Buff orpington with respiratory problems.

[AmeraucanaHank]

Hello,
I have a 8 month buff orpington hen that has been breathing a little funny and sneezes and coughs. She's still eating and drinking just fine and is very active. If there is anything I can help her than I'd love to.


TIA

 

[azygous]

Is this occasional or non-stop? Is this only during and right after eating dry crumbles by any chance? Does she like to scratch and disrupt dusty bedding?

Have you checked her crop? Sometimes a full crop can backflow and cause such symptoms.

 

[AmeraucanaHank]

Is this occasional or non-stop?

Occasional, but at least once every time I'm out there

Is this only during and right after eating dry crumbles by any chance?

It is most frequent after feeding yes.

Does she like to scratch and disrupt dusty bedding?

Not usually....

Her nostrils are sometimes clogged with grime

Have you checked her crop? Sometimes a full crop can backflow and cause such symptoms.

How exactly do you check a crop? She also smells a bit funny, if that might have anything to with it.

 

[azygous]

Here's my article on dealing with crop issues. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/ It tells you what you need to know to be able to help your chicken with a crop issue.

Your chicken may just be inhaling some dust during eating. Mine do this when they dive into dry feed since they think it's a real treat, usually getting wet fermented feed.

Best thing to do to educate yourself on chicken crops is to go feel your normal chickens' crops. The pouch on the chest wall which hangs slightly off to the right collects the food the chicken eats. It's kind of like our mouth where preliminary digestive juices come into play, only minus teeth. If the chicken consumes too much cellulose, grasses are worst, impaction can occur, and it becomes like a slow sink drain or sometimes a major clog. It can back up into the throat and cause respiratory sounds as it gets into the airway.

A crop fills with food and it empties as the food moves on through the digestive system.

The best time to check a sick chicken's crop is first thing in the morning because the crop should be flat and empty. If it's not, then you know you have a crop issue. The article goes over how to tell which one and what to do to treat it.

 

[AmeraucanaHank]

Here's my article on dealing with crop issues. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/ It tells you what you need to know to be able to help your chicken with a crop issue.

Your chicken may just be inhaling some dust during eating. Mine do this when they dive into dry feed since they think it's a real treat, usually getting wet fermented feed.

Best thing to do to educate yourself on chicken crops is to go feel your normal chickens' crops. The pouch on the chest wall which hangs slightly off to the right collects the food the chicken eats. It's kind of like our mouth where preliminary digestive juices come into play, only minus teeth. If the chicken consumes too much cellulose, grasses are worst, impaction can occur, and it becomes like a slow sink drain or sometimes a major clog. It can back up into the throat and cause respiratory sounds as it gets into the airway.

A crop fills with food and it empties as the food moves on through the digestive system.View attachment 3381280

The best time to check a sick chicken's crop is first thing in the morning because the crop should be flat and empty. If it's not, then you know you have a crop issue. The article goes over how to tell which one and what to do to treat it.

I looked at the article and it seems they lose their appetite, mine does nothing if the sort.
But she does smell funny.

 

[azygous]

Can you describe how her crop feels? Is it large this morning before you fed her? Hard? Lumpy? Soft and squishy like a water balloon?

 

[AmeraucanaHank]

Can you describe how her crop feels? Is it large this morning before you fed her? Hard? Lumpy? Soft and squishy like a water balloon?

I just fed her a couple hours ago. I could try next morning.

 

[AmeraucanaHank]

I felt her crop this morning and it felt completely umpty

 

[azygous]

That means she has no crop issue. If her behavior is off, though, you need to continue to search for the reason for it.

 

[AmeraucanaHank]

That means she has no crop issue. If her behavior is off, though, you need to continue to search for the reason for it.

She is normal, egg laying almost everyday, forages with her friends, eats drinks like normal. But she is still sneezing and has grim stuck in her nostrils that I clear tome to time.