Colorado

[TracieJS]

THANK YOU ALL ! I do tend to read and think my chicks have all the worst things. I kept checking on them last night and this morning I had the kids clean out the pen and remove all the hay (just in case its a dust issue) since they have to be in the pen all day.

I am stopping to pick up some Poultry VetRX (and if they have some, Oxine) on the way home and hope that they will be feeling better. They don't seem sick otherwise (still running around and eating up a storm) but definetly lots of sneezing and runny noses last night. How long should I wait before taking them to the vet if I am not seeing improvement?

Thank you sincerely from a chicken newby!!

 

[ShysCreations]

Here's info about the Denver County fair coming up Aug 10. I understand the poultry show is APA sanctioned. The Colo Poultry Assoc will have members on hand, even a chicken basics class provided (free!) Should be fun!

 

[coloradogal]

THANK YOU ALL ! I do tend to read and think my chicks have all the worst things. I kept checking on them last night and this morning I had the kids clean out the pen and remove all the hay (just in case its a dust issue) since they have to be in the pen all day.

I am stopping to pick up some Poultry VetRX (and if they have some, Oxine) on the way home and hope that they will be feeling better. They don't seem sick otherwise (still running around and eating up a storm) but definetly lots of sneezing and runny noses last night. How long should I wait before taking them to the vet if I am not seeing improvement?

Thank you sincerely from a chicken newby!!

It really just depends. I suspect if it is nothing serious, their poop will stay firm (just remember they will have chocolate poo and an occasional watery poo) and their discharge will stay clear with no worsening of symptoms of wheezing. You'll know if their breathing is labored. This is what my EE sounded like with severe respiratory distress.

I separated her, started an oxine treatment (I only had MMS at the time but its the same thing as oxine but in the activated form and given in dropfuls, not ounces, never ounces). By the next morning she sounded like this.



I am not sure if it was caused by too much DE from the day before or if she did indeed have a severe respiratory issue. But by just keeping her in a comfy environment and doing the things that I did... she was better in less than a day.

I can't stress enough to not stress out.

It's very hard to diagnose for anyone what it could be. There are just too many variables. But make sure the poo is normal, the secretions are clear, the eyes are clear and the breathing doesn't sound labored. ohhh, and like I believe chicks-in-the-burbs said, give them some vitamins/electrolytes. They certainly can't hurt and can only help.

 

[Auntie]

My youngest is 29. My grandkids are 4, 2, and 1. I wish life wouldn't speed by so quickly. I still have so much I want to do.

 

[Mommato5]

OK. I refuse to make the post "Is my chick a roo?" in the raising chicks section, but...

Do signs of rooster start to present themselves as early as 5 weeks? Guessing it is waaay to early to know, but one of my chicks has a comb developing much sooner than the other 4 and the thing that actually concerns me more is his/her tail feathers are pointing "up" rather than "back" like the others...am I being one of those annoying hyper vigilant (over vigilant) chicken freaks or are the tail feathers a decent indicator?

mo

Did you see my post a few pages back? Looks like one of my Australorps is a boy! I posted a pic and literally everyone has thought he's a Roo. It's because of his comb. It's much bigger than any of the others and it's bright red! Some of the others have developing combs but not as big as his and none are red! One of my EE's has a light pink comb but she's the runt and behind all the others across the board so I'm fairly sure she's a she! You could compare your chick to mine or just post a pic of your chicks here and see what people say. I don't see anything wrong with asking if your chick is a Roo. I did.

 

[gardendufus]

Yay! Ihave some squatting from my califonia white and i saw some nests in the coop

hopefully eggs are coming soon

YAY for you.

And Yay for me. As of today I have two girls laying.

 

[ONSTAD1]

OK. After looking at a few pics of chicks thought to be roos, I am pretty doubtful BO is a roo. I'll post a pic anyway, just to get opinions.




Thoughts?

 

[dennarahl]

Welcome home!



I'll give it to you. Sometimes I forget things...crap... dannarahl - I forgot to get the check out to you. I will try to make sure it goes out today.... so if I forget, just keep reminding me. I have so much going on between work and puppies and chickens and lawn work and my son, that I just draw a blank sometimes.

