Chickens sick, also maybe getting chicks- help!

Caninewild

In the Brooder
Mar 2, 2021
6
3
11
Ok so problem is twofold- firstly, I have three hens, production browns of some kind, roughly a year old. Several weeks ago we had a particularly bad cold spell and they developed some mild sneezing type symptoms. One has a bit of a runny nose, she and the rest all sneeze a bit, and have a little respiratory noise but do not sound especially uncomfortable in that regard. Aside from some I believe unrelated feather picking behavior that I'm trying to resolve, they seem fairly normal. They eat and drink, their laying has been only slightly slowed (it's winter, so that's not that weird), poops look normal etc. They're in a blocked off portion of a large shed with a boxed in area with a heat lamp (we get very extreme cold), and an open roofed area to scratch around in. They have a thick layer of straw and wood shavings. The shed is well ventilated- there's very little odor, and what there is can largely be blamed on the stray cats that come in to sleep in the straw.
I'd really like to hear opinions on what this may be, and what I might do to help them. I feel terrible that I spent the last while thinking it was a simple 'cold' and thought little of it. Now reading here it seems that's not the case. (I've read some descriptions of different illnesses and tbh I'm a little lost- I've seen the links, I'm more after personal opinion here)
Unfortunately I'm in rural Canada- the closest vet won't treat chickens, and we cannot buy meds and antibiotics without prescription here.
Does this sound like something that should resolve itself? Can I help it along with home remedies or over the counter stuff?

My second related problem is that I was intending to get a half dozen chicks in three weeks, as I'd like to get into heritage breeds rather than the poor browns that lay themselves to death in a couple years. Now with the new realization of illness, I don't know how good an idea this is! Obviously, the chicks wouldn't be near them for quite some time and I'd be very careful of contamination, but would they be in danger later? Would vaccinations take care of them getting sick from my current hens assuming they'd remain carriers of whatever it is?

I suspect they may have been exposed from something at a local bird sanctuary my roommate and I volunteer at unfortunately, brought in on our shoes or something. I'm sorry to say the idea hadn't occurred to me. Bio-security will be high on my priority list from now on, but with numerous stray cats and uncaring roommates I'm feeling a bit of despair at the moment :/
 
Odds are there isn't a vaccine for whatever your gals may be sick with, and if there was, it would have to be given at hatch or in the shell, and most hatcheries only have mereks vaccines
 
The chicks would be in the house for the first little while, and once they need more space I can set something up in the porch before they'd need to go outside. Outside I have a large fenced in area for them. Theoretically, I could put them out there without my older girls in the spring, as I have a new coop to put out there that the sick ladies have never touched. Then of course I'd have to keep the current hens in the shed while they would hopefully recover. I'd be hesitant to do that to them though, as they're certainly feeling a little cabin fever at the moment. The spot they have is certainly big enough, but I was hoping to let them have their yard back soon.
If they are sick for a while though, it maybe would be better to widen out their shed area for a more extended containment legth? (For warmth it's smaller now than I could make it, but once it's warmer I can give them more space) I believe they were perfectly healthy leaving the yard last fall, so I wouldn't expect the ground to be contaminated, if that's a thing.

I got them from a semi-local farm as already laying hens- truth be told I have no idea if they were vaccinated. They were healthy when I got them, and remained so until this winter.

So if they're now sick but they do recover (they can recover, yes?), Will they always be a danger to other birds? It would be a shame, bit if that's the case it would be best perhaps to let them live out their short lives together without additions to the flock. I don't strictly need the eggs as they slow down later, though I'd really hoped to get into heritage breeds this year.
 
If it is an option for you, testing can be done to try to ID what it is. Either an antibody test (blood draw) or respiratory or cloacal swabs can be done. Some virus's will stay with the chicken for life and symptoms will come and go periodically, symptoms can be treated but it's not cured, the birds remain carriers and will infect any new birds coming in. Some things can be treated and cured, or can resolve on their own. Some of the chronic virus's are fairly common. Testing is really the only way to know for sure.
 
If it is an option for you, testing can be done to try to ID what it is. Either an antibody test (blood draw) or respiratory or cloacal swabs can be done. Some virus's will stay with the chicken for life and symptoms will come and go periodically, symptoms can be treated but it's not cured, the birds remain carriers and will infect any new birds coming in. Some things can be treated and cured, or can resolve on their own. Some of the chronic virus's are fairly common. Testing is really the only way to know for sure.
That's certainly a good idea, though I have no idea if I can do it here tbh. The towns vet didn't want to see my bird when an unrelated issue came up this summer (freak feral cat attack- the aggressive cat is now gone), but I can ask. If samples could be sent somewhere myself it would be easier, but I've not heard of such a thing.

