Coughing chicken, drooping comb, undigested grain in poo

[KimblesCol]

Hi guys. I am wondering if anybody has encountered the following symptoms in their chooks. I have an Isa Brown chicken, unsure of the age as she is a rescue chicken, but I have had her for about six months. I think she must be at least two or three. She stopped laying a few months back - kept going to lay, but nothing came out and eventually she stopped. Over the past few weeks she has gotten steadily more lethargic and slow. Her comb is drooping and her eyes are quite slitted. She is still eating, but there is often undigested grain in her poo (often green poo). She also has a cough.
The vet tried her on an antibiotic to treat gram negative bacteria for a week to see if that might be a cause and that seemed to be improving her. The tablets ran out four days ago and she is now regressing and I am taking her in tomorrow to see about more antibiotics, but I am wondering if anybody knows what this might be?

Thanks!

 

[azygous]

The major clue is the laying part where she kept trying for a time, then gave up. This points to peritonitis from an oviduct inflammation. Also, that she started to improve on the antibiotic, then regressed when stopped, is another clue she has an infection in her oviduct, or maybe even in her abdominal cavity.

The coughing may be a bacterial infection of the respiratory tract that moved in opportunistically due to her declining condition.

I hate to have to tell you that she may be too far gone for even an avian vet to surgically intervene. I would consider a compassionate end to her suffering.

 

[KimblesCol]

Thanks for your reply. It sounds like it quite possibly could be peritonitis. I hope not or that it's not that far along, but it probably is by the timelines. Oh, she's a lovely girl, I hope we can save her...

 

[MINDANAO DAVE]

Hi guys. I am wondering if anybody has encountered the following symptoms in their chooks. I have an Isa Brown chicken, unsure of the age as she is a rescue chicken, but I have had her for about six months. I think she must be at least two or three. She stopped laying a few months back - kept going to lay, but nothing came out and eventually she stopped. Over the past few weeks she has gotten steadily more lethargic and slow. Her comb is drooping and her eyes are quite slitted. She is still eating, but there is often undigested grain in her poo (often green poo). She also has a cough.
The vet tried her on an antibiotic to treat gram negative bacteria for a week to see if that might be a cause and that seemed to be improving her. The tablets ran out four days ago and she is now regressing and I am taking her in tomorrow to see about more antibiotics, but I am wondering if anybody knows what this might be?

Thanks!

Check NreNewcas Disease. I just lost 64 birds in 6 days.

 

[MINDANAO DAVE]

Newcastle Disease

 

[Eggcessive]

Mindanao Dave, exotic newcastles is a very rare respiratory disease, and is not found in the US.
I would have to agree that this sounds more like a reproductive issue, and I have lost several to this condition. One can learn a lot from doing a necropsy after death by opening the abdomen, and looking for fluid in the belly, as well as examining organs. Take pictures and post some here. Examine the abdominal contents, the intestines, the inside of the gizzard and crop, and look for any egg-like material in the belly.