Hen with cold-like symptoms, will it go away?

[brownchickenchicken]

Hi, my 20wk old warren is having a cold, well cold-like symptoms. Sneezing, snot coming out of her nose, coughing. She's eating and drinking properly. She goes outside and looks healthy. Its just that shes acting like she has a cold. I've read that this could be a deadly respiratory infection but unfortunately, I don't have access to Tylan or other antibiotics (yay, canada) and I can't afford going to the vet.

1- if she starts laying, would you eat her eggs?
2- if we bring other hens, can she spread this disease to others?
3- can it go away itself?

Thanks

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi, my 20wk old warren is having a cold, well cold-like symptoms. Sneezing, snot coming out of her nose, coughing. She's eating and drinking properly. She goes outside and looks healthy. Its just that shes acting like she has a cold. I've read that this could be a deadly respiratory infection but unfortunately, I don't have access to Tylan or other antibiotics (yay, canada) and I can't afford going to the vet.

1- if she starts laying, would you eat her eggs?
2- if we bring other hens, can she spread this disease to others?
3- can it go away itself?

Thanks

Hi @brownchickenchicken Welcome To BYC

The symptoms you describe sounds like a respiratory illness. Mycoplasma, ILT, Infectious Bronchitis and Infectious Coryza are the most common. Without testing, it can sometimes be hard to know which one you have. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps044
Antibiotics can help with secondary infections. If you don't have access to them, they do what you can by keeping the eyes and nostrils cleared. You can use saline to flush the eyes. For Antibiotics in Canada try this. See that she is eating/drinking well and is as stress free as possible. Probiotics and vitamins added to the feed for a few days may also prove beneficial.

To answer some of your other questions:
As long as eggs are stored, handled and cooked properly, they should be fine to eat.

Without testing, it would be hard to know what she has, but all intents and purposes, respiratory illness makes the bird and those exposed carriers of the disease for life, so yes, there is a very good possibility new birds may become symptomatic.

I'm not sure about the last question of "Can it go away itself?" If you mean the symptoms, then yes, they could go away given enough time and with supportive care. But even when she shows no symptoms, you will still consider her a carrier.

 

[6sablehens]

Chickens don’t get colds, but cold like symptoms are common signs of a respiratory infection. I believe this is what your hen has.

Do other hens in your flock show any symptoms?
Not all respiratory diseases are so bad, our flock have mycoplasma, which is common, and our flock are carriers for life, but they have an immunity to it. We can introduce new hens no problem, as long as we keep the pen clean, they will build up their own immunity. Some hens we introduce could already be carriers and therefore already have an immunity to it, since it’s very common.
For some reason, one of our hens failed to get an immunity to the mycoplasma, so we had to get her antibiotics, and now she’s fine, just like any of our other hens.

Your respitory disease might be something worse, or just something like mycoplasma.

Did you get your hen from somewhere different to your other chickens? How long have you noticed these symptoms?

 

[6sablehens]

The eggs should still be safe to eat.

The disease will likely spread to other chickens, weather or not she appears to recover from it, she will always be a carrier.

 

[unepoulebrune]

Hi,

Same thing happening with one of our chicken.

If I treat her, the symptoms will go away? If so, for how long? Do I need to treat her again?

 

[Eggcessive]

Respiratory diseases are usually chronic, and can occur again if the chicken is stressed such as during extreme cold weather or molting. I would get some testing done to see what is going on.