It would be great if backing out of my chick order would be an overreaction, but if it turns out it isn't I have no idea what would be the best move for them all in the future if I got them anyway and wound up with contagious hens and babies both. Uhg, decisions!
 
You can try contacting your state vet to see if they will do testing on a sick bird. Especially if you lose any sick birds, I would get a necropsy. Also RAL offers more expensive private testing that you can do on your own. Nasopharyngeal swabs are collected in the back of the throat, and you send them back for a PCR test for 8 different diseases. I would try to test a bird showing symptoms. It cost about $90 for 3 swabs. Here is a link for that with contact info:
http://www.vetdna.com/application/forms/aviansubmittalform.pdf

Here is a list of the state vets to contact:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/PoultryLabs.cfm
 
You can try contacting your state vet to see if they will do testing on a sick bird. Especially if you lose any sick birds, I would get a necropsy. Also RAL offers more expensive private testing that you can do on your own. Nasopharyngeal swabs are collected in the back of the throat, and you send them back for a PCR test for 8 different diseases. I would try to test a bird showing symptoms. It cost about $90 for 3 swabs. Here is a link for that with contact info:
http://www.vetdna.com/application/forms/aviansubmittalform.pdf

Here is a list of the state vets to contact:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/PoultryLabs.cfm
I wish that was applicable here, but unfortunately Canada doesn't have the same system. Like I said, we can't even buy the meds you guys can down there without bringing an animal to a vet and having them write a prescription, and the local vet doesn't even see chickens. It sucks, but it is what it is :/
I'm trying to find out if there is some sort of self test thing here, but so far nothing, and I've certainly not heard of it if anyone know, I'd be much obliged!
 
Please don’t order any chicks or else they’ll be exposed to whatever your hens may have. This sounds like MG, so that being said..

In my experience and research, this looks like classic Chronic Respiratory Disease (CRD), or most commonly known as Mycoplasma Gallisepticum (MG). MG is a bacterial infection of poultry, affecting all different species of birds. This disease is most commonly given from infected parents to the offspring, as the MG bacteria can be transmitted vertically into the eggs of developing embryos, making any chicks that hatch, always infected and sick with the bacteria. So please don’t ever breed from your sickly infected flock to sell or giveaway chicks/hens/roosters to anyone. You can freely choose to hatch for yourself, but you should not ever sell and or giveaway any extra roosters as you’ll just be giving someone else your flock’s disease, causing them a devastation. MG is a permanent lifelong chronic disease- meaning, that you can treat or have the symptoms go away, but whenever the bird gets stressed again, the symptoms will keep coming back or get worse. All birds (even recovered birds) remain lifetime long carriers of the MG bacteria, spreading and shedding it through their feces, feathers, dander, respiratory secretions and other bodily fluids. This is a serious permanent lifetime disease of poultry and is incurable, but treatable with antibiotics. Since MG is caused by a bacteria, antibiotics can help keep symptoms at bay until the symptoms resurface whenever birds become stressed again. Keep in mind that over-use and/or misuse of antibiotics also creates antibiotic-resistant bacteria, making the disease harder to treat than before. It’s critical in any livestock animal, especially poultry, to get any sick or symptomatic birds tested to find out which specific disease they have as soon as possible. That being said, most choose to cull all birds, disinfect and start over fresh. If you’d rather not, then the other option is to keep a closed flock- no new birds into your flock and no birds leave your sick flock. If you choose to start over, always quarantine any new birds that you decide to bring into your flock, 30 day quarantine isn’t always enough, therefore, it’s best to do a 60 day quarantine AWAY from your healthy birds, in another area.

Here's more information about MG:

https://extension.umd.edu/sites/ext... Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) Infecti....pdf

https://www.freedomrangerhatchery.com/blog/protecting-your-flock-what-you-need-to-know-about-mg-ms/

https://afarmgirlinthemaking.com/respiratory-conditions-poultry-mycoplasma-in-chickens/

https://www.maine.gov/dacf/ahw/animal_health/documents/backyardpoultry/Mycoplasma Factsheet.pdf

https://www.oie.int/doc/ged/D9107.PDF

I hope this helps!
 

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