HELP CHICKEN WITH MUCUS IN MOUTH..

DarleneE · Aug 23, 2020

Please can anyone help me? My 6yo Barred Rock Daisy is in trouble! She began about a couple weeks ago with her left eye totally closed and her left cheek swollen. We put some sodium chloride drops in her eye and we used Terramycin opth ointment as well on her cheek daily 2 to 3 times a day as instructed by a vet over the phone. The vet isn't able to see her as they are not even local here. I have noone that can see her first of all.
Anyways her swelling went down a whole lot on her cheek and her eye opened back up in approx 4 to 5 days. So I thought it was all resolving. Well yesterday I notice that she's not able to eat it seems? Like she'll put her beak in the bowl but she doesn't pick up any food?? I tried all kinds of things including a soft cooked scrambled egg with olive oil, I mashed up a piece of watermelon to see if she could at least kinda drink that and still nothing. She still did the same thing. I finally ended up giving her just some plain white rice and she did pick up grain by grain and ate some of that. However I noticed that there was a piece of stringy mucus that would hang from her beak as she ate??
I later then opened her beak to look and OMG her mouth is full of clear mucus!! I also noticed something white like under her tongue?? Today she's not eaten a single thing that I have seen anyways. I'm not sure if she's even drank any water??
She is also in the middle of a molt of all things and she's lost so much weight which I thought was due to the molt though now I realize we have a much greater problem!!
PLEASE if anyone knows how I can help her please write me back?? I intend to call the vet again first thing in the morning but I'm not expecting much over the phone only of course without them being able to see her....
I honestly don't want to lose her and I'm just desperate. Any help will be very very much appreciated!!
Oooooooooh and the strange thing is that she seems to be starving poor little thing cause when I come out to the porch with any kind of treats she runs behind me right to her bowl but then what I explained above happens?? She's also still active as of today anyway. She went out to the backyard this morning with my other chicken Ebby like they always do. She does spend a good deal of the day since they both started molting here in the porch in front of the kitchen doors. They both do this. But what I'm trying to say is that as of today she's not isolating herself or acting strangely except for the mucus and the not being able to eat. Other than this her actions remain as they always have.
PLEASE HELP??
THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR ANY ASSISTANCE YOU CAN GIVE ME!!

GermanKennhuhn · Aug 24, 2020

I'm sorry about your hen. :hugs

How is she doing? Could you post some pictures of her eye and the mucus?

DarleneE · Aug 24, 2020

Thanks for writing. Her eye is fully open already for days. This is the craziest thing I've ever ever seen though? Today she had no clear mucus in her mouth at all?? Yesterday her mouth was full of it?? However she still isn't eating at all?? I swear it's like she's forgotten how to eat?? I just cut up tiny pieces of shrimp.. Her all time favorite and she puts her beak down to kinda almost touch the shrimp but she like can't pick up a piece and eat it?? It is insane!! She is definitely hungry.. starving I'd actually say as she's not eaten in 3 days that I know of now!! Yet earlier she went out of the porch to the backyard and was just digging and scratching away like nothing?? Then when I was giving them fresh feed she came running the entire length of our porch to follow me thinking I had more treats?? Yet she won't eat anything I do give her?? I read a chicken will die after 4 days without food. So today I have begun tube feeding and I have put Doxycycline in it as well as a dropper full of Nutri Drench vitamin to try to at least get something in her and try to treat whatever this whole thing is. Another chicken owner here suggested the Doxycycline. If you've ever seen or heard of something like this please let me know how they treated it?? I'm gonna attach a video of her with the shrimp I just took. Note that she's also molting and she's lost alot of weight and her comb looks a terrible pink rather than the beautiful deep red it normally is when she's not molting. Thanks again for reaching out and forgive the long message back but I just wanted to explain the latest goings on.

