Cockerel has mucas help!

[Wyorp Rock]

This morning he was excited to eat with the rest of my flock. His crop was empty

Do you think it’s safe to say he doesn’t have a respiratory infection, his mucas has cleared. He does ‘yawn’ and always has done quite a bit but it could be just me being paranoid!

I try and naturally worm them with yogurt and ACV. Is there a way to know if they have worms. I will look into a fecal float though.

There is no blood in his droppings and he doesn’t seem very lethargic anymore. He seems to eat and drink enough.

I want to know though can I be sure that it’s not a respiratory infection as our neighbour would like some eggs.

I also found out the silicone that got pulled out was about 2 feet roughly!

Likely, the mucous was from irritation of pulling 2' of silicon out of the crop. Since his crop is emptying and he's not lethargic anymore, he's eating/drinking, it sounds like he's doing much better!

I can't say for sure he doesn't have respiratory infection, but if you only noticed the mucous right after the material was pulled through the esophagus and he has since showed No signs of respiratory illness (coughing, wheezing, sneezing, runny nostrils, facial swelling, pus and/or bubbles in the eyes) then at this point he's probably o.k. It's always a good idea to observe your birds for symptoms, especially new ones you bring in. As far as eggs go, he's not laying any is he? Of course with any illness, one should use caution, but if eggs are fresh and cooked properly, generally there shouldn't be cause for concern.

You mention he's yawning. Do take some time to watch that and check his crop for a while to make sure it's emptying. Also checking inside the beak for any signs of canker or lesions. The yawning may be adjusting the crop, so I would assume your birds have access to some type of Insoluble Grit (Crushed Granite/Flint).

Unfortunately, yogurt and ACV will not act as dewormers. Both however can be a source of probiotics and in moderation can help sooth the gut and can sometimes be beneficial. It's best to gather up a sampling of droppings and have the Vet do a fecal float, if worms are found, the Vet can recommend what products to use. Probably something like Flubendazole (Flubenvet), Levamisole or Panacur (Fenbendazole), but a lot depends on what's available at your location in the world.

Handsome cockerel and flock! I wish you well

 

[Pebbles25]

They won't need nearly as much coop space as is often quoted on here if they're free ranging and only go in there to lay and roost. Do they also go in during bad weather or do they have other spots to shelter in?

(I'm in Orkney so similar to you - not many predators to worry about but lots of wind!)

yes that’s all they do in the coop roost and lay eggs. They have a wind proofed area we shut them in when it’s hurricane wind speeds and at the bottom of our garden there is a lot of shrubs.

 

[Pebbles25]

The wind should not be a problem if your ventilation openings are above the chickens' heads when they roost and not disrupting their feathers.

No it isn’t except when you have a coop that leaks and a big vent above the nest box that the wind drives rain into. Hoping to get a better coop next year!

 

[Pebbles25]

I'm not sure where in Scotland OP is but here the wind could rip the roof right off a coop that would be fine in a lot of places, and it does things like making it rain uphill. It definitely limits how you can build things.

Yes I’m not too far from you!

 

[BDutch]

No it isn’t except when you have a coop that leaks and a big vent above the nest box that the wind drives rain into. Hoping to get a better coop next year!

Isn’t it possible to repair the roof?
I have an old prefab. Its about 13 yo now. It started to leak after 3 years. Made a new larger roof on top of the old one.

A plastic sheet + WRCedar wood to protect the plastic. Could be something else if you need to buy something new. We had this stored. It was a remnant from an earlier build shed.

Also added a piece of EPDM (rubber) over the hinges of the lid of the nestbox.
Added a second hand window at the west-side (behind the chicken ladder) against the prevailing winds with rain.

When the coop became too small (chicken math) , I made an extension with a larger roost space.

The original coop for 4 small bantams.

13 years later.

 

[Pebbles25]

Likely, the mucous was from irritation of pulling 2' of silicon out of the crop. Since his crop is emptying and he's not lethargic anymore, he's eating/drinking, it sounds like he's doing much better!

I can't say for sure he doesn't have respiratory infection, but if you only noticed the mucous right after the material was pulled through the esophagus and he has since showed No signs of respiratory illness (coughing, wheezing, sneezing, runny nostrils, facial swelling, pus and/or bubbles in the eyes) then at this point he's probably o.k. It's always a good idea to observe your birds for symptoms, especially new ones you bring in. As far as eggs go, he's not laying any is he? Of course with any illness, one should use caution, but if eggs are fresh and cooked properly, generally there shouldn't be cause for concern.

You mention he's yawning. Do take some time to watch that and check his crop for a while to make sure it's emptying. Also checking inside the beak for any signs of canker or lesions. The yawning may be adjusting the crop, so I would assume your birds have access to some type of Insoluble Grit (Crushed Granite/Flint).

Unfortunately, yogurt and ACV will not act as dewormers. Both however can be a source of probiotics and in moderation can help sooth the gut and can sometimes be beneficial. It's best to gather up a sampling of droppings and have the Vet do a fecal float, if worms are found, the Vet can recommend what products to use. Probably something like Flubendazole (Flubenvet), Levamisole or Panacur (Fenbendazole), but a lot depends on what's available at your location in the world.

Handsome cockerel and flock! I wish you well

His crop was empty this morning, he seems way better running around with the others, we had him in a dog crate when he had the mucas but couple hours after we brought him in he wasn’t lethargic anymore and the mucas had cleared. I think it was a couple days after we pulled the silicone out. He and no other flock members and showing and signs of being ill now. I think the yawning is just adjusting his crop as he’s not doing it a whole lot. When he was inside I checked his throat when he was inside I couldn’t see anything but it was very hard so I couldn’t guarantee and after I did it once he proceeded to bite me every time i tried opening his beak. I don’t buy grit I let them find it outside as we have quite a big gravel drive and I see them scratching around and pecking at it. Ok I will think about getting a fecal float! Thank you!

 

[Pebbles25]

Isn’t it possible to repair the roof?
I have an old prefab. Its about 13 yo now. It started to leak after 3 years. Made a new larger roof on top of the old one.

A plastic sheet + WRCedar wood to protect the plastic. Could be something else if you need to buy something new. We had this stored. It was a remnant from an earlier build shed.

Also added a piece of EPDM (rubber) over the hinges of the lid of the nestbox.
Added a second hand window at the west-side (behind the chicken ladder) against the prevailing winds with rain.

When the coop became too small (chicken math) , I made an extension with a larger roost space.

The original coop for 4 small bantams. View attachment 4216758

13 years later.
View attachment 4216759

It’s always leaked! I’ll attach a photo of where it’s leaking. You can se the dark stripes all the way down where the water is coming in. I’ve creacoted both coops. Maybe we could fix it! I’ll start another forum ti see if people have ideas on how to fix it! Thank you so much for helping!

 

[BDutch]

you posted the same post 4x ^^

If you want to buy a new small coop and don’t have much money, maybe a wooden childrens playhouse is a good solution for your chickens too. Last year I bought one and converted it to a chicken coop. I wrote an article (in small coops). The auto pop door was more expensive than the playhouse.

Please add a link to your help question here too.

 

[Pebbles25]

you posted the same post 4x ^^

If you want to buy a new small coop and don’t have much money, maybe a wooden childrens playhouse is a good solution for your chickens too. Last year I bought one and converted it to a chicken coop. I wrote an article (in small coops). The auto pop door was more expensive than the playhouse.

Oh ok! I will look into it! Don’t know how I posted it 4x?!

 

[BDutch]

Oh ok! I will look into it! Don’t know how I posted it 4x?!

You can report it, if you like to delete 3. The moderators can help with it.