HELP!!! What's wrong with my chicken??

[Wild--Star]

Aw my pleasure, I feel the exact same way haha. I have needed this forum so many times and have always managed to find comfort or advice ^^ And eggcessive is wonderful I believe theyve helped me out of a few struggles many times. I remember when I had no clue when my first hen went broody, I was so worried haha.
I live in NSW on the central coast (but i want to move to north qld lol) and yes cyclone Debbie hit hard and we got the winds and rain all the way down here, its been crazy! The change in weather could definitely stressed them out and contribute greatly to her showing these symptoms. I do hope the antibiotics work for her and hope it is just MG. And yes no problem, the apple cider vinegar is great stuff. Here are some other herbs that I've heard are useful:
Rosemary: good for respiratory health, natural insecticide. Parsley: vitamin rich, source of protein. Lemon Balm: Antibacterial, rodent repellent. Mint: Natural insecticide, rodent repellent. Dill: Good for respiratory health, antioxident
Try this also, it may give you a little insight to keeping hens. https://www.backyardchickencoops.co...85cab51df8a1f8c2d70541d8079c32f4427abf559d899
I wanted to link you to another really good downloadable handbook but it wont let me so if you are interested, if you give me your email address I may be able to forward the email to you?

 

[Eggcessive]

Wild-Star has offered a lot of good info. Sometimes it is hard to tell which respiratory disease you are seeing without testing or a necropsy after death by a vet. The bubbly eyes do fit with MG, while foul smelling yellow mucus sound like coryza symptoms. Most respiratory disease cause carriers of the whole flock, while other flock members may appear to be immune. It would be good to close your flock to any new birds until all of these have died. Things like MG and coryza germs only live about 3 days on equipment, clothes, and facilities once birds are gone. So it is possible to have new birds eventually without the disease, but each remaining bird should be gone. MG supposedly is very common in backyard flocks, and it may be that this hen has some problems with immunity. Anyway, I hope your little hen gets better. Is the little horn thing still present on her beak?

 

[ChloeAlicia7]

Thank you again for all this info. I think the link to the handbook worked but if you could send it to me on email also that would be lovely. My email address is [email protected]

Eggcessive I have my hens in a coop but I do let them free range of an afternoon around the yard. I let them out as soon as I get home from work and they make their way back in when the sun goes down. It's funny actually, they all start chirping away when I get home almost as if to say 'let me out for a run!' Haha. So perhaps she's somehow come into contact with a non domestic bird and contracted it that way? My neighbour is actually really cluey with raising chooks as he used to live here before we bought the house last year. he built the coop and everything but anyway, I called him over the day I put my first post up and he pulled the growth on her beak off which then revealed the yellow mucus. I'm not sure if that was the right thing to do or not but it was like an instant relief for her as it was blocking her nostril. He also gave me the little cage I have her isolated in now so he's been great to have on hand. The yellow mucus has also now gone as has the odour so it's just the one eye that's bubbly which I hope will clear in another few days so I can put her back in the coop with my other hens.

I clean the coop out once a fortnight and give them fresh food and water every day. Is this enough or should I be cleaning it out more regularly? Also, the ground in the main part of the coop is just soil and I turn the soil and put wood chip shavings on the surface every fortnight to help soak any moisture up. Is this ok? And in their nesting box I have shredded paper and hay. Is everything I'm using advisable or should I be using something else? Thanks again so much for all of your help and advice

 

[Eggcessive]

It sounds good. I don't clean out that often. The important thing is to keep it stirred and dry. Good air circulation overhead is most important.

 

[Wild--Star]

Yeah it sounds to me like you're doing a fine job. I clean out my girls bedding once a week but mine get the coop all smelly quickly. I personally use hay but that and shredded newspaper is fine. I used to use shredded newspaper for a while and the only thing I noticed is that they liked to eat little bits. After that I started using sugarcane mulch but I didn't like how dusty it was so once that was done I switched back to hay. Its good you're trying to soak up the moister as wet hens can often lead to sickness, and ventilation in the coop is also very important.
If your girls ever end up with something really nasty, which I hope they don't, than I suggest giving the cage a full clean with bleach and water,just to make sure its all gone but for now you should be fine.
I'm glad to hear your girl is recovering and I will send you an email right away
EDIT: Email has been sent, sorry about all the other messages as I had to forward it to you

 

[ChloeAlicia7]

My poor little baby has taken a turn for the worse today. One of her eyes has blown up during the day today and is now swollen shut

is this normal for MG or coryza? It's almost been a week she's been sick now and I thought she was coming good. I just don't know what to do

 

[ChloeAlicia7]

 

[ChloeAlicia7]

 

[Eggcessive]

I'm really sorry she is worse. That looks pretty serious. The swelling in her face is probably swelling of the sinuses, and it tends to form pus. That pus will need to be removed for the antibiotics to be affective. Coryza, if that what this is, will last for weeks and can become complicated by other secondary diseases, such as E.coli and other respiratory diseases. Air sacculitis is common. Many people cull for coryza to help control the spread, or to prevent suffering. You may need some stronger antibiotics that treat E.coli.

 

[Wild--Star]

Sorry to hear that I do know MG can also lead to other diseases due to a weak immune system but this is starting to sound more like coryza than anything. Hens are so fragile and there are so many diseases and not lot you can do I'm afraid. But dont blame yourself, it can happen so easily. I agree, stronger antibiotics and keep her in isolation. Perhaps put the rest of the flock on a little bit if antibiotics also? Since she's been separated and if the rest of the flock are looking fine then that may not be needed however. At this point I don't think there's a whole lot I can do as I haven't dealt with it personally but I have dealt with other nasty diseases so I will offer what help I can. Has she been eating and drinking? At this point you may need to bathe her eye with a cotton ball of warm salt water, but be gentle. If she isn't taking food you may need to syringe feed her some mush. But let me know how she's getting on. Sorry to hear this and best of luck