GermanKennhuhn · Aug 24, 2020

DarleneE said:
Thanks for writing. Her eye is fully open already for days. This is the craziest thing I've ever ever seen though? Today she had no clear mucus in her mouth at all?? Yesterday her mouth was full of it?? However she still isn't eating at all?? I swear it's like she's forgotten how to eat?? I just cut up tiny pieces of shrimp.. Her all time favorite and she puts her beak down to kinda almost touch the shrimp but she like can't pick up a piece and eat it?? It is insane!! She is definitely hungry.. starving I'd actually say as she's not eaten in 3 days that I know of now!! Yet earlier she went out of the porch to the backyard and was just digging and scratching away like nothing?? Then when I was giving them fresh feed she came running the entire length of our porch to follow me thinking I had more treats?? Yet she won't eat anything I do give her?? I read a chicken will die after 4 days without food. So today I have begun tube feeding and I have put Doxycycline in it as well as a dropper full of Nutri Drench vitamin to try to at least get something in her and try to treat whatever this whole thing is. Another chicken owner here suggested the Doxycycline. If you've ever seen or heard of something like this please let me know how they treated it?? I'm gonna attach a video of her with the shrimp I just took. Note that she's also molting and she's lost alot of weight and her comb looks a terrible pink rather than the beautiful deep red it normally is when she's not molting. Thanks again for reaching out and forgive the long message back but I just wanted to explain the latest goings on.
❤❤❤

No problem!
The swollen eye and mucus makes me wonder if it's Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG). I believe I'm dealing with MG as well at the moment, and Doxycycline was recommended to me as well. MG can also cause a loss of appetite.
The tube feeding and Nutri-Drench is a good idea.
I've been giving my chickens Oil of Oregano in their water. 1 drop a gallon, plus half a teaspoon of olive oil. I know it won't cure MG, but it seemed to help relive some of the symptoms.
Would you be willing to have her tested for MG?
No problem! Thanks for the detailed post!

DarleneE · Aug 24, 2020

I too use the oregano in their water!! I didn't know about the olive oil though. Well where would I get her tested for the MG? We don't have any chicken vets here.. well actually there are 2 and we've seen them each other other things and I said never again to both because it was clear they had no idea what was wrong nor what to do! The folks on BYC told me what to do and it worked both times!!
Anyway sure I would test her if I knew where to take her. Is there a cure for this? The Doxycycline? I'm going to read up on it right now! Thanks for the ideas! Good luck with your chicken!!

GermanKennhuhn · Aug 24, 2020

Oh good! Some come with oil in them, so it may not be necessary.
I think you can find a place to have her tested here: PoultryLabs.cfm
I'm not sure if it's MG, but if it is, there's no cure. She'll be a carrier for life, and'll have reoccurring symptoms during times of stress.
I hope it's not MG. The only sure way to know is to have her tested.
Thanks, to you as well!

Jeanw · Aug 24, 2020

Get well DAISY!

DarleneE · Aug 24, 2020

Jeanw said:
Get well DAISY!

Awwwwwwwww thank you so much!!

DarleneE · Aug 28, 2020

Hello to all,

I am posting pics of my chickens mouth. A vet told me yesterday that it's a cancerous lesion. I am heartbroken. However I've been told by a couple of chicken breeders that it is not cancer but instead some type of infection? I would appreciate any thoughts anyone might have on this??
***As a reminder... This has all started with her left eye being closed and her left cheek swollen. We applied Terramycin opth oint to the swollen cheek area and applied sodium chloride drops in her eye. We thought something had perhaps bit her?? The eye opened up again and the cheek swelling went down in 3 to 4 days. We thought everything had healed. However then we noticed that she wasn't eating? She would act like she was starving and putting her beak down into the plate but not grabbing any food.... in fact I didn't even observe her drinking water??!! Then I noticed a string of mucus.. a very thin string, hanging off her beak when she lowered her head wanting to try to eat but again she just couldn't eat. Thus I began to tube feed her two to three times a day and started her on Doxycycline which someone here recommended as well as Nutri Drench vitamins. There was still no improvement so we went to a vet yesterday morning and as stated above he felt it was probably cancer??
PLEASE can anyone tell me what your impression of this is?? Has anyone had a chicken get something like this??
The vet BTW ordered SMZ-TMP every 12 hours and Meloxidyl every 12 hours for pain. Since starting the meds yesterday she's began to drink LOTS of water and she's began to eat small amounts of wet mash with baby food. Not much but more than she had been eating before!! She is still very active. She still goes out to the backyard with the other chicken to scratch and dig and take sand baths and she comes RUNNING when she thinks I have treats for them?? I mean she's acting totally normal other than not really eating or now eating a little but not enough to really sustain her yet and the fact that she has the area in her mouth. I would REALLY appreciate any help anyone can give me with this. She's been a wonderful pet for 6 years now, she'll be 7 in January, and I am still not prepared to lose her!! She is a member of our family!!
Thanking everyone in advance for any help you may provide with this issue.