Help hen having trouble breathing, pale comb!

[1 true Phoenix]

I have a banty cochin hen that is almost 2 years old. She has had a tiny rattle when breathing on occasion but today she has a gurgley sound and is gasping to breathe, she is also sneezing but no nasal discharge. Her nose seems like it may be blocked. Any advice appreciated.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I have a banty cochin hen that is almost 2 years old. She has had a tiny rattle when breathing on occasion but today she has a gurgley sound and is gasping to breathe, she is also sneezing but no nasal discharge. Her nose seems like it may be blocked. Any advice appreciated.

Have you added any new chickens to your flock within the last 30days?
Do you have some photos or a video of her?
When was the last time she laid an egg? Does she have any swelling/bloat in the abdomen?

Gurgling and sneezing can be a number of things. Check her crop to make sure it's empty in the mornings before she eats/drinks. Poor ventilation, dust and mold can also contribute to respiratory distress as well. She may also have a respiratory illness like Infectious Bronchitis or Mycoplasma. Getting some testing to find the cause is always the best thing to do if possible.

If her symptoms worsen and you don't have vet care, you can try treating her with an antibiotic like injectable Tylan50. You need to weigh her to give the correct amount. Dosage is .20ml per 1 pound of weight, given orally 3 times a day for 5 days. If you can only give it 2 times a day, bump up your dosage to .30ml per 1 pound of weight for 5 days.

Let us know how she's doing.

 

[1 true Phoenix]

No swelling or bloat in abdomen, crop is empty this morning. Good ventilation on coop, we use pine shavings. Nobody else is sick. We did have a weather chance a couple of days ago... Went from hot and humid to low humidity and cooler at night.
All I have right now is a bottle of tylan 50 that expired in Feb. Of this year... Is it still ok to use? Also I read that it works better when injected and can cause damage to their throat when given orally. I did give her a shot of it last night (1/4 cc) subcutaneous, I figured it was better that nothing... Also brought her in the house put vet. Rx on her nostrils and on her chest, also put some on q-tips and hung them in cage. I put acv in her water and made her some hard-boiled quail eggs mashed up with chic feed that I made into a mash... She ate a little last night but not nearly as much as she should because she had to keep stopping to breathe (mostly through her mouth).

 

[1 true Phoenix]

There are no vets in this area that treat poultry.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

All I have right now is a bottle of tylan 50 that expired in Feb. Of this year... Is it still ok to use? Also I read that it works better when injected and can cause damage to their throat when given orally. I did give her a shot of it last night (1/4 cc) subcutaneous, I figured it was better that nothing... Also brought her in the house put vet. Rx on her nostrils and on her chest,

I think you are probably good with the Tylan you have. If you are going to treat her with it, weigh her up and give the correct dosage a few times a day as mentioned in the previous post. Tylan50 can be given orally or by injection into the breast muscle 1/4" deep, so if you are most comfortable with injection, that's your choice - you will need to watch for signs of inflammation in the breast muscle since the injection would be administered 2-3times a day for 5 days. Tylan50 can also cause injection site necrosis (probably because of so many injections over that many days). I have not heard of it irritating the throat, some say it's bitter. A lot of people give a little treat after administering orally or you could give her 1 teaspoon of yogurt to help soothe the throat.

The VetRx won't hurt

Hopefully you will start to see her improving, if she has a viral respiratory illness like Infectious Bronchitis, the antibiotic won't help much with that, but can help with any secondary infection that accompanies these illnesses. Even if she won't eat much, keeping her hydrated and offering some poultry vitamins will help. A chicken can go a couple of days without food, but they still need to be getting fluids.

 

[micstrachan]

Sounds to me like you have it covered and have received good advice from @Wyorp Rock. I’m rooting for you!

 

[1 true Phoenix]

Would try giving it orally but she is still mouth breathing at times especially if she gets stressed. There were a few times today that she seemed to be breathing through her nose for a bit til it stuffed back up.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Would try giving it orally but she is still mouth breathing at times especially if she gets stressed. There were a few times today that she seemed to be breathing through her nose for a bit til it stuffed back up.

Poor thing
Yes, if she's having that much difficulty, then injection would be the way to go.

 

[1 true Phoenix]

Thank you for your help Wyorp Rock... I'm hoping she shows some improvement by morning... She really seems to be struggling to breath tonight. I wish was more we could do for her to help.

 

[1 true Phoenix]

Checked on her again before i go to bed and she almost seems worse... She's still mouth breathing and sounds even more gurgley... Not sure what to do for her... Her comb is turning pale again... Poor girl is so tired...