kg by mouth (that' .2ml per 2.2 pounds). The *only* time I do not dust or de-worm is when they seem like the act of handling them is likely to send them over the edge.

Dry pox doesn't usually kill them, but if they have a worm load, are anemic from mites or have a compromised immune system from some other disease, it can.



-Kathy