My Chicken is making funny noises

[Snoopy13]

Hello, I'm new to chicken keeping. My light brahma is making some funny croaking noises. In terms of her behavior, she is eating and drinking and pooping just fine. She's not as active as the others but when I let her out of the run, she runs around and tries to fly a bit before settling down into the dirt to sunbathe. She doesn't make this noise all the time - for the most part she is quiet. But when I go to pet her, she starts making this noise... I tried massaging her throat in case something is stuck inside and then she starting making a sneezing kind of noise. It only lasted a little while but she makes it while she is eating sometimes. Does anyone have any experience with this? I just want to know if there's something I can do before taking her to the vet. Thanks in advance!

 

[Eggcessive]

It sounds like she has some mucus in her throat or airway. I would keep an eye on her. If she is sneezing and shaking her head, she might be having symptoms of a respiratory infection or disease. Can you see any bubbles or foam in her eyes? Have you added any new birds to your flock recently?

 

[Snoopy13]

Thank you for the response. There are no bubbles or foam in her eyes or nostrils. We haven't added any new birds to the flock - I just have 4 total and they've been together since they were chicks. I just tried massaging her throat and crop so I will see if that helps. Thank you again.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would not massage her crop, since that can cause crop contents to come back up into the throat and choke. Sometimes you might see mucus in the throat if you open the beak and look in with a light.

 

[Snoopy13]

If there is mucus in her throat, what should I do?

 

[Snoopy13]

Just an update. I ended up taking her to the vet and they didn't know what could be the problem but we put her on some meds anyway. It didn't seem to help much but I finished her doses. She's 21 weeks this week and she laid her first egg!!! Every other day she has been laying - so far we have gotten 3 eggs. It's amazing! We're so excited. I think she was just being broody and getting ready to lay her eggs. But I'm glad we went to the vet and got her checked out anyway.