I know someone who knows someone who lost three chickens in the past few weeks.

[Fwoof]

My friend told me yesterday that she knows someone who told her that three of her chickens died in the past few weeks. The two remaining hens are making weird wheezing noises and seem to be having respiratory issues. Neither of us know much about her coop setup and bedding, so I have no clue what's going on.

I'm doing as much research as possible, and if you have any ideas and/or advice on what this situation is I will be very grateful.

 

[Fwoof]

@Eggcessive @speckledhen @azygous

 

[MROO]

My friend told me yesterday that she knows someone who told her that three of her chickens died in the past few weeks. The two remaining hens are making weird wheezing noises and seem to be having respiratory issues. Neither of us know much about her coop setup and bedding, so I have no clue what's going on.

I'm doing as much research as possible, and if you have any ideas and/or advice on what this situation is I will be very grateful.

Recommend that the "Friend of a Friend" join BYC and start posting. Help will get to her birds a lot faster, that way ... and we'll all make a new friend!

 

[speckledhen]

There are many questions to answer to even begin to guess. Did she just get them from someone else? Did she add any new birds without quarantine first that may have brought in disease? No way to even guess without a lot more information. And I agree with MROO that she ought to join BYC and open a new thread about the situation.

 

[Fwoof]

There are many questions to answer to even begin to guess. Did she just get them from someone else? Did she add any new birds without quarantine first that may have brought in disease?

She got all her birds from the same breeder at the same time, so no new birds. As for the other questions I'm so sorry, I have no idea.

No way to even guess without a lot more information. And I agree with MROO that she ought to join BYC and open a new thread about the situation.

I told her about BYC and she considered telling her friend about it, so we'll see. I'm still looking into poultry respiratory diseases. The closest thing to whatever these poor chickens have is Infectious Coryza or Bronchitis.

 

[Eggcessive]

The symptoms seen may give clues to what disease it is. Most state vets can test for what disease is seen by performing a necropsy on a body soon after they die. Here are a couple of good articles about various common diseases in poultry, including MG, bronchitis, and coryza respiratory diseases:
https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/PS044

http://extension.msstate.edu/agriculture/livestock/poultry/diseases-poultry

 

[speckledhen]

The problem is 1) many contagious respiratory diseases look the same from the outside so without testing, it's anyone's guess, and 2) most all of those are carrier diseases and there is no cure, like the herpes type viruses. No antibiotics will fix Coryza or Mycoplasmosis. They have it and that's pretty much it. Unlike humans, chickens do not catch colds and just get over them without becoming carriers-their respiratory diseases stay with them and they can spread them even if they become asymptomaticm like a Typhoid Mary.
I must have missed where she got them. I know from experience that many so-called breeders treat respiratory illnesses and pass on their problems to buyers, unfortunately. That's how Washington State had an outbreak of ILT many years back, from an NPIP breeder.
Could be what you mentioned, Fwoof, certainly, something like Coryza, but no way to know for certain without a test.