Dead hens

[Knightlight]

I have/had about 70 hens and some roosters in a large coop for the last 2 months since we dont have our mesh fencing up yet and they keep teying to commit suicide on the road and are invading my neighbors yard.

I recently started letting them out again. Not a good idea, but also very necessary... not all, but a lot of the birds are developing sour crop, swollen faces, coughing, sneezing, nasal discharge... and it is non contagious. Only this coop is presenting these symptoms. I have 3 birds penned directly next to these birds and they are fine, a coop of 20 separate, but free ranging on the same area, and they are fine, and another coop of 3, also the same as the coop of 20. There are also about 60 chicks that come and go from each pen and are fine. I have also been cross contaminating everything just by not realizing there was an issue until about 2/3 of the large coop suddenly developed swollen faces. I had 5 die yesterday, 3 today, and I'll probably have more die yet...

It is without a doubt not an infectious disease as none of the other birds are developing it and not even all of the big coop has it.

Im almost certain its respritory due to environment, dusty and damp in the coop from intense rain then intensely dry weather coming immediately out of winter.

Ive given them all shots before for a different issue, but Im hoping to not have to again, but I will if necessary. Is there anything I can put in their water or will la200 work to help clear them up? I will absolutely do injections on all of them again if necessary. Please help, i dont know what to do anymore, ive had over 200 adults and chicks die on me this year already from a bobcat, their own stupidity, sour crop, general unthriftiness in chicks, trampling.... Im at such a loss and just don't want to loose more birds... im not looking for holistic or organic 'solutions' here. I need something thats going to kick this shit in the ass.

Currently several birds are recovering from sour crop using vaginal antifungal cream, but the respiratory issue needs urgent address.

Located in Northern Wisconsin. A FREE necropsy lab would also be nice to find. I cant afford the $200 bill the state lab charged us, each, on the last 2 birds we brought in.

 

[azygous]

It sounds like Mycoplasm galisepticum. This soluble powder will treat it in the drinking water. https://www.jedds.com/shop/tylan-soluble-100-g/

You've certainly gone through a lot of chickens. I would hazard a guess that overcrowding, poor ventilation, and lax hygiene may be contributing to your high loss. It should be a wake up call.

Coop space rule of thumb is four square feet per chicken. If that minimum isn't met, that would be one factor that needs correcting. Dust and feces buildup create conditions that harbor bacteria, encouraging respiratory illness.

Treating the illness won't get you far unless you correct the conditions that contribute to it, but then I think you probably already know this.

 

[MissE]

Maybe I'm wrong, but from your description, it sounds like they are over crowded.

What are the sizes of the coops and how many birds are in each one? What exactly is your outdoor set up? What are these chickens being raised for? What is the general age? If they are layers, how many eggs are you getting?

Most respiratory diseases never really go away.

 

[Knightlight]

It sounds like Mycoplasm galisepticum. This soluble powder will treat it in the drinking water. https://www.jedds.com/shop/tylan-soluble-100-g/

You've certainly gone through a lot of chickens. I would hazard a guess that overcrowding, poor ventilation, and lax hygiene may be contributing to your high loss. It should be a wake up call.

Coop space rule of thumb is four square feet per chicken. If that minimum isn't met, that would be one factor that needs correcting. Dust and feces buildup create conditions that harbor bacteria, encouraging respiratory illness.

Treating the illness won't get you far unless you correct the conditions that contribute to it, but then I think you probably already know this.

They have plenty of coop space. That 200 birds is day old chicks to 5 year old hens and roosters. I had a bobcat take out almost my entire flock earlier this year and about 40 chicks get trampled in a HUGE space. Theres no over crowding, the coops have ventilation, they get cleaned out frequently, and i know for a fact it isnt myco because ive been tested for that already. The symptoms didnt show up until after it was extremely wet due to weeks of rain and melting snow, then it hasnt really rained since, so now its super dry and dusty.

 

[Knightlight]

Maybe I'm wrong, but from your description, it sounds like they are over crowded.

What are the sizes of the coops and how many birds are in each one? What exactly is your outdoor set up? What are these chickens being raised for? What is the general age? If they are layers, how many eggs are you getting?

Most respiratory diseases never really go away.

The coops are over 10x10 and over 20x20, the outdoor space is free range. The big coop has less than 50 birds in it now and they had been fine, all winter too, up until the shit weather. Recounted and the most that was in there was 60. I thought maybe 70, but wasnt sure, that was before I split my coops. The other coop has 20, and the 3s are in smaller coops.

 

[arwoon]

They have plenty of coop space. That 200 birds is day old chicks to 5 year old hens and roosters. I had a bobcat take out almost my entire flock earlier this year and about 40 chicks get trampled in a HUGE space. Theres no over crowding, the coops have ventilation, they get cleaned out frequently, and i know for a fact it isnt myco because ive been tested for that already. The symptoms didnt show up until after it was extremely wet due to weeks of rain and melting snow, then it hasnt really rained since, so now its super dry and dusty.

Hmmm. Doesn't sound over crowded. So do you have a place where you can separate the infected chickens from the healthy ones? I don't k ow a lot about respiratory illnesses, so I hope someone with better knowledge than I will be along shortly to help with what u need!

 

[Knightlight]

Maybe I'm wrong, but from your description, it sounds like they are over crowded.

What are the sizes of the coops and how many birds are in each one? What exactly is your outdoor set up? What are these chickens being raised for? What is the general age? If they are layers, how many eggs are you getting?

Most respiratory diseases never really go away.

Theyre layers mostly. Im getting anywhere from 10 to 30 eggs a day from this coop. Most are in the 1-2 year range, some are roosters,and some are juveniles and older non layers

 

[azygous]

Are you in California by any chance? Newcastle has symptoms such as you describe. It has a very high mortality rate.

 

[Knightlight]

Are you in California by any chance? Newcastle has symptoms such as you describe. It has a very high mortality rate.

Northern wisconsin. Most of the birds were killed by a bobcat that got into my coop by ripping open a wall. Ive lost them and a lot of chicks to being weak, getting trampled, one actually burned itself to death, another suffocated itself in feed, etc. Ive lost a few to sour crop that I didnt catch in time, one fell in the duck pool, and Ive lost 8 hens so far to this. Theyve been tested and are negative for myco, AI, IB, mareks, etc. The weather has been such shit that the coop is repeatedly full of dust, no matter how much I clean. They have a huge open window and vents throughout the top of the coop.

 

[coach723]

Aspergillosis maybe. Not contagious in the viral sense, it's in the environment. Wet conditions would be prime. It's fungal/mold.
More info:
https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/aspergillosis-in-birds
https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/aspergillosis/aspergillosis-in-poultry