HELP with sick/relapsed pullet please

[FleurDeLisChick]

I have a FBC Maran pullet that is approximately 4 - 5 months old that had a respiratory infection--she was making a "wet" rattling sound when breathing, had somewhat labored breathing (she would stretch her neck out a little when trying to inhale), and had a sharp cough that was so forceful it actually made her stumble a few times; I also noticed she had a decreased appetite and general listlessness. I brought her inside and gave her Tylan 50 injectable (.5ml injected into breast) twice a day for 3 days and she seemed cured/completely recovered by the end of the treatment. Several more of my birds also seemed to have runny noses and some sneezing during the same time I was treating my FBCM. However, their symptoms were milder and they all were eating, drinking, and behaving normally, so the rest of the flock was treated with Tylan soluble powder in the water for 5 days. It has been 6 days since she finished the injections, and the rattled breathing and cough are back and as bad as ever. Was the Tylan dosage or frequency wrong? Is there anything else I can do? I have a tiny "flock" of 12 and this pullet has been my favorite since Day One.

 

[Chicken_Pauper]

O.K.... Did you just get her? Did she get sick about two weeks after you got her or introduced new chickens to your flock?
O.K... Look for posts by dawg53 regarding Denegard, Oxine, and CRD or MG..... You need to treat this strongly, thoroughly, immediately...
I'm "rusty" on this.. I would search ... QVSupply sells Denegard.. it's not cheap... but, lasts forever.. My chickens hate the taste.. so.. I have to mix it in their food or add some light corn syrup to the water, too... I will try to find more info on how to treat this...
You can start with injecting the antibiotic Baytril... get it and syringes at the feed store.. order the Oxine and the Denegard. (Never, never, never "activate" the Oxine.. no matter what you read.. do not, NOT add activator to it)... more info to follow..
If your whole flock has not been "exposed" yet.. isolate the sick one(s) away from the flock... watch for any new symptoms in other chickens.. a swollen eye.. or runny nose... check for runny nose in chickens shacking their head...
In the mean time, clean the coop and all.. separate the ones showing symptoms unless too many are.. then, just leave them all and treat the whole flock.
Try to find generic Baytril.. . name brand is not cheap either.. 5%.
More instructions to follow.....

 

[Chicken_Pauper]

O.K... this is a little convoluted... it is, these are excerpts from e-mail.... back and forth.. when dawg53 helped me through this same thing and I was so "freaked out" and scared....... So.. check this out and also search this website for "relevant" respiratory disease threads or search for dawg53 posts ...

Best of luck.....

(P.S. I did ultimately use a regular old vaporizer in the coop for a few nights to "mist" them with the Oxine water for a few hours each night.. they sounded worse at first, as you loosen congestion, but it helped in the longer run.... see Oxine notes below.. it is for inhaling a mist only.)

OXINE....

http://pet-healthcare.revivalanimal.com/search?w=oxine&asug=
There is NO RESISTANCE to denagard. I dont recommend putting oxine in water...only the spray bottle to FINELY MIST over their heads. It is a respiratory problem you are dealing with, NOT an intestinal problem. You dont need a fogger, a plastic spray bottle from the garden section at kmart or walmart is all you need. There is a citrus activator that comes with the oxine. DO NOT USE IT. I REPEAT....DO NOT USE THE ACTIVATOR.

As I mentioned, baytril is an antibiotic. In time, your birds will become immune to baytrils effects, because of the disease resisting it. Once you get the denagard, stop the baytril and get them on denagard. I highly recommend that you try to get oxine. There is no resistance to denagard nor oxine. Remember, you want to be VERY aggressive treating MG. As a matter of fact, the oxine will kill other diseases even if it's not MG. This is why I recommend using oxine in conjunction with denagard. Here's one of my links for oxine treatment and dosage...and how to apply it on your chickens, post #2.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/625621/oxine-treatment

 

[FleurDeLisChick]

I'm not certain if it is MG or CRD or something else--I can't find a thread that matches her symptoms exactly, but most things I have read say Tylan is an effective treatment for both as it is a broad spectrum antibiotic. The appearance, behavior and sudden progression of the relapse make me think there is no way this pullet will hold on long enough for medications to be shipped through the mail and I can't get Denagard or Oxine locally.

 

[FleurDeLisChick]

She just died in my son's arms

 

[casportpony]

She just died in my son's arms

Sorry for your loss. I don't want to sound insensitive, but your should put her in the fridge and ship her to LSU for a necropsy on Monday. Call them and ask if you can use their FedEx account number, it'll save on shipping. http://laddl.lsu.edu/

-Kathy

 

[FleurDeLisChick]

I'm shocked and saddened by the suddenness of the progression of this relapse. She went from slightly rattled breathing to suffocation and death in under 3 hours time. I would really like to have a necropsy done to see what has caused this--especially since all 11 of my other birds were exposed to this bird. However, if there any fees involved whatsoever, I don't think I can do it. We just keep a few hens for eggs and my husband is not going to want to pay for a necropsy on a $12.00 bird. That may sound callous or insensitive, but it is the reality of my situation.

 

[casportpony]

I understand... You could try calling and seeing if they could waive the fee.

-Kathy