Can I use prednisone I have for chicken?

[HomeschoolPollo]

Been treating 4 month old chicken with Tylan 50 injectable (1/2cc 2x/day) in yoke. This is day 4 with no improvement. She gasps for air for weeks now. And she has started to lose feathers (more than usual). This all seemed to start about 5 days after I started taking her outside (she is a house pet) for the first time. She eats, drinks, preens, walks around fine. I am pretty sure she is really tired, because she tries to sleep, but then has to gasp for air. Her nose and eyes are clear and no swelling to the face or under the eyes. The only other thing is I noticed she has been scratching her face a lot by her eyes and ears and has no feathers there yet. Her comb is starting to grow and get bigger, but still pretty little. I will attach a picture of her face.

She had this same issue before 1 month old, but back then she was not eating or drink and very lethargic. Took her to vet for antibiotics and oral steroids. Going to the vet is not an option again.

I added Vet Rx to her water today as well as top of her head and under her wings. She is getting vitamins and minerals in water too as well as probiotics in her food. I even tried to do a nebulizer treatment with levalbuterol (xopenex) last night in her crate. That did nothing.

My daughter was able to look down her throat today and it seems her little throat is inflamed (no signs of gape worm).

My Question: Seems like she needs oral steroid to take down the inflammation in her throat. I have prednisone 20 MG tablets. Seems to me I should be able to take like 5 mg of the prednisone and crush it up to a power and dissolve in water and then give her a couple times a day?

I found this info in the online avian medicine.net/contect/uploads/2013/03/18.pdf chapter 18

Prednisone Sodim Succinate

Available as a tablet (5mg) for oral administration or as an injectable solution (10 or 50 mg/ml) for IM or IV administration. For oral administration, mix one (5mg) tablet in 2.5 ml of water (makes a solution of 2 mg/ml). Does is 6mg/kg BID. Can be mixed with lactulose for oral administration.

I don't know how to figure out the above measurements.

Please help. We don't want to continue to see her suffer and we want to get her better. I am thinking that I should start injecting the Tylan 50 instead of giving it to her in food.

 

[redsoxs]

Wow! Tough question. Here's an old thread that talks about prednisone for chickens...but not when it was prescribed for humans...so dosing would be a guess. Maybe you can find something useful here https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/379890/can-i-give-my-hen-prednisolone

 

[HomeschoolPollo]

Thank you for the suggestion thread. I did read that. Maybe there is another anti-inflammatory I can give her?

 

[HomeschoolPollo]

Thank you for the suggestion thread. I did read that. Maybe there is another anti-inflammatory I can give her?

I ended up reading another thread last night that talked about giving aspirin for inflammation. I gave her 1/2 of a 81 mg coated orange chewable aspirin last night and again this morning. She is much improved. Last night I mixed with her yoke with the antibiotics. This am she took the aspirin by itself after I had crushed it. Seeing no gasping after the second dose this morning. Praise God.

 

[ellend]

This is a respiratory disease. I've never had any luck treating it...they go on & on, getting slowly worse. I won't put another one through it again, if initial treatment doesn't work.

 

[Elbanes]

I ended up reading another thread last night that talked about giving aspirin for inflammation. I gave her 1/2 of a 81 mg coated orange chewable aspirin last night and again this morning. She is much improved. Last night I mixed with her yoke with the antibiotics. This am she took the aspirin by itself after I had crushed it. Seeing no gasping after the second dose this morning. Praise God.

What does the aspirin do? Do you know I have a Hen in the similar situation? She’s been on antibiotics. This will be her second round with a seven day grace in between and she started getting bad so I had to put her on another round of antibiotics, her eyes aren’t swollen. She’s not dripping anything from her nose, sneezing snot out. This has been going on since March and I just don’t know what to do. She’s been back-and-forth to the vet I’ve used the vet rx. I’m at my Whitson so what is the aspirin do?

 

[Eggcessive]

What does the aspirin do? Do you know I have a Hen in the similar situation? She’s been on antibiotics. This will be her second round with a seven day grace in between and she started getting bad so I had to put her on another round of antibiotics, her eyes aren’t swollen. She’s not dripping anything from her nose, sneezing snot out. This has been going on since March and I just don’t know what to do. She’s been back-and-forth to the vet I’ve used the vet rx. I’m at my Whitson so what is the aspirin do?

What symptoms IS she having? Does she gasp or sneeze, or shake her head? What antibiotic are you using? How is the coop ventilation, and is there any dust or ammonia odors from droppings in the bedding?