Do You Know Any Natural Remedies for Respiratory Illnesses?

[farlo4]

Okay important update as of 3/30/2014. Today I checked on the chicks and one was dead. It wasn't even one of the sickest that are mentioned below. It was one of the other ones - sneezing, but not like the other one. She was very active with clear eyes. So what happened? The other sneezing chick was doing better. This was totally not expected. I had a thought - back when we first got her (about two weeks ago) our dog got a hold of her. It was just for a second (my little brother decided it would be a good idea to put her on the floor next to the dog. *sigh*.)She had no obvious injuries and was fine the rest of the day and all days since. Could that have done something? Seems weird since it's been so long.

I am having problems with my chicks. They are now a little over 2 weeks old. About a week ago I noticed one start sneezing (let's call it chick 1). Now chick 1 is sneezing all the time. The other chicks have started sneezing now too, but not constantly like chick 1 is. Chick 1's nose and eyes are clear. He/she is active just like the others. The only other symptom I have noticed is that he/she now has runny poop.

This is where it gets weird... One of the chicks (let's call it chick 2) is sitting down and refuses to move. I'm really worried its is on its way out. However, this chick is not sneezing, does not have runny poop, and does not have any other symptoms. Chick 2 looks like any other chick, accept that he/she won't move around unless he/she absolutely HAS to (like to get water).

Now for the real issue - Chick 1 and Chick 2 are meat birds. They will be eaten when grown. All the other chicks, however, are egg layers who will stay and live happily ever after. Chick 1 and Chick 2 seem to be having the worst problems, but the other chicks ARE sneezing as well - just not as often, and their poop is normal. In a regular situation, one would treat the birds with medication. Here's the problem: I can't treat birds with medication that I'm going to eat. All the chicks live together, and I do not have a way to separate them, unfortunately. If I put medicine for the egg layers in their water/food, the meat birds will eat it too. So I'm wondering, what are some natural ways to treat my chicks? I need something safe for them AND for me.

I'm assuming they have some sort of respiratory problem (except for I have no idea what chick 2's problem is). This is what I am currently doing. I feed non-medicated food, but I take the egg layers out daily and feed them some medicated food from my hand. They have a heat light and their bedding is pine shavings. I recently started a chicken vitamin and electrolyte supplement in hopes that it will help them heal. I've been reading that garlic can help them... is this true? I'm going to try sprinkling some garlic powder in their food tomorrow. It can't hurt.

Do you have any ideas for me? What illness do they have? How can I treat them? Thanks in advance

 

[Eggcessive]

I would make sure that there is no ammonia smell in your brooder, and that the conditions from food or pine shavings are not dusty. Some pine shavings are very dusty, and other brands with larger flake scan help. Coccidiosis is a much bigger concern than respiratory disease with chicks your age, so I would watch for diarrhea, lethargy, sitting puffed up or huddled, and poor appetite. Keep waterers and feeders clean and sanitized, and free of droppings by raising the level with boards or blocks (or hanging.) Treatment of coccidiosis is with Corid (amprollium) which is not an antibiotic, but a thiamine blocker, so it would not be a problem with eating the meat birds. Garlic can be beneficial to health of chickens, but don't depend on it to cure a respiratory disease. Your chicks should not be suffering from a respiratory disease if they have never been outside or exposed to other chickens or wild birds. Personally, I would try to separate the 2 meat birds if possible because they will tend to hog the food, poop huge amounts causing you to have to change litter more often, and I don't believe it is good to let them just eat non-stop and free choice like you do with egg layers. I hope this is helpful.

 

[dawg53]

I agree with Eggcessive. If your chicks had some type of respiratory disease, there would be other symptoms besides sneezing, such as; watery bubbly eyes/nostrils, lethargic, listless, rales, and so on. Most likely they would be at deaths doorstep or dead if they had a respiratory disease simply because their developing immune systems couldnt handle whatever disease it might be. It has to be something environmental; such as ammonia fumes, inhalation of feed dust, aerosol sprays, dust from bedding or from the chicks themselves (dander and fluff.)

 

[farlo4]

Thank you for answering! On the note of dusty bedding, I get the pine bedding from Cal Ranch that is used for horses/dogs usually. Is that considered dusty?
Also, I have horses so I have a lot of hay. Would hay be a better bedding choice?

 

[dawg53]

Thank you for answering! On the note of dusty bedding, I get the pine bedding from Cal Ranch that is used for horses/dogs usually. Is that considered dusty?
Also, I have horses so I have a lot of hay. Would hay be a better bedding choice?

I cant help you regarding bedding. I dont use pine bedding nor hay for chicks. I use hay on the flooring inside the coop for adult birds. I wouldnt recommend it for chicks because it can be dusty at times.

 

[farlo4]

I cant help you regarding bedding. I dont use pine bedding nor hay for chicks. I use hay on the flooring inside the coop for adult birds. I wouldnt recommend it for chicks because it can be dusty at times.

What do you use as bedding then?

Also, I've been reading that putting some apple cider vinegar in their water can help... is this true? Any experience with this?

 

[dawg53]

I use newspaper as bedding which requires changing often. I dont provide ACV to my chicks neither. After the first week I give them Avian Super Pack which contains many minerals and vitamins which arnt found in other products such as poultry nutri drench and electrolytes.

 

[farlo4]

Update on my chicks:
I started using garlic and it has actually helped a lot. The main sneezy chick is sneezing less frequently and his poop is less runny. I did a bedding check and yes, there is dust in it, so I'm assuming that is the cause of the sneezing. I never used ACV. The chick that won't move is still the same... I don't know what's going on with him. But at least I've got the sneezing under control so I don't have to worry so much. Yay! Thanks guys