duck breathing through mouth and quack is high pitched

[casportpony]

I'm going to call the vet today. We are done with the medication and she is still breathing through her mouth. I am afraid that it is probably fungal. I can't spend more money on vet bills. If the vet thinks another round of antibiotic might help we'll purchase that again, but otherwise I'm not sure what else to do.

So sorry. Ask the vet about a round of drugs to treat aspergillosis. I forgot, what antibiotics were prescribed?

 

[Ratchnick]

From Wikipedia

"Blockage of the bronchi and trachea with worms and mucus will cause infected birds to gasp for air. They stretch out their necks, open their mouths and gasp for air producing a hissing noise as they do so. This "gaping" posture has given rise to the common term "gapeworm" to describe Syngamus trachea."

 

[casportpony]

From Wikipedia

"Blockage of the bronchi and trachea with worms and mucus will cause infected birds to gasp for air. They stretch out their necks, open their mouths and gasp for air producing a hissing noise as they do so. This "gaping" posture has given rise to the common term "gapeworm" to describe Syngamus trachea."

This is another thing to consider, I think I might ask the vet about treating for gapeworms just in case.

 

[caymusjordan]

I'll ask her Monday about Gapeworm - never heard of that! Thank you all for the thoughts and advice.

The vet gave us two more weeks of medications:
Doxycycline - 50 mg 2xday
Amoxicillin Trihydrate and Clavulanate Potassium Tabs - 2 x125 mg/ 2xday

Her quack has improved - she quacks loudly from her pool when she see's me come out the door and runs to the door for treats (loving corn right now) with her sister. However, she is still breathing from her mouth and making a gasping sound. I'm not sure about the stretching out of her neck - now I'll need to watch for that tomorrow when it's light out again.

Thanks again - I'll update next time I talk to vet or if there are any changes with Chips.

 

[caymusjordan]

Just went out to look at Chips - she does not stretch her neck out at all. She just opens her mouth and breathes.

Our girls are pretty picky eaters - we gave them a live worm one day and they looked disgusted - watched it and walked away. They like the worms dried - love their mealworms at bedtime, otherwise it's kibble and corn/peas or fruit.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I’d consider getting a bird probiotic to put into her water taking all these meds can not only kill the bad but also the good bacteria in her gut.

 

[caymusjordan]

We finish our second two-week round of antibiotics tomorrow. Chips is a bit better, but still not great. She will have hours where she is breathing normally and then back to opening her mouth and shaking her head. I'll call the vet today to find out if she wants us to do another 2 weeks or not. She doesn't seem to be suffering - at the moment. If it looks as though she is suffering more than not, we will re-think treating her.

Interesting that this morning when we went out to let the girls out of the coop and give Chips her medication, we found our first egg! It was in the nesting box where Chips and Ann sleep...I've never seen Fish in it. I doubt Ann could lay an egg yet - she still doesn't have all of her adult feathers in - and the woman we purchased her from said she was 3 months old. I'm assuming it is Chips' egg. We won't eat it, but if she laid an egg I'm surprised! It's not black, not really white either - it looks a bit brown but wipes off to be white.

Just wanted to let you all know that Chips is hanging in. The cold/snow we got this week hasn't helped - we have a heat lamp for their coop and locked them in most days because the temps were so low. Sun is back out today and it's supposed to get up to 40 so the girls are excited to be outside....hoping to get their pond filled back up this weekend for them.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Bless her heart what is the drug? Is it anti fungal?

 

[caymusjordan]

Bless her heart what is the drug? Is it anti fungal?

Doxycycline - 50 mg 2xday
Amoxicillin Trihydrate and Clavulanate Potassium Tabs - 2 x125 mg/ 2xday

no idea if anti-fungal? Poor baby - she's a fighter

 

[Miss Lydia]

I have to ask @casportpony about these drugs. Not sure if any treat fungal infection.