Clear mucus in chicken mouth and not eating/drinking on her own

[Mergade]

Hello everyone,

I'm hoping to get some help. Got a sick pullet.

1) What type of bird , age and weight- 16ish week old pullet, as big as the rest of the flock
2) What is the behavior, exactly- she is standing like a statue for hours on end in isolation, occasionally rotating her body once in a while now (we found her just laying down yesterday and did not run for scratch grains with the rest/didn't seem to notice when we walked up to grab her and inspect), thrusting her neck up to swallow forcefully (the rest of the time standing with her head tucked in ((not down)), slowly blinking while swallowing like it's painful, oily looking head feathers, overall unkempt looking, raspy chirping occasionally (unusually quiet), clear slimy mucus in mouth that forms almost a bubble at throat opening, not eating or drinking on her own. Cannot feel crop (assuming it's completely empty) and no foul breath odor.
3) How long has the bird been exhibiting symptoms? 24 hours
4) Are other birds exhibiting the same symptoms? No
5) Is there any bleeding, injury, broken bones or other sign of trauma? No
6) What happened, if anything that you know of, that may have caused the situation. Nothing
7) What has the bird been eating and drinking, if at all? Using a dropper to give homemade electrolytes (diluted solution of himalayan salt ((did not have sea salt)), baking soda, and sugar) and also diluted ACV to try to help with the mucus. Offered finely dices carrots, scratch grains, and usual feed- believe she has not eaten anything in 24 hours.
8) How does the poop look? Normal? Bloody? Runny? etc. Poop appears completely normal- nice dark grey with white and not runny.
9) What has been the treatment you have administered so far? Homemade electrolyte solution, using qtips to clear her mouth and airways of mucus as much as possible, diluted ACV 20% to try to help the mucus.
10 ) What is your intent as far as treatment? For example, do you want to treat completely yourself, or do you need help in stabilizing the bird til you can get to a vet? We will treat ourselves completely and if she has not eaten by end of day 4, humanely euthanize.

Her eyes are very alert unless she is swallowing, in which one closes almost completely and is slow to open again. No crusties, swelling, rednes, discharge, etc from eyes or nose. She is holding her head up fine and has improved since last night with swallowing and rotates herself a bit once in a while now. She has pooped once since last night. She has not laid down and seems to be just incredibly weak in her body. Checked her legs, no mites or bumble.

It really seems as though the pain she experiences with swallowing and the ton of mucus is deterring her from eating. She is eyeing her food hungrily, and has even put her beak down to almost peck, but then thrusts her head up and swallows forcefully a few times and looks away.

I've listened to her breathing and it doesn't sound clunky- a minor amount of crackling in her chest but honestly could be her feathers moving against my ear. Nothing immediately obvious.

The ACV has not seemed to help in the last few hours and her mucus is forming a bubble over the back of her throat everytime we go out to give her more electrolytes/ACV (every 1-2 hours).

I have Baytril 10% on hand currently. I can also go out and buy nutridrench/anything else anyone recommends that I could find at Tractor Supply.

Thank you so much for your help in advance, and I really want this little girl to pull through. She's improved but not nearly as much as I'd hoped.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

she is standing like a statue for hours on end in isolation, occasionally rotating her body once in a while now (we found her just laying down yesterday and did not run for scratch grains with the rest/didn't seem to notice when we walked up to grab her and inspect), thrusting her neck up to swallow forcefully (the rest of the time standing with her head tucked in ((not down)), slowly blinking while swallowing like it's painful, oily looking head feathers, overall unkempt looking, raspy chirping occasionally (unusually quiet), clear slimy mucus in mouth that forms almost a bubble at throat opening, not eating or drinking on her own. Cannot feel crop (assuming it's completely empty) and no foul breath odor.

Can you post photos of her and the inside of her beak?

I'd re-check her crop, look inside that beak for any obstruction.

See if she can drink on her own if you hold the water/electrolytes up to her beak instead of her having to bend over.

A video of her motions may be interesting. Upload to youtube and provide a link.

 

[Mergade]

Can you post photos of her and the inside of her beak?

I'd re-check her crop, look inside that beak for any obstruction.

See if she can drink on her own if you hold the water/electrolytes up to her beak instead of her having to bend over.

A video of her motions may be interesting. Upload to youtube and send a link.

