Crop or Respiratory Issue - So Confused

[cottagehome]

I have a 1 1/2 year-old EE that has been honking/wheezing. This has been off and on for a couple months. At first I thought she might just have a sensitivity to any dust that she gets into. She has not behaved any differently. Has been consistently eating, drinking, and laying.

At one point, I did worry her crop felt a bit hard (but has never had a nasty odor), so I helped her vomit as I hung her upside down to gently massage it. That seemed to help and she behaved normally after.

Now she has once again begun to honk and wheeze, but has more labored breathing and neck stretching. Today she was less energetic and hung back from the rest of the flock for some of the day, but has not been completely lethargic. She has continued to lay and laid a beautiful, strong, blue egg just yesterday. I have applied Vet Rx to her nostrils because they sound a little stuffy.

I have spent the day online and reading my Chicken Health Handbook, and I am still confused! The other 4 chickens in my flock have always been perfectly fine while this one has had these issues. I do have her isolated, but I cannot figure out if this is a crop infection or respiratory. This is the only one of my chickens that has had any real issues of this nature, so I am not sure whether to assume infection and put her on Tylan 50, or to try other homeopathic remedies for impacted crop.

From all I have studied over the time I've had my flock, if it was respiratory the whole group would have gotten ill a long time ago but they have always been fine. She is the only one that seems to keep having recurring issues. Thanks for any advice.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

I suspicion CRD (chronic respiratory disease) which is a leftover of mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) infection probably caught in youth or even from mum to the egg.

Many birds come with it, depending upon where you got the bird. (Hatcheries screen for it). Early symptoms can be very mild, and symptoms come and go usually triggered by some stressor (cold, heat, dust, over crowding, worm load, etc.).

The bird becomes a carrier for life, but fortunately infection is slow to others, but you have to assume the rest of the flock have it too.

Treatment for chronic infection is best with tetracyclines. You used to be able to get bacitracin feed additive to help control outbreaks, but antibiotics are pretty much hard to get for poultry now.

Do the usual stuff to help boost the immune system. ACV (raw with mother) in the water. Garlic is a good anti-viral, anti-biotic. You might also try some elderberry tincture in the water. Keep dust low and avoid drafty conditions.

I've had a few birds purchased from breeders that I've suspicion had it, and you can't really do much if you get birds from local breeders. Wild animals also bring it in.

Mild cases typically cause little harm. It come and goes...like asthma in people....but you need to be aware of it as it can cause secondary infections.

There is a vaccine for new birds.

https://poultrykeeper.com/respiratory-problems/mycoplasma/

and another article
http://www.agriinfo.in/?page=topic&superid=9&topicid=115



My thoughts.

LofMc

 

[cottagehome]

Thank you for that information. I have read about MG a bit. I ordered my chicks from My Pet Chicken - they will be 2 years old in April. I have always done ACV with mother in the water and some of the other remedies you mentioned I've tried off and on. We do have good ventilation in the coop. I do think there seems to be a correlation with her being worse in times of extreme heat or cold. She also has always seemed to be more susceptible to any dust that may get stirred up.

I'm wondering if now she has developed a secondary infection from it, so I will proceed from there. Thanks again for the information and help.