Chicken Asthma?

[FluffyButtBabies]

I have a bantam Faverolle rooster (about 4 months old). When he was incubating there were some temperature complications, and he and the other chick who hatched with him were born with obvious disfigurements. He needed an assisted hatch to even leave the egg. Now that he's older, he continues to have obvious developmental issues. Both he and his girlfriend (the other egg in the incubator) are significantly smaller than the other hens born in a different incubator at around the same time. Although the female has grown relatively normally, Phauxy (the roo) has only grown even more into his issues. He has a worsening cross-beak, absolutely no depth perception, but the most worrying part is his breathing. When he was about two weeks old, he mysteriously developed an unknown illness (we think). He hadn't even been outside yet, and none of the other chickens/chicks had ever shown any symptoms (and still don't). He basically got labored breathing and other distresses like sneezing, but he was never lethargic and his poo was always fine. We gave him antibiotics and he pulled through, but the respiratory weakness never went away. He still visibly has difficulty breathing (no other signs of illness). This has remained for four months, and still none of our hens have ever gotten sick so I'm assuming it has something to do with his physical issues. When the temperature dropped he started wheezing (like he did when he was younger), so we put him on antibiotics again and even tried inhalers. The wheezing stopped, but his breathing is even worse than before. Keep in mind that despite his breathing and facial deformities, he seems absolutely healthy and happy. He's the sweetest bird I've ever had, following me around everywhere and loving cuddles. I really don't want him to die, so does anybody have any idea what wrong with him/how to help? I think it has to do with his incubation issues, and he might also have a lowered immune system because of that. Does that sound like a plausible explanation? But now I'm worried his lungs will seize over the winter. What should I do? Thank you!

 

[Eggcessive]

It would be hard to know what was causing his respiratory issues without testing for various respiratory diseases. Your state vet or a private lab such as Zoologix could help with that. Early in life a fungal disease called aspergillosis or brooder pneumonia cannbe a problem. Mycoplasma gallisepticum or MG can be passed through hatching eggs or from a carrier in the flock. That one is chronic and can pop up again and again throughout life. Aspergillosis is also chronic. With all of his issues, I am not sure what you can do for him except offer warmth when needed, provide adequate coop ventilation, and good nutrition with some probiotics. Antibiotics when ill may help if he has MG. If his illness is from mold fungus or a virus, antibiotics may not help.

 

[FluffyButtBabies]

I don't know how he could have caught anything though. We cleaned out the brooder almost daily, and he hadn't been outside or around any adult chickens till after he'd developed the breathing. Also, he shows no other symptoms and my other birds are all fine even after living with him for several months. I just don't know where he could have gotten MG or Aspergillosis from, and he doesn't show any other of the common signs. We got the egg from a breeder who tested for those things, so he shouldn't have gotten MG from the egg...you see why I'm so confused? It just doesn't quite add up.

 

[Eggcessive]

You can get him tested for respiratory diseases. Here is a link for Zoologix who can send you swabs to collect of his tracheal secretions to test for 1-8 diseases:
http://www.zoologix.com/avian/Datasheets/PoultryRespiratoryPanel.htm

Here is another link with their telephone info:
http://www.zoologix.com/avian/terms.htm

You may want to read about some of the diseases here:
https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps044

 

[FluffyButtBabies]

Okay, thank you!