Hen has difficulty breathing, not sure what's wrong

Carl3

Hatching
May 26, 2025
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Recently our pet chicken has been having trouble breathing at night/early morning and I'm hoping someone can help me figure out what's wrong. Our local vet does not support chickens so I have to search online. The issue started about 2 weeks ago and we thought she might be hungry or constipated, but we believe it is either a breathing issue or sickness.

Some info about her:
  • She is about 12-13 years old, I dont remember exactly. She no longer lays eggs
  • She is the only chicken we have, so no risk of spreading or catching diseases with other chickens.
  • She behaves normally during the day. She has free-roam in our backyard, and will walk around looking for bugs (and whatever else chickens do)
  • For the past 6 months she has been sleeping inside. She comes to the back door in the afternoon and we let her in, give her dinner, then she sleeps in one of the empty dog kennels.
  • For awhile she was eating various table scraps (rice, eggs, bread, macaroni) as well as whatever she picks up outside. Since the issues have started we've stopped these foods and have been giving her mixed chicken feed only.
  • A few weeks ago, she discharged a decent amount of blood (we don't know where it came out of, just the end-result), but she was fine after that. We believe she may have choked on some hard bread.
  • No noticeable breaks, cuts, or injuries. Besides the breathing issues she moves and eats fine.

Audio of noises:
I've attached a few pictures but she was running away from me so they arent that good. I can get better pictures later when shes inside if anyone needs them.

Thank you,
 

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As long as she is alert and active, eating and drinking, it sounds like she is doing okay. Is her comb fairly red?I have only had one to live until 11 years. Chickens can make weird noises sometimes. If she was gasping or having labored breathing, I would be concerned.
 
As long as she is alert and active, eating and drinking, it sounds like she is doing okay. Is her comb fairly red?I have only had one to live until 11 years. Chickens can make weird noises sometimes. If she was gasping or having labored breathing, I would be concerned.
Thanks for responding

Her comb is red (ish?), I’m not sure what level of red is correct.

She’s still eating, drinking, and moving without issues. She makes this noise every time she breathes, but as far as I can tell we don’t hear any chocking or gasping.

We’re not sure if she’s making these noises because she’s in pain, or if her sickness is just clogging her throat
 
If you can get another pair of hands, you could open her beak and look inside with a flashlight or headlamp for anything stuck, yellow material or mucus. Unless she is in any distress, she probably is fine.
 

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