Chicken wheezing

PeckyMcCluckin

In the Brooder
Mar 22, 2022
21
16
26
Hello, I have a hen who wheezes pretty frequently. I’ve used vetrx to help her out. When it first started she sounded hoarse and I separated her for about a week but after putting vetrx on her that night she sounded fine and the next day she wasn’t really wheezing anymore.
The wheezing seems to come and go. She’s been wormed so has the flock. No discharge from eyes or nose, nothing in her throat that is obvious. No gaping. Just wheezing and the occasional sneeze. Can chickens have allergies? She eats and drinks and lays fine. She runs around with her friends and seems happy and healthy with the exception of the wheeze.
 
Vetrx is not that helpfully its a placebo. Seperate her and put her on antibiotics. You can try tractor supply, online fish antibiotics, or pigeon antibiotics.
 
Hello,
I'm new to this forum but I've had chickens for a few years now and dealt with many common problems. Of the first group of young pullets we brought to our farm (bought from a neighbor), three of them turned out to be wheezy and sneezy. No gaping or discharges, but clearly down with something. We treated them with an antibiotic (enrofloaxin aka "Baytril" in the US). They got better, but first...

Have you checked the crop? Make sure it's emptying. I just treated my first case of sour crop successfully. If the crop feels hard and full in the morning first thing, or soft and squishy, you need to treat for that.

Are your chickens vaccinated for viruses avian flu and bronchitis? Of not, first you have to get this chicken well, then vaccinate. Don't vaccinate a sick chicken as it strains their immune system. Antibiotics won't cure a virus, but they will help with secondary bacterial infections that are usually what cause the bird to die.

If the crop is ok, as the first reply recommends, a course of an antibiotic is a good idea, but which one and how? For respiratory troubles, Enrofloaxin (Baytril) and Doxycycline are probably the best bets. They have the best results with treating the gram negative bacterias like mycoplasma.

I never just sprinkle antibiotic in the water or feed. You don't know how much the bird will actually get and giving not-sick birds antibiotics just makes them more susceptible to yeast infections. In my opinion and experience, it's better to treat a sick chicken individually for possible bacterial infection. For cocci or worms, though, treat the whole flock at once.

So once you find Enrofloaxin or Doxy (or oxytetracycline as a third choice), either administer as a pill or if it's drops, use a syringe. 3-4 days, no more, then wait and give probiotics and little liquid vitamin B supplement to help the liver and digestive flora recover.
 
How old is she? Do you ever notice any sneeze or cough, nasal drainage, gasping, or crackly breathing? Is her lower belly enlarged or seem to be full of fluid. Is her crop emptying overnight by the next morning?
She’s is 7 months old. No nasal or eye discharge. Crop empties every night. No fluid she’s not as thick as some of the other barred rocks we have but she also gets picked on. No gasping or crackling either just a wheeze and occasional sneeze.
 
Hello,
I'm new to this forum but I've had chickens for a few years now and dealt with many common problems. Of the first group of young pullets we brought to our farm (bought from a neighbor), three of them turned out to be wheezy and sneezy. No gaping or discharges, but clearly down with something. We treated them with an antibiotic (enrofloaxin aka "Baytril" in the US). They got better, but first...

Have you checked the crop? Make sure it's emptying. I just treated my first case of sour crop successfully. If the crop feels hard and full in the morning first thing, or soft and squishy, you need to treat for that.

Are your chickens vaccinated for viruses avian flu and bronchitis? Of not, first you have to get this chicken well, then vaccinate. Don't vaccinate a sick chicken as it strains their immune system. Antibiotics won't cure a virus, but they will help with secondary bacterial infections that are usually what cause the bird to die.

If the crop is ok, as the first reply recommends, a course of an antibiotic is a good idea, but which one and how? For respiratory troubles, Enrofloaxin (Baytril) and Doxycycline are probably the best bets. They have the best results with treating the gram negative bacterias like mycoplasma.

I never just sprinkle antibiotic in the water or feed. You don't know how much the bird will actually get and giving not-sick birds antibiotics just makes them more susceptible to yeast infections. In my opinion and experience, it's better to treat a sick chicken individually for possible bacterial infection. For cocci or worms, though, treat the whole flock at once.

So once you find Enrofloaxin or Doxy (or oxytetracycline as a third choice), either administer as a pill or if it's drops, use a syringe. 3-4 days, no more, then wait and give probiotics and little liquid vitamin B supplement to help the liver and digestive flora recov
thanks for the reply I have looked up the Doxy I am only seeing things for pet birds and it says not to used on birds meant for human consumption of their meat or eggs. I am in Oklahoma is there any recommendations of where to order/buy either enrofloaxin or Doxy? Next can you still consume their eggs after withdrawing them? If so for how long?
Sorry still new to this stuff.
 
thanks for the reply I have looked up the Doxy I am only seeing things for pet birds and it says not to used on birds meant for human consumption of their meat or eggs. I am in Oklahoma is there any recommendations of where to order/buy either enrofloaxin or Doxy? Next can you still consume their eggs after withdrawing them? If so for how long?
Sorry still new to this stuff.
No problem. The brand name for enrofloaxin most used in the US is Baytril. You can order it without a prescription. Here's one online shop that has it, you can search for others too.

https://allbirdproducts.com/products/baytril-10
 
No problem. The brand name for enrofloaxin most used in the US is Baytril. You can order it without a prescription. Here's one online shop that has it, you can search for others too.

https://allbirdproducts.com/products/baytril-10
For egg consumption, it really depends on who you ask. I usually wait ten days after the last day of an antibiotic to eat an egg from a treated hen. This study says 9 days for enrofloaxin
https://www.researchgate.net/public...nrofloxacin_and_its_residues_in_poultry_foods
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom