is the lil'meeper OK??

[v.cyr]

We just bought a light brahma pullet chick over the weekend, while replacing the two banty chick that died last week... she was hatched on May 18 ,about a week older than the others we got, and with the exception of one thing, appears perfectly healthy... whenever she is awake and still, she almost seems to be gasping... she will sit therewith her head back, little beak opening and closing constantly with a barely audible peeping, punctuated by an occasional sneeze..., but only when she is awake and not moving... when she is eating, drinking, sleeping, or running around playing tag with the others, she appears to have no problem... I am not entirely convinced there is a problem, because it only seems to happen when she is awake and not distracted by anything else, so it could be a behavior, not a disease, but I am a little concerned... any ideas??

ps... the other chicks seem to calm down when she starts doing it... don't know if it is related, just something I noticed...

 

[write2caroline]

Never a good idea to add a new chicken in with other chickens - you need to isolate them for 30 days because sometimes they can have illnesses and it will catch like fire to dry grass and run through your flock faster than you can sneeze.

I know most kids don't get chicken pox (pun intended) any more but for the example sending you back in time pre 90's:
Consider what happens when place one kid with chicken pox in a room full of toddlers
The rest will come down with chicken pox in approximately two weeks.

So treat everyone with antibiotic and

Raise your right pinky and thumb and say

I will NEVER
EVER
Ever
risk my whole flock to illness or worse
because from this day forward,
I will practice
isolating any new poultry
for 30 days
So help me chicken math!

And beat your self with a rubber chicken until you fully understand good bio practices.

Sorry for the tough love - I have made the same mistake and lived to regret it!
Caroline

 

[Nicole01]

Gasping for air is not good. I've delt with this and it ended up being a major respitory infection. Polyvisol vitamins without iron actually cured this with my chicks. I put a couple drops down the beak 1-2 times a day. It was catchy, although not everyone in the flock got it.

 

[Nicole01]

My neighbor lost a chick that was gasping. The chick acted fine, eating and drinking, but it gasped through out the day. We bought our chicks from the same place, so I'm assuming the illness came from there.

 

[v.cyr]

only 5 lil'meepers in the brooder... I am far from risking the whole flock... all bought from the same place, within days of each other, so they are quarantined together... and the way the place we bought them is set up, if one chick were to get something, they all would... the thing that throws me is, like I said, when she goes to sleep, it goes away... an actual resperatory ailment wouldn't do that, would it?.. and I am not totally sure she is gasping either... besides the barely audible peeps when she is doing it, and the ocasional sneeze, she makes no sound...it almost seems like she is struggling to make a sound when she is doing it... could she be mute?... as to medicine, we are feeding them medicated starter, but we haven't found anyplace localy that carries poultry specific meds...I can find remedies for even the most minor ailments in horses, cattle, or pigs at any TSC or feed store around here, but if you have chickens, goats or sheep, your pretty much on your own...

 

[tclegg]

Does she have impacted crop? seems like breathing but maybe has some chips or bedding stuck...give olive oil and massage throat and crop up crop toward throat...see if that helps...

 

[tclegg]

And I forgot-another expert that talked to me on here said to put her in front of water and make her drink---dont force but try to help..maybe drip onto beak..but almost sounds like impacted crop..hope helps...

 

[Anianna]

There are not a lot of poultry-specific meds. We often have to use medications off-label to adequately treat our chickens.

It does sound like odd behavior and I would not dismiss a respiratory illness. Keep that group of chickies separate from any others until you know for sure. You can read about diagnosing and treating respiratory illness in the first link in my signature. Please read it over just to be sure. Keep an eye out for nasal or eye discharge or facial swelling and watch for any changes in her breathing or behavior. Also, watch for the same symptoms in the others. If it spreads, it is most likely respiratory.

Could she be panting? What is the temperature in her brooder? Does she hang out in a warmer spot than the others?

You might try adding some apple cider vinegar to the drinking water and give her some chick grit or construction grade sand in case she has something stuck in her throat or crop.

 

[Anianna]

Quote:
That would be good to check for. Impacted crop will feel like a hard mass in her crop especially in the morning. It can be confused with a normally full crop during the day when chickens are naturally eating, but the crop should be empty in the morning after the chicken has digested overnight. I second the olive oil and massage if this is the problem.

 

[v.cyr]

thanks... the impacted crop sounds like a posibility... we were assuming the fact that her breast was jutting slightly more forward than the others had to do with development, since she is about a week older than the others, but now that I know about it, I will check for impacted crop ASAP... should I take the food out of the brooder overnight then?... since they are in there with a light bulb over them, they really have no day/night cycle at the moment, so they might eat overnight while we are sleeping...