Hen breathing hard, no wheezing (poop picture added)

[arrowti]

Hello everyone. I have a four year old buckeye hen who just started to breath hard. As in, her entire body "moves" with each inhale and exhale. There is no wheezing or sound with her breathing, and no discharge or runny eyes/nose. Her crop feels fine, and she is happily eating her favorite treat (a tomato). She hasn't drank yet but I have water with Vet RX (that stuff to help respiratory function) in it.

She started breathing hard just recently, enough to get attacked by our RLR's who are the most vicious of our birds, but not enough to be targeted by the others. I brought her on the deck to separate her so I could keep an eye on her and check for any more symptoms or improvement. At first (after rescuing her from being attacked) she was breathing hard with her beak opening with each breath. Now she's just breathing heavily with her beak closed. Stress makes it worse, but she is acting normal. She stands, walks around, grooms herself. Her tail is not pumping up and down with the breathing. She is a larger bird, especially in the breast area. She isn't overweight, however. She's average for her breed.

Her attitude is still normal. My cat approached her to steal her water and she stood right up and puffed up her neck, prepared to defend herself.

Regardless, I've seen how quickly a chicken can go from mild symptoms to dead, so I want some advice. Could this be the beginnings of a respiratory infection, or maybe an irritant from Spring which has 'finally' arrived? We have some farm-grade antibiotics like Tylan, but it's the stronger variant for pigs and cows.

EDIT: Her poop (very watery, considering the possibility she hasn't been eating/allowed to eat since she wolfed down the food I gave her).

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

Greetings arrowti,

I assume it is not possible to take her to see a vet, since you are posting here. So we'll do our best, to help you figure out what is going on with the hen.

Labored breathing can be caused by many things, some are obvious, like stress and respiratory illness. And some conditions involve internal problems, reproductive issues, obstructions, infections affecting the vital organs, etc.

• I know you don't see any respiratory symptoms, but, you still need to hold the hen, and listen to her breathing. I just had a hen that only had congestion in her lungs. It took almost four weeks for her to heal.

• I would next check her belly. Gently palpate the belly for an egg that may be stuck. While your checking that area, also feel any swelling of the belly. Check the vent for prolapse.

• How are her poops? Check the vent feathers for any signs of diarrhea, or discharge. Ok, you said: watery.

• What is the color of her face, comb, and wattles?

• You'll also need to open her beak to check for anything that could be obstructing the airway. You'll be looking for sores, growths, or even thick plaques that are making it hard for her to breath.

• Check under her wings for any sores, lumps or wounds.

But, if she starts to stress too much during any part of the exam, just let her be. Stress can kill a chicken with labored breathing, faster than any disease. You may have to check things slowly and gently. Maybe some diced fruit to reward her.

These are my thoughts on your hen's issue. I hope they are helpful.
Other members will have advice, please consider them too.

God Bless.

 

[arrowti]

Hello. Thank for your post! You're right, sadly a vet is not possible as there is a lack of "exotics" (as they call chickens) available...

I did get a picture of her poop that I added to my original post. I listened to her breathing and didn't hear anything abnormal. She wasn't having it when I tried to check her mouth, and started to fight. I did feel her belly. I wouldn't call it 'hard' or 'distended'... I was able to press in and had some resistance. She reacted in pain, however, when I pressed lightly further down. Her vent appears fine and only has some old, dried crusty white from prior poops, but nothing major or fresh.

It's possible she may be egg bound if that was the result of her pain, or if I had simply pressed on an area I shouldn't have. I didn't feel anything hard. She is eating, but had no interest for the oyster shells I provided.

Wattles and comb are pink. Her face is pinkish-white aside from the areas she was pecked.

 

[arrowti]

She is acting tired, closing her eyes often. She's alert immediately when I move and always watches me, but if I'm still she closes her eyes or half closes them.

Just a picture of her so you can check her stance/size and coloring.


Also added a very bad video from my phone you can see the breathing (and her closing eyes).

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

Ok, check her crop. Is it doughy with maybe a yeasty or foul smell? Or, is it hard and impacted? Smell her with beak open, is it foul?

How long has she been pooping watery?

 

[arrowti]

Her crop was small and almost empty, but now she's eating and it's growing. I do not smell anything foul on her breath.

I haven't seen any watery poop prior to now, so honestly, I wouldn't be able to say. Prior to her being attacked, she was acting and looked perfectly normal and healthy.

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

Check her out thoroughly, but I am suspecting that she may have a slow moving crop. This can happen when a chicken is ill from something else, as well.

In the video, she looks fluffed up, and she is closing her eyes because she is sick. Her watery stools also seem to indicate digestive disorder. Hopefully, she doesn't have a blockage in the gizzard.

When a chicken is egg bound, they don't have interest in food. When is the last time she laid an egg?

You should put her in a hospital crate tonight, for observation. The best time to check the crop will be first thing in the morning. If it still has even a little food, that isn't good. When the contents sit in the crop too long yeast will develop.

I would treat her for a slow crop, now, it won't hurt her. Do you have Nystatin, or over the counter, anti fungal medications like Monistat (Miconazole Nitrate)? How about oregano oil?

 

[arrowti]

I don't have Nystatin or OOC medications, but I do have some oregano oil. I'm assuming I should add a few drops to her water. She pooped again, slightly more solid. Possibly from having eaten recently.

However, in the process of that I did another 'breathing check'. I heard a very quiet 'catch' each time she inhaled (prior to breathing in) and a very slight "gurgle" like when you breath in while having chest congestion. She'll be in a crate tonight with her food and water. I'll be watching her and the rest of the chickens for any sign of them being sick as well. She is trying to get back with the other chickens at the moment. She did escape from her temporary enclosure, somehow. She was never a flier but I guess she wasn't very fond of being 'kept within'.

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

I have hens that don't like being handled or confined in a crate or even a small pen. So when they cooperate, I know they are very ill. Where ever she spends the night, make sure it is not drafty, and a temp of 62-68 degrees would be good if she is getting sick.

Here is my recipe for Crop Tonic. It is a natural way to kill yeast and get things moving. This is how I use oregano oil medicinally.

Crop Tonic:
1 tsp. thick yogurt
1 drop, Oregano Oil
4 drops Coconut Oil, melted, or Olive Oil or Grapeseed Oil
4 drops water

Mix in a shot glass, stir well, and administer 1 mL, orally with syringe.


The main thing is to get the contents moving down the digestive system.

You should keep massaging the crop to get the contents to go down. It would be better if she was fed small soft meals of cooked grains like brown rice, barley, oat groats, cooked egg, cooked frozen mixed vegies and small amounts of wet mash, with fresh water available. Electrolytes in the water, and a dose of vitamins is also helpful. And, a course of Probiotics is also good.

I would not administer Tylan, until I ruled out a crop issue, as antibiotics can make a crop issue worse.

I will check my alerts regularly this evening and again tomorrow morning. I have to go out and do some chores.

Other members will have advice, please consider them too.

God Bless

 

[arrowti]

I'll try to make that tonic today after work. This morning she was still breathing hard, but no worse, and no audible sounds from a regular distance. There were two solid poops in her crate. She's spilled her water about 50 times so far.

She looks more alert than yesterday, no longer closing or half closing her eyes. I felt for her crop but couldn't feel anything in there.