Coughing chicken

[nouveauchick]

I heard one of my hens coughing yesterday and she sounds a little rattley. Based on what I read on the boards she most likely has a respiratory infection. One of the posters in the past suggested Tylan. So I have been searching for it and all the ones I have found say to use it for cows and pigs only. If I manage to find it, how do I know how much to give her? I have never administered meds to one of my hens before.

Is there something else I should or could do for her?

Thank You!

 

[jeepgirl13]

One of my hens started having a mucousy breathing problem about two weeks ago. I brought her in the house and started everyone on one week of duramycin, then 3 days of vitamin/electrolyte solution. After about 4days of the duramycin-10 her breathing cleared up. No one else in my flock started showing symptoms, so I am not sure if I caught it early or if she just had allergies. The duramycin was really cheap at my feed store, like 3.99 and treated 13 chickens for one weeek. It worked for me an is probably easier and cheaper to find.
Sorry if this didn't flow well while reading. I haven't had my coffee yet

 

[nouveauchick]

Thanks! I will try that!

 

[jeepgirl13]

I don't know what the weather is like where you are but.if your having windy dusty days I would bring her inside the house, or garage or something, to try and prevent the nasty dusty air from aggravating it worse. I think this helps a lot. The day after I brought my girl in we had gusts up to 60mph for two days. The air was so thick with dust you couldn't see the mountain about 8miles from my house.

The directions on the package of duramycin are for large scale applications. The proper measurement for small applications is 3/4 of a teaspoon per quart of water. The solution MUST be made fresh every 24 hours as it becomes unstable and turns brown after this time period. Any eggs must be thrown out for three weeks after the last dose due to residue from the meds in the eggs. Horrible I know, especially since I just got my first eggs yesterday and the day before. I have heard with the tylan you can never eat the eggs again due to the residue always being in the chickens body.

She doesn't have any drainage or bubbles coming from her nose or eyes does she? What about "bad breath"? My hen had bad breath the first two days but never developed and discharge. She is happy as can be now!

Hope everything works out for you! Good luck and keep me updated! I know how frustrating it can be when no one is posting to help you out. I've been there!

 

[cafarmgirl]

I heard one of my hens coughing yesterday and she sounds a little rattley. Based on what I read on the boards she most likely has a respiratory infection. One of the posters in the past suggested Tylan. So I have been searching for it and all the ones I have found say to use it for cows and pigs only. If I manage to find it, how do I know how much to give her? I have never administered meds to one of my hens before.

Is there something else I should or could do for her?

Thank You!

If you can find Tylan 50 the oral dose for a standard size bird is 1/2 cc once a day for 5 to 7 days. Keep her warm and out of the weather and keep a close watch on the rest of your birds. Chickens don't get simple "colds" like people do, they get respiratory diseases. Getting her some antibiotic's and keeping her warm while she recovers is important because they can get pneumonia and secondary bacterial infections very easily.

 

[nouveauchick]

Ok, so my feed store had tetracycline. But the guy told me to try Vet Rx first. So I have separated the sick hen, put the vet Rx in her water. I put a few drops in the water of the other hens and a few drops in their bedding (that's what the instructions told me to do). It also says I can give it to her orally with a dropper? But it doesn't tell me how much to give her just that a little goes a long way. So I have no idea how to do this. It also says I can rub some on her chest and under her wings?

Has anyone used this before? The guy says it's successful at treating coughs and respiratory stuff and that if it doesn't go away in a few days then I can use the stronger antibiotics.

So I have a few questions for the veterans out there:

Do I have to keep her separate the entire time I'm treating her?

Should I keep her in the house at night or should I wrap her carrier in a towel to keep her warmer?

I know I can't eat her eggs while she is being treated, how long after she is well can I start eating them again?

Can I eat the eggs she has laid while sick?

Is her cough contagious to humans?

 

[nouveauchick]

Thank you both for your replies! I will bring her in and keep her warm. I only have a small animal carrier for her, so can I let her out in the garden during the day so she isn't so confined?

She has no mucous or drainage, I'm not sure about bad breath I didn't smell it

.

I will keep you posted!!

 

[jeepgirl13]

I have never used vet rx, but I do know that chicken illnesses are not generally transferable to humans. Most of them are species specific. You can try letting her out, but when I did this she got worked up over the other chickens and the running around aggravated her breathing. If the same occurs with you, you can try to bring the outside, inside. I filled a shallow but somewhat large card board box with dirt and brought in freshly pulled weeds and "planted" them in the dirt. She loved it and never once acted.bored. please do.keep me posted!

 

[dawg53]

Ok, so my feed store had tetracycline. But the guy told me to try Vet Rx first. So I have separated the sick hen, put the vet Rx in her water. I put a few drops in the water of the other hens and a few drops in their bedding (that's what the instructions told me to do). It also says I can give it to her orally with a dropper? But it doesn't tell me how much to give her just that a little goes a long way. So I have no idea how to do this. It also says I can rub some on her chest and under her wings?

Has anyone used this before? The guy says it's successful at treating coughs and respiratory stuff and that if it doesn't go away in a few days then I can use the stronger antibiotics.

So I have a few questions for the veterans out there:

Do I have to keep her separate the entire time I'm treating her?

Should I keep her in the house at night or should I wrap her carrier in a towel to keep her warmer?

I know I can't eat her eggs while she is being treated, how long after she is well can I start eating them again?

Can I eat the eggs she has laid while sick?

Is her cough contagious to humans?

Vet Rx is useless. I recommend that you follow the directions of either one of the other two posters or cull your sick hen before she spreads whatever it is to your other birds.

 

[Suzierd]

I would try Oxine.
https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/chicken-fungal-infections
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...-poultry-often-mistaken-for-crd-mycoplasmosis