A few questions about respiratory infections

[TheBantyShanty]

Hi, I have some questions on respiratory infections. I have four chickens that have been showing symptoms of a respiratory infection and their symptoms include sneezing and clear discharge running through their nostrils. Two of them have had raspy sounding breathing, but it goes off and on. After seeking advice and doing lot's of research, I assumed it was a case of MG. They have had this problem for awhile now, but it has not really gotten worse, nor has it gotten better.
I am now wondering, could this be something else? Or does this sound like MG? None of them have had swelling on their faces, or any bubbles/foam in their eyes. I have heard there are other cases of respiratory illnesses, and I was wondering if this could be a different case? Or could it be gape worm, or something related to that? And do all of the respiratory illnesses make them carriers for life? Or is it just the few ones, like MG?


Thanks for any advice or answers to my many questions!

 

[azygous]

MG is the safest bet as it's so common.

You have two things at work making your chickens sick. One is the MG virus which weakens the immune system and makes the respiratory track vulnerable to bacteria which is now hanging on stubbornly.

If you haven't treated the symptomatic chickens with an oral antibiotic, now is the time to start. Tylan 50 is the most prescribed for this illness. Treat only chickens with symptoms as it's useless to treat the virus with an antibiotic.

If any of the chickens seem struggling to breathe, a mister with peppermint oil can help. A supplementary treatment that can help knock down the bacterial infection is Oxine or Betadine in the water of the mister or vaporizer.

 

[TheBantyShanty]

MG is the safest bet as it's so common.

You have two things at work making your chickens sick. One is the MG virus which weakens the immune system and makes the respiratory track vulnerable to bacteria which is now hanging on stubbornly.

If you haven't treated the symptomatic chickens with an oral antibiotic, now is the time to start. Tylan 50 is the most prescribed for this illness. Treat only chickens with symptoms as it's useless to treat the virus with an antibiotic.

If any of the chickens seem struggling to breathe, a mister with peppermint oil can help. A supplementary treatment that can help knock down the bacterial infection is Oxine or Betadine in the water of the mister or vaporizer.

Ok, thank you! This is super helpful! This one makes them carriers for life, correct?

 

[Fishkeeper]

Just to be clear: do NOT put peppermint essential oil into a mister un-diluted. All essential oils, especially ones you intend to disperse into the air, need to be massively diluted with a carrier oil to be safe. They're extremely concentrated. I'm also kind of skeptical that it would help them breathe any more than plain ol humidifying would, but humidifying on its own is definitely worth a shot.

 

[Chickenheadmate]

My chickens get it often, would eating the few chickens I have and disinfecting the coop help future flocks?

 

[azygous]

Yes, carriers for life. The MG bacteria isn't a virus as I erroneously mentioned previously. It's a bacteria that is a very slippery culprit by nature. Unlike most bacteria with solid cell walls, the MG bacteria is a "shape shifter". It can be round or long and skinny according to its mood. This makes it illusive to antibiotics and it can quickly develop resistance.

Over the long haul, Tetracyclines, fluoroquinolones, and macrolides have been shown to be most effective in treating the symptoms and making a chicken feel better. But they won't kill the bacteria. It remains in the chicken for the rest of the chicken's life.

Keeping a clean coop and run helps reduce recurrence of the disease. If you want to eradicate it, you need to cull all birds and scrub down the facilities with Oxine or bleach solution and let dry out and rest for four to six weeks before getting new CRD certified free birds.

 

[Eggcessive]

Without testing it would be hard to tell if your chickens have infectious bronchitis or a mild strain of mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG.) Infectious bronchitis usually causes a limited period of sneezing, nasal congestion, and a decrease in laying or some wrinkled or thin egg shells. It tends to go through the whole flock over several months. It lasts about a month in each chicken. They are carriers for up to a year afterward, so do not hatch or add new birds for that period. You may be able to get some testing through your state vet, or you could spend $95 and get a commercial lab such as Zoologix to run a respiratory panel test for you to identify the disease.

MG usually causes bubbles in an eye, sometimes swelling around an eye, and congestion. It makes your whole flock carriers for life, and you may see an outbreak whenever there is a stressor, such as cold weather, molting, etc.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

symptoms include sneezing and clear discharge running through their nostrils. Two of them have had raspy sounding breathing, but it goes off and on. After seeking advice and doing lot's of research, I assumed it was a case of MG. They have had this problem for awhile now, but it has not really gotten worse, nor has it gotten better.

I am now wondering, could this be something else? Or does this sound like MG? None of them have had swelling on their faces, or any bubbles/foam in their eyes. I have heard there are other cases of respiratory illnesses, and I was wondering if this could be a different case?

There are many respiratory diseases - Mycoplasma, Infectious Bronchitis, Infectious Coryza and ILT are fairly common. It would be hard to know which one you are dealing with without testing.
Sneezing, raspy breathing and clear discharge to me sounds more like Infectious Bronchitis since it's not getting better/worse. IB is a virus and usually will run it's course in about a month unless complicated by secondary infection. It can make birds carriers for up to a year - but again, testing will give you answers.
Here's a little info on each respiratory illness, this will give you a start on your research/reading http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps044

For testing you can use an independent lab or go through your state lab.

Independent lab testing:
http://www.zoologix.com/
http://www.vetdna.com/test-type/avian-bird

Your state lab
https://vetmed.oregonstate.edu/diagnostic

 

[TheBantyShanty]

Ok, thanks to everyone for the information! I have considered testing before, but that is not really an option at the moment. They first started showing signs in late May, and have had it since. Is culling them probably the best choice? I have another flock that I don't want getting sick.

Also, can this spread from a bird who is a carrier but has had treatment at that time period and isn't showing symptoms? I am just curious about that.

 

[Eggcessive]

Since MG does not spread as easily as something like infectious bronchitis, I wouldn’t. Besides your other flock might alreasy be carriers. Wild birds can spread it as well. MG is one of those things that may be in all of our flocks, and just becomes symptomatic during a time of stress. If your birds never get sick, it still doesn’t mean they do not have some exposure. Some birds seem to have really good immunity to common diseases. People handle things differently, but you could cull sick birds I suppose.