Marek's or something else?

[Airyaman]

I believe one of my flocks has Marek's because of many signs and a necroscopy of one dead pullet (no PCR though).

Here is that thread:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...cken-keeper-with-mareks.1674902/post-28789530

Now I have another chicken from another flock that is showing...something.

And she too is a Speckled Sussex, like the flock that appears to have the virus.

Two days ago I noticed she was hanging out more in the woods than usual. Sleeping alot, but could move and fly as well as ever. She even flew up to my shoulder several times that day and yesterday (the only chicken I allow to do this). But later in the day, I noticed she has a slight raspy sound to her breathing. Not all of the time, but it was there.

Yesterday, much of the same.

Today she took two turns for the worse. She got chased by one rooster and it stressed her and it took a good 5 minutes to stop gasping for air. Then later in the day, another chase, and she's been breathing hard ever since.

No nasal discharge, nothing in the eyes, just shortness of breathe at this time. Her eyes are now hazel but I can't honestly say they were not that way already. I know SSes are not supposed to have that color but she was hatched from an Ebay egg...

She has been sneezing a little, but not alot.

Her comb and wattles are still the same color. She stopped laying eggs a day or so ago. Even at the worst of her breathing tonight, her comb has remained the same color.

Does this sound like possible Marek's, or something else?

She is now isolated. I rubbed VetRx on her beak, comb, wattles, and under her wing. I've ordered Tylosin from Jedd's but that will be a long wait.

Her feces have been green sometimes and "normal" others, but she spends most of the day outside free ranging and eating leaves, grass, etc.

I tried to get her to drink earlier but nothing. I didn't want to hold her beak into the water too long so she didn't aspirate.

Opinions?

 

[Airyaman]

So overnight after she calmed down and slept her breathing this morning, while still not the best, is much better.

Here's something to add: when I turned the light on in the room she is in, she was breathing through an open beak, but no where near as bad as last night. Then she sneezed and she stopped breathing with an open beak.

To add, she spends most of her free range time alone in the wooded area. Could this be something environmental, from something in the wooded area?

Thoughts?

 

[Airyaman]

I found an old dog crate my son used to have, probably one of the biggest you can find (his dog weighs 100 lbs). I put it back together and in the corner of her run because I know she didn't like being left alone in a bathroom in a collapsible pet playpen! She is breathing OK and she is drinking though I haven't seen her eat much. Alone in the crate should give her a chance to eat without her flock mates pestering her.

 

[Eggcessive]

She may be a loner or low in pecking order. The crate may help her get plenty to eat without bullying, while still seeing the flock. Does the rooster chase and pick on others? You could possibly separate him if needed.

 

[Airyaman]

She passed last night. I had been treating with VetRX and waiting for the vet to open today, hoping she would make it. I only have amoxycillin and I know it does nothing for respiratory illnesses, so did not try. Her comb was not turning blue so I thought she might make it one more day.

Last night after doing more research, I believed the problem to be gapeworm, though I did not see anything in her mouth. There was no discharge, no issues with the eyes (other than being hazel), or any other signs that would suggest a virus or bacteria. So to me it's down to gapeworm or Marek's.

None of my other flock with supposed Marek's has had respiratory distress. I never even saw any other them breathing with open beak. They just stopped eating and eventually passed. But I have seen that it is a possibility.

I will take her for a necroscopy to try to confirm which of the two. In the meantime, I am going to treat the flocks with Aquasol as a preventative.

Knock on wood, no other birds from any of the other flocks are showing any symptoms thus far. I have some chickens with hazel rather than orange or bay colored eyes, which for their breed is not standard. These are all Ebay eggs, so purity is doubtful. However, hazel eyes is not a symptom of Marek's from what I've read, so I'm going to put those down to not so pure chickens.

 

[Kiki]

She passed last night. I had been treating with VetRX and waiting for the vet to open today, hoping she would make it. I only have amoxycillin and I know it does nothing for respiratory illnesses, so did not try. Her comb was not turning blue so I thought she might make it one more day.

Last night after doing more research, I believed the problem to be gapeworm, though I did not see anything in her mouth. There was no discharge, no issues with the eyes (other than being hazel), or any other signs that would suggest a virus or bacteria. So to me it's down to gapeworm or Marek's.

None of my other flock with supposed Marek's has had respiratory distress. I never even saw any other them breathing with open beak. They just stopped eating and eventually passed. But I have seen that it is a possibility.

I will take her for a necroscopy to try to confirm which of the two. In the meantime, I am going to treat the flocks with Aquasol as a preventative.

Knock on wood, no other birds from any of the other flocks are showing any symptoms thus far. I have some chickens with hazel rather than orange or bay colored eyes, which for their breed is not standard. These are all Ebay eggs, so purity is doubtful. However, hazel eyes is not a symptom of Marek's from what I've read, so I'm going to put those down to not so pure chickens.

Sorry you lost her.
It's highly unlikely that it was gapeworm.

Please report back with the necropsy results.

 

[Airyaman]

Sorry you lost her.
It's highly unlikely that it was gapeworm.

Please report back with the necropsy results.

Why would you say "highly unlikely"? She had all of the symptoms of gapeworm except I could not see them. But then I really don't know how to look.

If it is gapeworm I think I should get the results pretty quick but for Marek's it will be longer (they send it to another lab for extensive testing and they are slower).

This is exactly what she was doing:

 

[Kiki]

Why would you say "highly unlikely"? She had all of the symptoms of gapeworm except I could not see them. But then I really don't know how to look.

If it is gapeworm I think I should get the results pretty quick but for Marek's it will be longer (they send it to another lab for extensive testing and they are slower).

A lot of people think the open mouth breathing is gapeworm but it's usually not. I say it's highly unlikely because not once have I seen a necropsy report confirm gapeworm. All the hundreds of reports I seen show a respiratory disease or worse. The gunk that can build up quickly inside a hen's abdomen from infection makes it hard for them to breath which causes the open mouth breathing too.

 

[Airyaman]

My first hatched chicken, and first egg layer. She was also the only one I ever allowed to perch on me (though I had to cover my ears!).

I've kept dogs and cats my whole life. Chickens are alot harder! They seem to have so much that can go wrong with them.

 

[Eggcessive]

I am sorry for your loss. Your state vet lab would be the best for getting a necropsy and diaganosis. Mareks causes low white bloodcounts, and low immunity to common illnesses. It also can cause internal tumors on organs. Gapeworm is rare. Aquasol is a weak version of fenbendazole to be given over 5 days without an egg withdrawal time to treat roundworms only. It will not treat gapeworm or capillary/thread worms. To treat for those, get SafeGuard Liquid goat wormer or the Equine/horse paste which is 10% fenbendazole. Dosage for most worms is 0.23 ml per pound of weight given orally undiluted for 5 consecutive days.