Cockerel gaping during the middle of Fenbendazole treatment

[citychicks99]

My cockerel is about 4 months old and it seems like every other week, something is wrong with him.

I first dosed him with Fenbendazole on November 5th for 5 days along with Tylan 50 because I thought it was worms at first then realized it was a respiratory illness. I should have probably dosed him again sooner but I wasn't sure if the 10-15 days count would start from the first or last day of his treatment. He also had sour crop last week and I thought it might have been too much. I started dosing him again with Fenbendazole, .25 cc per body weight since Sunday. Tomorrow would be the fifth day but I just noticed today that he gapes his neck about once every minute and seems to shake his head from time to time. If it's gapeworms, I thought Fenbendazole would work for that by now, the 4th day? Everything else seems normal. His poop looks normal, his crop is emptying, he's eating normal, and I'm not hearing any gurgling noises from him. I did noticed that a few days ago that it looks like he has fowl pox (the dry kind) on his comb. I understand there's no treatment for that and I will just have to keep him healthy and his bedding dry.

Would there be another reason for gaping neck?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I first dosed him with Fenbendazole on November 5th for 5 days

I started dosing him again with Fenbendazole, .25 cc per body weight since Sunday. Tomorrow would be the fifth day but I just noticed today that he gapes his neck about once every minute and seems to shake his head from time to time. If it's gapeworms, I thought Fenbendazole would work for that by now, the 4th day?

You treated with Fenbendazole for 5 days in November and now are just finishing up another 5 days?
You only give for 5 days, there's no repeat.

Photos of him and the Fowl Pox. Photos of the inside of his beak.
Gapeworm would have been treated with the first round of Fenbendazole.

I'm not sure what's going on with him. He's not been well for a good while now.

I think maybe we need to take a look at everything again. Symptoms, feed, etc.

Go back to the basics. Plain water, fresh feed, good ventilation in the coop, fresh air, sunshine, dry bedding, grit provided free choice. Check him for lice/mites and make sure his crop is emptying overnight.

 

[citychicks99]

You treated with Fenbendazole for 5 days in November and now are just finishing up another 5 days?
You only give for 5 days, there's no repeat.

Photos of him and the Fowl Pox. Photos of the inside of his beak.
Gapeworm would have been treated with the first round of Fenbendazole.

I'm not sure what's going on with him. He's not been well for a good while now.

I think maybe we need to take a look at everything again. Symptoms, feed, etc.

Go back to the basics. Plain water, fresh feed, good ventilation in the coop, fresh air, sunshine, dry bedding, grit provided free choice. Check him for lice/mites and make sure his crop is emptying overnight.

I thought I read on this forum that there was a repeat. I won't repeat it next time then. I also read that you change the wormer in the Spring to prevent resistance.

It looks like a lot of the fowl pox had dried off today so it doesn't look too bad right now but you can see some black dots. Here's the inside of his mouth. He wasn't happy about this picture but he was good and held still long enough.

Yep, I give him plain water, flock raiser, poultry cell, grit free choice. His crop is emptying. His bedding wasn't dry previously but we fixed that by moving them into an old dog house that hadn't been occupied in years. I scoop out the top layer of poop every day and clean their run. We left an opening in the door for ventilation. I let him and the pullet out in their run that is about 6'x6' every day and I try and let them out in the rest of the backyard for a bit during the day. We do lack sunshine here.

 

[Eggcessive]

That doesn’t look like fowl pox to me, but maybe some fly bites, pecking or injury. Is he adjusting his crop or really gaping? Does he have poultry grit available? Is he drinking plenty of water?

 

[citychicks99]

That doesn’t look like fowl pox to me, but maybe some fly bites, pecking or injury. Is he adjusting his crop or really gaping? Does he have poultry grit available? Is he drinking plenty of water?

I do leave out grit. I see him drink plenty of water. Between him and the pullet, they drink about 4-6 ounces a day.

I hope it's just him adjusting his crop. This is what he did yesterday, twice within 3 minutes.

 

[Banana01]

Gaping is normal sometimes during or after treatment, it is not necessarily fenbendazole. If i recall correctly, there are virtually zero side effects and risks if i recall with fenbendazole from reading about the drug. Your rooster is huge and healthy looking. He isnt having any symptoms of worms nor are worms a risk for a chicken that size.

If he begins getting lethargic, puffy, and gaping then it could be a severe blockage, but you already treated so it should stop soon after stopping the treatments. I would liken that gaping more to a healthy burp if he is eating normally.

 

[citychicks99]

Gaping is normal sometimes during or after treatment, it is not necessarily fenbendazole. If i recall correctly, there are virtually zero side effects and risks if i recall with fenbendazole from reading about the drug. Your rooster is huge and healthy looking. He isnt having any symptoms of worms nor are worms a risk for a chicken that size.

If he begins getting lethargic, puffy, and gaping then it could be a severe blockage, but you already treated so it should stop soon after stopping the treatments. I would liken that gaping more to a healthy burp if he is eating normally.

Thank you! I wasn't aware of that happening while they're on treatment.

Would it be necessary to worm him again during the Spring?

 

[Banana01]

Thank you! I wasn't aware of that happening while they're on treatment.

Would it be necessary to worm him again during the Spring?

I quit worming my adult chickens because once they were wormed as a young juvenile, they gained weight and were healthy. I dont worm adults unless: i see several worms in their droppings, or they are losing weight or skinny, or they only drink water a couple days in a row and had a history of worms, or are developing illness which requires antibiotic treatments.

So if anything maybe 6 months if you were doing prevemtative. I know where they sleep and can see worms in their droppings. Adults are way less alikely to die than young ones, and i have no worm problems by only lookong for the symptoms above.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Looks like a normal action of adjusting the crop.
He looks healthy and fine to me. The scabs on the comb look like minor injury or rub.

There is no repeat when giving Fenbendazole for 5 days in a row.
Many use the same dewormer a couple of times a year, but you could switch between Fenbendazole and Albendazole (Valbazen) if you are worried about resistance.