Is this a true respiratory infection?

[ShearerChicks]

I'm really new to having chickens. I only started in May, when I bought some property and they came with it. There are 4 Brahma, 2 Rhode Island Reds and 1 Silkie. The hens were underfed and in a coop that hadn't been cleaned out in 2 years. So, I've been working on getting them healthy again. The flock did get a bad case of respiratory infection back in June (lost 3 hens), which I took care of and I'm now seeing 1 egg a day. Last night I went into the coop, they were roosting for the night, but one of the brahma had it's beak open and when breathing in, it sounded a bit phlemy. Today, it's not making any noise and isn't breathing with an open beak. It's acting completely normal. I should have separated it out last night, but my isolation space is occupied by chicks and keets at the moment. Should I go ahead and treat this like a respiratory infection? What's my best course of action?

Thank you in advance for any help!

 

[MrsBrooke]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but a chicken will always be a carrier of a respiratory infection, if they do come down with one. They can also infect other flock members, even if they aren't showing symptoms.

Honestly, it's truly better for the sake of keeping your birds healthy to cull any bird that appears to be suffering with a respiratory issue. You can "treat" it, but you can never "cure" it.

The only way to truly beat a respiratory infection is to cull the birds and start over with a fresh flock.

With that said, you can treat it as much as you want with Tylan or some other oxytetracycline if you aren't planning on selling the birds and maintaining and closed flock forever. In other words, birds can only come TO you, they can never leave.

Like a chicken version of Hotel California.

There is also the potential that your chicken was just panting from the heat. But since you know that your flock has had issues with respiratory diseases in the past, I might considering culling and starting over.

Very sorry for your troubles.

MrsB

 

[ShearerChicks]

Bummer!! My hubby was saying to simply start over. I just wanted my ladies to be healthy and happy. I didn't know that they'd always be a carrier. It is pretty hot during the day (in the upper 90s), but I really don't feel that was the problem. We don't intend on selling any, but I don't want this to become a recurring problem either.

I'm really going to show my ignorance: since culling is the best option, is the hen safe to eat? I've always lived in the city and I'm trying to figure all of this stuff out. Oy!

 

[MrsBrooke]

You can eat a bird with CRD (chronic respiratory disease), but I would avoid the neck and lungs, personally. I probably wouldn't feed it to my dogs, either.

CRD is non-transmissible to humans, but to be on the safe side, avoid ingesting any parts involved in the breathing stuff.

Sometimes, it's best to cull the chickens when you consider quality of life over quantity... And they will be doing some good in the form of dinner on the table!

No shame in the learning game! I, too, moved to the country from the Houston suburbs and have enjoyed the steep learning curve with chickens. They'd delightful animals.

I'd douse everything with some Oxine (you can order a gallon from Amazon) or bleach if you're lazy like me, let things sit for a little while, then order your favorite breed from a hatchery.

Best of luck!

MrsB

 

[ShearerChicks]

Chickens are a lot more complicated than I originally thought! But I can't imagine not having any now, even after this short time.
Should I cull the entire flock or just the one that's showing symptoms? I know the previous owners had a flock of 25 and the numbers have dwindled to 5 of the original flock. But like I said, they were malnourished. I have some white leghorns that are only 3 wks old and I don't want them to get infected and have to worry about them too.
Do you find Australorps are the best for our hot climate? I really appreciate all the advice!!!

 

[MrsBrooke]

If they have all been together, they're all infected. Unless the lehorns have been separate this whole time.

We find the Australorps do great... they pant and drop their wings like any chicken, though. They've soldiered on and kept laying all through these unreal hot days! We figured that if they could handle the heat in the Outback, Texas would be similar.

They're also super curious and sweet.

Sorry about your other birds. From 25 to 5 sounds like a disease and nothing you want to introduce new ones to... being malnourished probably stressed their immune system enough that it allowed something to take hold.

Start with a healthy flock, and you'll be happier for it.

MrsB

 

[torilovessmiles]

If they have all been together, they're all infected. Unless the lehorns have been separate this whole time.

Start with a healthy flock, and you'll be happier for it.

MrsB

Isn't that only if it's MG, coryza, or other CRDs? Infectious Bronchitis and some others are only temporary. There are a lot of viruses and bacteria that can cause respiratory illness. I think I'd have a test done to check for disease before culling all of them, just lock down the flock (none in, none out) until you get an answer.
There was just recently a thread where a girl was asking about how to get MG out of her incubator because she thought her chickens had it, but upon testing, it turned out not to be MG. It was another bacteria that is not nearly as serious nor chronic. I would absolutely test before culling every single one of my birds.

 

[ShearerChicks]

The chicks have been in a separate pen that I was able to place inside the main coop. Tonight we have open beaked breathing, but not the noisy stuff. I moved all the little ones out earlier today. Thought about lock down. I will go ahead and try that first. I really don't want to lose them all. The last time they had crusty, bubbly eyes and died within 24 hrs of showing symptoms. It took a lot to get the others healthy. I didn't have any testing done. I tried looking at the other posts, but didn't see any of them that just had noisy breathing at one part of the day.

 

[forrestgump97]

For the record I just got back from my veterinarians office with my little ones that have a respritory infection and it is not necessary to kill them at all!!! While it is true that your chickens may all be infected a quick corse of antibiotics can take care of that right away and the vet said it was a common misconception that they will never be cure from it. Also, is it possible that your hens were just panting? Unbelievably hens do pant because of the hot whether and this year has been a brutal one. Make sure you have clean cool water every day for them. My hens are like a part of the family to me, just as equal as any cat or dog. of I were you I would look at my options before just getting rid of them if its not confirmed and you don't have a problem giving antibiotics

 

[torilovessmiles]

The chicks have been in a separate pen that I was able to place inside the main coop. Tonight we have open beaked breathing, but not the noisy stuff. I moved all the little ones out earlier today. Thought about lock down. I will go ahead and try that first. I really don't want to lose them all. The last time they had crusty, bubbly eyes and died within 24 hrs of showing symptoms. It took a lot to get the others healthy. I didn't have any testing done. I tried looking at the other posts, but didn't see any of them that just had noisy breathing at one part of the day.

I strongly suggest testing since it's killed so many birds and it's come back again. If it is MG, the new chicks would have it as well. Once you figure out what you're dealing with, you can bettter decide how you'll handle it.