Here are some pics. She's a bit more lethargic today, and it's unclear if she's eaten. The food is down but my husband opened the quarantine cage door and a couple of the laying hens got in there so I'm really not sure who ate (ugh). But the right side of her breastbone has a new, very firm, quarter sized lump and I'm guessing that may be her crop? I felt her entire front from bottom of breast bone to mid neck VERY well yesterday and that was not there- it just seems like an odd place for her crop, like it feels attached to her breastbone.



Throat completely clear and free except the mucus. Took a flashlight and a good gander.





All day yesterday I was trying to bring the water up to her to get her to drink, since putting her head down is obviously uncomfortable. No dice then or this morning. She's not holding her head up as much this morning, but seemed to perk up a bit after 4 eyedropper fulls of fluid.

She also has super loose urea or really beige colored watery poop this morning (attached a pic).


Can't really get a video as she's not doing it very much this morning.

 

[Mergade]

Here are some pics. She's a bit more lethargic today, and it's unclear if she's eaten. The food is down but my husband opened the quarantine cage door and a couple of the laying hens got in there so I'm really not sure who ate (ugh). But the right side of her breastbone has a new, very firm, quarter sized lump and I'm guessing that may be her crop? I felt her entire front from bottom of breast bone to mid neck VERY well yesterday and that was not there- it just seems like an odd place for her crop, like it feels attached to her breastbone.



Throat completely clear and free except the mucus. Took a flashlight and a good gander.





All day yesterday I was trying to bring the water up to her to get her to drink, since putting her head down is obviously uncomfortable. No dice then or this morning. She's not holding her head up as much this morning, but seemed to perk up a bit after 4 eyedropper fulls of fluid.

She also has super loose urea or really beige colored watery poop this morning (attached a pic).


Can't really get a video as she's not doing it very much this morning.

The lump in her crop is now gone, so either I missed an impaction yesterday and it cleared (it was almost rock hard) or she did eat this morning and it's digested properly. Gave more fluids, the ACV made her drip out a BUNCH of mucus and hopefully that will make her comfortable enough to eat/drink on her own.

Plan is to give it about 3 hours (if it was a crop impaction that cleared, I'm guessing it'll be pretty quick improvement) and if she still isn't eating/drinking, dose her with Baytril 10%. Fingers crossed! Think I should be doing anything else?

 

[sarahewilliams]

The lump in her crop is now gone, so either I missed an impaction yesterday and it cleared (it was almost rock hard) or she did eat this morning and it's digested properly. Gave more fluids, the ACV made her drip out a BUNCH of mucus and hopefully that will make her comfortable enough to eat/drink on her own.

Plan is to give it about 3 hours (if it was a crop impaction that cleared, I'm guessing it'll be pretty quick improvement) and if she still isn't eating/drinking, dose her with Baytril 10%. Fingers crossed! Think I should be doing anything else?

I dont have any advice as im new to chicken keeping. Just wanted to see how she is doing now?

 

[Mergade]

I dont have any advice as im new to chicken keeping. Just wanted to see how she is doing now?

No improvement in the last few hours, just gave her some Baytril. She seems to have aspirated a bit of it due to the mucus (basing that on her reaction of gasping a bit and generally freaking out but no gurgling and she's stopped gasping, thank goodness, so fingers crossed).

I will update again tomorrow. I'm not feeling too hopeful, to tell you the truth. Still has not eaten or drank on her own, been 48 hours now. Totally unsure of what the hard mass in her crop was- I'm guessing a minor impaction that cleared itself since she has zero interest in food.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hopefully the Baytril will help.

Push fluids on her. She can go without food for a couple of days, but not fluids.

I'm not sure what to make of it. I'm inclined the lean toward a blockage in the crop or digestive system, but the bubbles are a bit of a puzzle.

Is she actually pooping or just a discharge?

I wish I had answers for you. Keep me posted.

 

[Mergade]

Hopefully the Baytril will help.

Push fluids on her. She can go without food for a couple of days, but not fluids.

I'm not sure what to make of it. I'm inclined the lean toward a blockage in the crop or digestive system, but the bubbles are a bit of a puzzle.

Is she actually pooping or just a discharge?

I wish I had answers for you. Keep me posted.

We have been syringying 40ml of electrolyte water a day- 5% of her body weight.

