is my little polish hen sick

[dregnard]

hi

i went to a chicken farm and got myself a little cuckoo polish hen. she is approximately 3 weeks old.
she is so quiet, sits in the palm of my hand and looks around. her poops look healthy, not runny or black. what worries me is her beak is a bit worn down near her nostrils and her nostrils are a bit damp, when she breathes she takes big deep breaths and she makes an almost grunting noise when she breathes out and sneezes.
she hasn't bothered to stand since i brought her home ( she was transported in a little box for about 2 hours while i was getting her home - i would imagine this would have taken its toll on her) and she is so quiet (barely makes a noise) and just sleeps, with her head sometimes facing up

could she just be slowly settling in to her new surrounding as she has gone from a big cage (with other chickens of all ages) to a new home with dogs and a family of silkies?
or is she really sick?

i am terrified to put her in with the silkies as i need to slowly introduce her to my hen and roo, my hen also has 2 five day old chicks and i cant risk them getting sick.

i mixed in some condition drops ( helps with feather condition and general health) in her food. nothing fancy, just normal chicken food ( maize, sunflower seeds and some other things)
chickens aren't the pet of choice here in South Africa and we don't really have many fancy readily available poultry vitamins and other things. is there anything i can give her to help her beak get back to normal? ( i am not sure if electrolytes will help)
i have never given my silkies anything besides food and fresh water as they just wander around the garden and put themselves to bed, but they are healthy.

also, silly question, will the polish hen get along with my silkies?

all help will be greatly appreciated

 

[realsis]

Your polish should get along fine with your silkies. She does sound like she has a respiratory infection. Can you get a hold of Tylan50 there. It's carried in most feed stores and it's lable for cattle and swine but many many poultry owners including myself have successfully used it for respiratory illness. It is the antibotic Tylosin. Dose for her because she's so small would be 1/10 of a cc given orally. Once per day for 5 to days. It's a excellent antibotic for respiratory symptoms. If you can't get that can you get Baytril? Dose would be the same. If you can't get those try to find a available antibotic. If it's a injectable that's OK you can give it orally because she's so young. You will want to find a antibotic geared for upper respiratory. Keep her separated and offer supportive care. I would bring her inside and start her on what ever avaible antibotic you can get geared for upper respiratory illness. I really hope this helps. Vitamins might also benifit her as well as a good probotic. I wish you the best.

 

[dregnard]

Hi Realsis

thank you so much for your reply. i rushed my gal to the vet this morning and he gave her 2 injections. a very good antibiotic, so she will get 2 shots within the next 2 visits to the vet tomorrow and Saturday. ( she is tons braver than me when it comes to the injections)
i have noticed a big change in her after 3 or so hours. she is flapping around, chirping and friendly. love her to bits. i have quarantined her from the silkie hen and roo, will let her out in the garden for the first time on Monday just to be safe as i want her better before she experiences the chilly rainy weather.

you seem to never stop learning new things about chickens no matter how long you have them

i have gotten some vitamins that i will start her on

thanks again