I can't eat my own birds yet. I know that someday I will but just not now. I can eat other peoples though. Although I have two marans roosters that I'm really not a fan of.

No problem, I've been so busy I've been pretty slow about making the saddles.

 

[dennarahl]

Hi Tracie,

It's too early to know. Almost all backyard flocks get various respiratory diseases from the wild bird population. In most cases, it will go away on its own and you'll not have another issue with those symptoms unless they get stressed. One reason why chickens brought into your place from others is that stress reaction. On an off note: The 'organic' chicken people have led to the commercial raising of chickens in darkness, no fresh air, open sky, etc. If you give your chickens access to fresh air and open space, they will pick up things from the wild bird population. So now the issue comes to whether it is severe or not. There are numerous threads on byc regarding this but IMHO: just pick up some Oxine and run it through the humidifier in their coop for a half hour a day for 7 days. It should help tremendously as well as adding it in minute quantities to their drinking water.

Respiratory issues is not an 'if' but a 'when' with chickens. They have such gentle respiratory systems which is why ventilation is more important than almost any other factor we have control over.

Don't stress too much just learn. It's hard to tell a sick chicken because they hide symptoms so well. I remember the first time a couple of my chickens got the crud and i freaked out. I called my Mom and asked her and she said just not to worry but she was Mom and what did she know, right? Then I went to BYC and was scared out of my mind at all the things it could be...with a few people recommending culling the entire flock for what he believed, he did not know for sure, was CRD. ***? A little drastic when he wasn't even sure.

That said, your babies could be suffering from infectious bronchitis. Don't freak as it just has to take its course. I had my chicks vaccinated from it although the chicks born here with most likely get it. There is really not much you can do as rodents can bring it in as can wild birds. Once again, Oxine can help.

Anyways, just don't freak out. Chickens get respiratory issues very easy. If you add too much DE, you can get symptoms. Treating before you know for sure what it is can cause problems. Most of the really severe things are noticeable, 'oh sh!t' things like crud or bubbles in the eyes, labored breathing, no desire to move, etc.

When I was a young girl, the chickens were never mine and because of that, I didn't worry if a chicken had a cold -no, they don't get colds but back then I believed they could- or was broody. It wasn't my responsibility so I just collected eggs. It becomes intensely real when they are your responsibility. At some point, I think I believed that my chickens have had every major disease there is. I was making symptoms fit, etc. But they were fine and healthy and my eggs were prolific, even in winter.

I guess I'm just saying don't stress so much. Make sure their poop is normal, pick up some VetRx and if you need a few ounces of Oxine to do the water treatment, just PM me. Bairo has an excellent page on tons of things. https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/ailments-such

and one on Oxine. Oxine is known to the alternate health community as MMS and is used internally. So there shouldn't be any fear of having it around your chickens. I had one girl sounding really bad and gave her a few doses and it cleared right up. https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/bairos-member-page scroll down for his oxine information. I use the stuff all the time for cleaning around the house.


edit: realized that my quote around organic could be taken the wrong way. IMHO: by making chickens organic, they have taken from them the ability to see the sky and breathe fresh air. I am not talking small flocks but commercially raised. They are kept in virtual isolation, many places even with their own air supply to prevent infection from the wild bird population. Chickens will pick up things from the wild birds, which is why backyard flocks always have crud circulating that commercial places dont. Commercial places have biosecurity protocols in place. So sorry if it sounded snarky. It wasn't my intention.

Is there somewhere to get Oxine locally?

 

[dennarahl]

OK. After looking at a few pics of chicks thought to be roos, I am pretty doubtful BO is a roo. I'll post a pic anyway, just to get opinions.




Thoughts?

What type is it, and does it have any similar siblings to compare the comb to? If I remember from my chicks, 5 weeks was still a little to early to tell, but it was the comb that tipped me off in all three cases. I didn't really see any clues from the feathers until it was obvious they were boys from combs and attitudes.