Head shaking, laboured breathing and occasional yawning!

[BillyRocks]

HI all i have a hen who is continually shaking her head. She is breathing loudly and is occasionally what looks like yawning. I am concerned it may be Gapeworm. I am fairly new to this and have never had a sick chicken before, so im worried.
Any ideas? If it is gapeworm can it be treated with Cydectin?
Any ideas or help would be greatly appreaciated.

 

[BillyRocks]

I forgot to metion that everytime she breaths she is making a sort of a low chirping sound. And there is no mucus and her eyes and nostrils are fine.

 

[chickenzoo]

Probably not Gape, but more a respiratory illness or irritation. Hold her close to your ear, under her wing and listen to her lungs. If you hear wheezing etc, more than likely an infection. Best Wishes

 

[BillyRocks]

Ok thanks.
So whats the best way to treat respitory infection?.....Vet?

 

[Judy]

The yawning motion and head shaking do happen with gapeworm. I do not know whether Cidectin will treat it. You need to Google gapeworm and do some research. You can cure gapeworm, and it can kill if not treated. For the most part, you cannot cure respiratory infection.

Of course, a vet is always a good option, if you can find one who knows anything about chickens.

 

[chickenzoo]

Vet is best to tell you for sure what type of infection/illness she has. If a vet is not possible and she is wheezing then an injection of Tylan 50 in the breast muscle is typical treatment. You would do that for 3 days. Hope she just got irritated by something. Did you change out shavings.

 

[Judy]

Tylan is a typical approach if it's respiratory, but won't help gapeworms.

 

[chickenzoo]

Gapeworm could be treated with Ivomec I believe.

 

[lauralou]

I had a hen with similar symptoms a year or so ago. The yawning thing had me wondering about gapeworm also. But I could hear that she was wheezing when I listened to her breathe, so I decided to treat for respiratory infection.

The first thing I did was to separate her from the others.

Then I went to the feed store and ordered the Tylan injectible. By the next morning, her face was becoming swollen. I put Sulmet in her water, because I had it. Kept her on it for 5 days, I believe. By the time the Tylan came in, she was completely recovered from taking the Sulmet.

I still kept her quarantined for a few more days, just in case. But she was fine, and has not had any further respiratory problems.

Good luck with this. Respiratory problems are very scary!