Bird flu or other respiratory issue?

[Chicalina]

I actually found the thread from 2018 where I treated the pullet in my Avatar. Yes, dropper down throat. It was not very fun I felt so bad doing it, but from the thread I can see that another person told her their chicken didn't make it with respiratory illness and mine certainly did make it! I gave her VetRx for 2 days then started Tylan50 - 4mg twice/day

We cannot get Tylan in the UK without a vet's prescription.

Just as a side note, after many years searching, and many visits to vets who say they do, but really don't know any more about poultry than I do (and a lot of travel), I finally found a vet who specialises in poultry and livestock last year. I took a partially paralysed young cockerel to them and they said it was Mareks. He wasn't getting better so I had him culled and a necropsy done by a specialist veterinary hospital. Physical examination and pathology could find no sign of Mareks. So I'm reluctant to take the hen back to that vet because I think they will be very pessimistic with their diagnosis and jump to a catastrophic conclusion. Hence trying to treat her at home.

 

[Chicalina]

Here are some videos of her, after 4 days of VetRX treatment:

As you can see, she only gapes when I pick her up.

@azygous I would really appreciate your help on this if you have time

 

[azygous]

I would assume this is a chronic respiratory disease (CRD), possibly infectious bronchitis, but the normal posture as she freely moves about compared to the stressed posture as she's being held point to a crop disorder. Not to say it couldn't be both.

Does she still do the gaping if you don't clasp your hands around her when she's on your lap? Try holding her without your hands compressing her crop in any way. A crop issue could cause extra fluid in the crop that gets squeezed into her throat when pressure is put on the crop. Sort of like acid reflux in humans.

If this is a respiratory illness, most of which usually clear up on their own as we do from the rhino virus, the symptoms lingering indicate she may need an antibiotic to clear up a bacterial infection associated with it. Unless you have an unused portion of a human antibiotic on hand, you will need to visit your vet for the prescription. I would try to negotiate a prescription by insisting you wish to treat her yourself for an almost certain respiratory infection. Everything is negotiable, some being a tad more challenging than others. Call the vet. It's worth a shot.

 

[Chicalina]

I would assume this is a chronic respiratory disease (CRD), possibly infectious bronchitis, but the normal posture as she freely moves about compared to the stressed posture as she's being held point to a crop disorder. Not to say it couldn't be both.

Does she still do the gaping if you don't clasp your hands around her when she's on your lap? Try holding her without your hands compressing her crop in any way. A crop issue could cause extra fluid in the crop that gets squeezed into her throat when pressure is put on the crop. Sort of like acid reflux in humans.

If this is a respiratory illness, most of which usually clear up on their own as we do from the rhino virus, the symptoms lingering indicate she may need an antibiotic to clear up a bacterial infection associated with it. Unless you have an unused portion of a human antibiotic on hand, you will need to visit your vet for the prescription. I would try to negotiate a prescription by insisting you wish to treat her yourself for an almost certain respiratory infection. Everything is negotiable, some being a tad more challenging than others. Call the vet. It's worth a shot.

Thanks so much for commenting.

A chronic condition makes sense. Do you think she could still be contagious? I really want to integrate her back because I think the extended separation is causing her stress, which in turn may be exacerbating the condition. But obviously I don't want the flock to catch it. Thinking they already will have been exposed to it months ago though?

No, she does not gape much now. She did previously when she was sitting, but not standing. It has got much better, so she only does it when I hold her. Interesting re crop. It is never full and she was scattering her feed everywhere into the shavings so I've wondered how much of it she was actually eating. She isn't as heavy as her sister (by feel, haven't weighed), and her keel is not prominent, she has some decent breast muscle either side, so I figured she feels a healthy weight. She has eaten any cooked egg I've given her, and fruit and showed a good appetite. Never the usual golf ball bulging crop, so what should I do? No foul odour. Not squishy. No yeasty smell.

I've a strong feeling the vet will a) insist on seeing her and b) be legally bound to do a birdflu test, or worse still not test but diagnose on symptoms and cull and report my flock to be culled . Maybe I am overreacting to this though. I agree it is worth trying abx, I just wish I could get some myself to try.

 

[Chicalina]

What do you think about trying some greek yoghurt for the probiotics?

 

[Chicalina]

Update.

She has integrated back into the flock, all free ranging, but is still the same in herself as a few weeks ago. Still snicking and open mouthed breathing, but it varies. It's worse in the evening and at night. I'm moving her to the hospital coop every night just so she isn't breathing on the rest of the flock all night and its less draughty. Also, weirdly I feel like she will keep them all awake with her sneezing!

Her comb is pale and has some whitish residue on it - could that be fungal or just dryness?

@azygous I think you were right re the crop. She never fully fills it in the day. It's empty in the morning. She has lost weight. Her poops range from normal to slurry and have dripped down her backside so I've had to trim her floof. It is not clear liquid and I don't think she is egg bound. Today I felt her lower abdomen and it's very firm. Too firm. No squishiness, no sign of ascites. Couldn't feel an egg. She hasn't laid an egg for 3 months. She is only 11 months old.

I dont know what to do for her.

She is alert and active but way less than she should be. Definitely more subdued than when she was well. I feel like she is wasting away very slowly.

 

[azygous]

Unfortunately, there are no useful symptoms pointing to what we should do for this girl. That in itself may point to a chronic condition such as internal laying, chronic reproductive infection (EYP), and cancer. There are no treatments for these things that we could try.

Have you ruled out a crop issue? Sour crop can produce a liquid filling the crop and overflowing to the throat where it can get into the airway, causing respiratory symptoms. It's important to rule this out and to treat if it's an issue. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

You can try throwing an antibiotic at this and see what happens, but you may need to involve a vet to get one. And then you wouldn't be sure it was going to even make a difference. But it's the only thing I can think of to try after you rule out a crop disorder.

 

[Chicalina]

Thanks. I don't think it is sour crop. It's not squishy or watery or foul smelling, no bringing up fluid. It just seems about 80% empty when I palpate it before she goes to bed at night.

Whatever this chronic thing is, it has me stumped. If she was immobile and panting all day then I'd probably cull her because she would be near the end, but she is running around with the flock, albeit not at full energy and still snicking and losing weight slowly. It's like she has long covid or something! The VetRX helped but didn't cure.

She has a white bloom on her comb and face, is this significant do you think?

She is pink compared to her sister who is red faced. It's easy to see the differences between them weight and appearance wise.

 

[azygous]

Crop yeast doesn't always smell. The way to verify a crop disorder is to check it in the morning, and if the crop is full, there's likely yeast involved. You would usually get a rancid smell with impacted crop, but I've never had a yeasty crop smell on its own.

The white stuff on her comb and wattles could be favus, which is yeast. If yu can find some women's vaginal yeast cream, you can use it for the crop yeast and the comb yeast.