Crop is entirely empty and no sour breath. A new discovery as of 20 min ago (10 more ml and her antibiotics, which she HATES the taste of before we went to bed) is yellow pus debris that comes out when we swab her mucus to make her more comfortable. There is a pus plaque spot above her glottis, and these two came from her nasal palat. I'm thinking wetpox or trich based on that new symptom. Hopefully Trich.

She pooped a very small but normal poop day before yesterday. Since then its been just beige runny urea and the clear mucus, but she pooped on my husband when we gave her last fluids and it has small crumbles of poop in it, for lack of a better term. Gray crumb shaped bits, so I'm guessing she's at least eaten something.

Put out Celery leaves, finely diced carrots, yogurt, and some Moist oats along with her normal food at head level in her cage. Bending her neck down makes her very uncomfortable with the mucus- like humans with a sinus infection, it comes down your throat when she bends over. I think I saw a couple of pecks in the oatmeal, but it could be the roaches on the deck (looks like "peck trails", though). She was eyeing said roaches VERY longingly, so I'm hoping a nap and then feast time for her.

She was fighting a lot more when I gave her the syringe 6 hours after the baytril. I offered her honey water and dipped her beak in it, no dice but ill keep trying that trick with all of her fluids. She seems a bit better already, and I will update in the morning after "rounds".

 

[Wyorp Rock]

yellow pus debris that comes out when we swab her mucus to make her more comfortable. There is a pus plaque spot above her glottis, and these two came from her nasal palat. I'm thinking wetpox or trich based on that new symptom. Hopefully Trich.

Is there a bad odor?
If a bad odor then Canker (Trichomoniasis).
If no odor, then either Thrush/Fungal infection, respiratory infection or possibly Wet Form Fowl Pox. Usually with any form of Fowl Pox there's still some lesions on the outside of the beak or face - do you see anything like that?

The Baytril may be helping to break it up, if it is, then I'd lean towards some type of bacterial infection. BUT then again it can make Thrush/Fungal infections worse, so I have to wonder...

Don'tcha love it when people type out loud. I'm musing over all the possibilities here and still don't have an answer.

 

[Mergade]

Is there a bad odor?
If a bad odor then Canker (Trichomoniasis).
If no odor, then either Thrush/Fungal infection, respiratory infection or possibly Wet Form Fowl Pox. Usually with any form of Fowl Pox there's still some lesions on the outside of the beak or face - do you see anything like that?

The Baytril may be helping to break it up, if it is, then I'd lean towards some type of bacterial infection. BUT then again it can make Thrush/Fungal infections worse, so I have to wonder...

Don'tcha love it when people type out loud. I'm musing over all the possibilities here and still don't have an answer.

Im the same way! Typing out loud can help other people brainstorm, too.

Update for day 3 morning: her comb is a bit more vibrant in color and she is fiesty. She has some strength back, but after 5ml you can tell the swallowing has taken it our of her a bit. Crop still totally empty, hasn't eaten. Mucus is thinner and less sticky than yesterday. 10 ml of electrolyte water given with her morning baytril dose. She is napping now.

I thought thrush, too, but the smell of the debris is like tonsil stones on humans. It smells anareobic. Not like yeast. Her breath smells like chicken breath, maybe a bit worse but nothing super obvious or putrid. No exterior "marks" other than her feathers just being a bit oily and very unkempt on her head. The oiliness seems a bit better, too. That symptom is the most baffling to me- I thought maybe mites or something but that wouldn't be causing everything else, plus there are no signs of mites.

The mucus bubble has moved further down her throat, which tells me the overall supply is receding. It's a lot easier to clear from her mouth with q tips, too. No new poop in her cage, but there are some mysteriously green shavings. Like, shamrock green color. I'm wondering if she has green diarrhea.

As far as feeding goes, this is the morning of day 3, so about 36 hours that we know of without food. There was definitely something hard in her crop yesterday morning that has since disappeared, though. I'm feeling to the right of her breastbone below her neck in that "pocket" area between her breast and shoulder bone and it's all just flat and nothing. I am in the right spot, right? I'm feeling all around the entire area and nothing.

We aren't equipped for tube feeding and ordering online wouldn't get here in time, I don't think. She seems to be much, much better at swallowing. What do you think about later this evening mixing up some super liquidy mash and just giving it to her orally drop by drop? I dribble her liquids right at the corner of her mouth so nowhere near her glottis, then let go after every .5ml for her to swallow. It's working quite well with the liquids. I'd do every .1ml before letting her swallow the food to minimize aspiration risk.