Congested chicken. Results:klebsiella pneumoniae..?!?

[Andora]

My buff brahma hen is full of snot, congested, rattly. Her nose isn't runny, but her mouth is full of mucus. (There is no smell.)

I have been so careful about biosecurity. No auction birds, no strangers with dirty shoes, the only new birds I've brought in EVER were chicks and they were isolated in the brooder for weeks. I have no other sick birds. No one near me owns chickens, since I'm in a suburb.

I can't believe I have a sick bird. I isolated her in the garage.

Once before I bought sick adult birds, quite awhile ago, and I had to get rid of my entire flock and start over. I disinfected everything, waited months, and got new birds. Now I have a great flock full of (what look like) healthy birds that I raised from chicks.

I don't know what to do, except cry.

All of the other birds seem totally healthy, so far.

Do you think there is any chance at all that she could have something on her own, not a disease?? Is there any way to find out with out having to necropsy her, like a swab or something?

 

[mraltice]

Sorry to hear your baby is sick!

I was upset when my silkie got congested. I gave her Duramycin in her water for 9 days. She is very healthy and sitting on eggs now. It can be purchased at TSC but I can't remember how much it cost. You can put it right in her water. It's suggested use is 7-14 days. I hope this helps! Good luck!

 

[Andora]

Thanks.

I just took several swabs of her throat and I'm getting ready to take them to the animal diagnostic lab for testing, as soon as I stop crying and panicking that they have somehow gotten a disease...

 

[Andora]

I keep trying to think where the disease could have come from, and I've got nothing. In the past 3 months I haven't gotten any new chicks at all. I hatched some of my own, from my own stock.

I am so distraught.

 

[pips&peeps]

wild birds......

I would bet it is infectious bronchitis. If so, it shouldn't kill them unless they are in poor health already. It can take six weeks to go through the flock and they will be done with it. It does not come back like alot of the other diseases.

Good luck,

 

[Andora]

She seems to have a fever. In my previous sick flock, they never were feverish that I noticed. The sick bird has burning hot feet and glassy dilated eyes. She's still standing up looking around, not puffed or sleeping or drooping, but she is extremely rattly and congested in her chest.

 

[speckledhen]

I can imagine how stressed you are! Even with the best biosecurity, there are little ways for them to pick up things, from shoes of other folks, from feedbags, wild birds as Jean said, etc. You just have to do the best you can. Let us know what they say about the swabs you took, okay?

 

[Buckguy20]

Since it is just one bird, you might try giving it a shot of Tylan.
LS-50 is good for putting in the water but can be pricey.

 

[Andora]

We don't even wear the same shoes to the feed store as we wear out in the yard around the birds! That's how paranoid I am, after the last flocked died one by one in our arms.

I just dropped off the swabs. They said they should have the results monday or tuesday, because it takes 48 hours to run the culture. In the mean time I was considering Tylan...I know how inject it. Or maybe something else? Possibly just apple cider vinegar (the organic kind) and grapefruit seed extract to kill infection.

I've never seen a chicken with a fever before. I'm not sure what to think. The mucus is clear though, not green or yellow or smelly. Her feathers are clean and intact, even shiny still. She doesn't look sick aside from walking slowly and the congestion in her throat. She doesn't even itch her beak or wipe it on her feathers at all.

I'll let you all know what the results are!

 

[chicky gal1]

Good luck to you. Sending hugs your way!

Please do keep us posted.