Cornish Cross - Respiratory Problems

[DunRovinFarm]

Hi folks, LTRFTP (Long Time Reader First Time Poster) here. I've searched the forums here and the net and still can't find an answer to this question. I bought 20 laying hens from an auction - only to find this site afterwards and find out that was the wrong way to get chickens - and they ended up with a respiratory disease. We used antibiotics and it saved them, though it seems to flare up a bit when they're stressed.

We also bought 100 Cornish Cross chickens to raise for meat. They are about 8 weeks old now and are starting to show the same symptoms as the laying hens originally had: coughing, sneezing, wheezing, swollen eyes that sometimes bubble. One died today, and I'm convinced it was the respiratory disease and not heart failure because of the sneezing and coughing, while the others are starting to sneeze and cough as well. The question I have, the one that doesn't seem to be addressed anywhere, is this: Are broilers safe to eat if they have a respiratory disease? If you know or have had a similar situation can you share your knowledge or experience? I love this online community and was surprised that I couldn't find anything addressing this particular question!

 

[Eggcessive]

I'm not sure about eating a bird with respiratory disease. I know people butcher chickens with cocci, but you may need to wait on someone with more experience with meat birds to give an opinion. In the meantime, go up the page to the search, and try "butcher chicken with respiratory disease."

 

[DunRovinFarm]

I just found something online. Someone posted a link to this manual, it's a guide for the butchering of animals in the third world put out by the United Nations. This specific section says that if it's Avian Influenza then they should be condemned. So as painful as it is, there's my answer.

For anyone else looking for information on this problem here is the link to the guide: http://www.fao.org/docrep/003/t0756e/T0756E08.htm#ch7.1.1

 

[DunRovinFarm]

Anyone have any idea if I can give them antibiotics and then eat them once they recover?