HELP, chicken coughing, gasping, listless, spreading rapidly

[tonini3059]

I have some infection that is spreading rapidly throughout my flock of laying hens and roosters. The are coughing, sneezing, listless, some have nasal discharge and some have their eyes closed. They do not have swelling of the face however. They seem to be eating less and egg production has decreased by half. Since it is a mixed flock I am unsure of the color of the droppings of the birds infected, however I have noted some fecal matter that is green in color and firm still and others that are a yellow/brown color with a very loose consistency, ie diarrhea. Those are all the symptoms that I can think of right now. I have consulted my chicken health handbook and have a few ideas, however each disease I find states symptoms that mine do not have so it is keeping me guessing. I also tried to call the extension office but no one will be in until Monday so I am a little desperate. I appreciate all the help in advance.

 

[maymiegirl]

Do you or did you ever see a red, wormlike dot in the middle of the excrement? This is a sign of lining shedding.

 

[funonahonda]

Smell there noses and see if it smells like dead animal?

 

[maymiegirl]

funonahonda, I was wondering what the "smell," was. When Mine first got sick the entire coop had a sort of garlic smell. The vet says it is a respiratory bacterial virus that is spreading everywhere. If you have any good info Please, let us all know!!! I have tried everything and the best I have found so far is Probiotics for the healthy ones and Tylan for sick ones--but the vet says they will remain carriers for up to a year.

 

[tonini3059]

There has never been a red dot in the feces
There does seem to be a smell to the mucus of the one rooster, however he seems to be the only one with any nasal discharge. The one symptom that seems common is the coughing/sneezing.

 

[HollyInColorado]

I had this happen in my coop two years ago. I lost some birds. I went to my feed store when it happened again last year and got an antibiotic packet. I had to use it in their water for six days and had to throw out the eggs. However, this time I didn't lose any birds. Everyone recovered nicely. It happened again as the weather got cold this year. I did the same thing and everyone is healthy and making it through the winter beautifully.

I hope you get the answer here and everyone gets back to full health!

Holly

 

[maymiegirl]

You can give them Tylan. It is a little expensive. The gasping is a sign your bird may die. If you lose any before giving antibiotics, it is a good idea to send him away for necropsy.

I recommend separating every bird with a symptom from the flock and quaranteening them. Then I recommend sterilizing the coop everywhere and placing agricultural lime into the soil where they exist. There is a product called Oxine that you can place in the waterers. The bacteria is spread by an infected bird dipping his beak into the water to drink. Oxine kills the viruses and most bacterias and is safe to use at 7 drops per gallon of water.

Lastly, I recommend starting them on probiotics immediately. It is an inexpensive and effective way of helping to strengthen their immune systems.

 

[maymiegirl]

Holly, what exactly did you use? I would love to get some.

 

[tonini3059]

I have tylan, how do you recommend giving it. This has been going on for a few days and have yet to loose a bird. Most seem fine aside from the coughing, only one is really bad, ie closed eyes and nasal discharge. I plan on starting the antibiotics and probiotics today, is there any AB that you recommend, I have a few.

 

[maymiegirl]

Toni, I found that if you immediately bring up the bird's body temp it helps tremendously, unless the bird has completely stopped eating and drinking. I noticed the first sign even before the swelling of the sinus is that they stop drinking. If you can get them to peck feed, you can place the antibiotic powders into the feed.

I have found intravenous tylan is the only thing that will bounce them back after they have gotten so weak that they can't hold their heads up. Not all of the infected birds will show symptoms. Aureomycin crumbles are GREAT as a preventative measure. You can put it into the feed 50/50%