Chicken Gasping for air

[Arielle777]

I discovered one of my chicken gasping for air a few weeks ago. At first I suspected it was a respiratory problem. I isolated her and first off noticed her crop was hard. I then suspected an impacted crop. She's been on a diet of wet pets and I've been giving her lots of grit with the occasional soft foods and veggies. I also suspected gapeworm and have given her a few doses which she seems to have been responding better with. It seems so worsen with activity. I've have felt a lump in her throat over the past few weeks and have been trying to massage it which seems to help, but the lump seems to move and now feel like it's more at the top of her throat by her waddles. She has no other symptoms and is acting fine besides the occasional hiccup. Her crop is back to normal but I tried letting her roam a bit today and noticed she was immediately breathing heavy again even though I haven't heard any wheezing the past two days or so. What does this sound like to you guys? And if it's gapeworm, how long does it typically take to recover, and how much does he can I give her and how often? The lump is a lot smaller now, so I suspect it's gapeworm. The dewormer is all natural ingredients so I would imagine it would take a lot to give her too much? I also tried putting VetRX on her comb and wattles to help with her breathing but it didn't seem to do much.

 

[nuthatched]

What's her diet? Does pet mean pellets? If so, what kind?
Unfortunately, natural dewormers won't work, if you really believe you have a gapeworm issue, you need a real wormer such as fenbendazole.
Most natural wormers are snake oil or rarely low dose poisonous plants, so quite the opposite, too much can kill.

 

[Arielle777]

Yes, meant to say pellets. Good to know about the dewormer, thanks! At first I thought it might be just something obstructing her throat because we have a lot of pine needles in the yard and straw in the barn. Her poop looks healthy, so I'm not sure how to tell for sure if it's gapeworm. Thank you for your reply!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I discovered one of my chicken gasping for air a few weeks ago. At first I suspected it was a respiratory problem. I isolated her and first off noticed her crop was hard. I then suspected an impacted crop. She's been on a diet of wet pets and I've been giving her lots of grit with the occasional soft foods and veggies. I also suspected gapeworm and have given her a few doses which she seems to have been responding better with. It seems so worsen with activity. I've have felt a lump in her throat over the past few weeks and have been trying to massage it which seems to help, but the lump seems to move and now feel like it's more at the top of her throat by her waddles.

The lump is a lot smaller now, so I suspect it's gapeworm. The dewormer is all natural ingredients so I would imagine it would take a lot to give her too much?

Can you get a video of her actions/breathing?

Upload video to youtube and provide a link.

Does she have any lesions or Canker inside the beak?

Her crop is emptying overnight?

How old is she, does she lay eggs?

I'd work on hydration and see that her crop is emptying. Feel of her abdomen below the vent between her legs, is there any bloat or feeling of fluid?

If you do suspect Gapeworm, treat with Safeguard Liquid Goat dewormer at a rate of 0.25ml per pound of weight give orally once daily for 5 days in a row. Gapeworm is fairly rare, so you could still be dealing with something else.