Emergency- Respiratory Distress

[kwinans]

Hi!

1) Rhode Island Red Hen, almost 2 years old, feels lighter than the rest of the chickens (haven't weighed her)
2) labored breathing, lethargic, brown/black tongue, smell from beak/mouth, some mucus but not excessive, NO swelling of the face, comb still bright red, last night- throat came out of beak partially- seems to be her way to help herself breath, some head shaking but not excessive
3) Yesterday morning
4) No other birds are exhibiting symptoms
5) some blood from the mouth I believe (it was in her cage but not much), nothing apparently broken
6) the only thing different lately is excessive moisture (lots of rain) & a camper with insulation boards outside it that they have been pecking at
7) Not eating, have been giving her fluid through a syringe since last night
8) Poop looks normal minus the pieces of the foam board insulation in it
9) Isolation, vitamin/electrolyte water, pea size amount of Ivermectin paste last night
10) Would like to treat at home completely
11) attached picture
12)Currently she is in a small dog kennel with a towel, normally a large coop with sand as "bedding" under the roosting area- they free range during the day

 

[Eggcessive]

Could she have been fighting and bitten? It looks like the chicken has coughed up its trachea or windpipe. I am really not sure, but have seen pictures before of something similar. If a vet is possible, get some help. I am going to tag a few people for help. @azygous @Wyorp Rock @casportpony anyone have a suggestion?

 

[Eggcessive]

The brown dried out tongue looks like this may have happened awhile ago. Is the beak fractured or injured? I wish I had a way to offer help. The hole in the tissue sticking out of the beak looks just like an open trachea (airway) at the base of the tongue.
https://i0.wp.com/www.smithersites.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/openmouth_1_-609x441-300x217.jpg?resize=300,217

 

[kwinans]

The brown dried out tongue looks like this may have happened awhile ago. Is the beak fractured or injured? I wish I had a way to offer help. The hole in the tissue sticking out of the beak looks just like an open trachea (airway) at the base of the tongue.
https://i0.wp.com/www.smithersites.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/openmouth_1_-609x441-300x217.jpg?resize=300,217

I hadn't noticed her feeling bad before this. Her beak is fine, but her tongue does look dry-ish. Her mouth smells pretty bad and she has a little mucus but its not like dripping out or anything. I do believe its her trachea coming out of her mouth.

 

[azygous]

The longer this goes on, the less chance your hen will recover. First, until you gather your wits and figure out what your want to do, get some saline and squirt the trachea hanging from the beak to keep it moist. Install the hen in a crate indoors to protect her from the others who will try to injure the hen.

I've tried to research this and come up empty so far. You have two options. One, get her to a vet asap. This evening or next week won't do. It has to be immediately. The second option is to spray the trachea real well to moisten it thoroughly so it's pliable. Then gently push it back into the throat. Use the photo @Eggcessive posted to guide you. Be very aware of the hen's breathing. The trachea is her only access to air to breathe. if she gags or coughs, slow down or stop until she's breathing again. Then try again.

Tissues that belong inside must be kept moist or they will begin to die. But these tissues are usually elastic and should pop back into place if you can point them in the right direction. It's worth a try. The third option is to euthanize the hen, so you really have nothing to lose unless a vet will see the hen right away.

My guess is that she had a fight with another chicken and the other one grabbed her tongue and yanked. This hen likely tried to back out of the tongue hold, and that doubled the torque on the trachea and it was pulled out. I've seen hens grab the tongue of a rival during a fight on more than one occasion, so this is a very likely cause.

 

[Eggcessive]

Please let us know what happens. Good luck.

 

[kwinans]

Please let us know what happens. Good luck.

We had to euthanize her. Her condition was worse yesterday and she was not doing well. No other chickens are showing symptoms so far.

 

[Eggcessive]

We had to euthanize her. Her condition was worse yesterday and she was not doing well. No other chickens are showing symptoms so far.

I am very sorry for your loss. It sounds like there was nothing that you could do, and that you did the right thing to end her suffering.