Mycoplasma gallisepticum? Please help.

[GermanKennhuhn]

Hi folks,
Yesterday one of my chickens had gurgley breathing, and was sneezing. Today I noticed foam in one chickens eye, and another one’s eye looked very watery.

Please tell me this isn’t MG. I have a feeling it is though.
None of them are acting sick.
Thanks in advance.

 

[Eggcessive]

Those can be symptoms of MG, but it would be best to get some tesing either through your state poultry lab, a local vet, or from a private company such as Zoologix, which can do an MG test or a whole respiratory panel using pcr testing:
http://www.zoologix.com/avian/Datasheets/PoultryRespiratoryPanel.htm

Here is a link for state poultry labs:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/PoultryLabs.cfm

 

[GermanKennhuhn]

Thank you for the info! I’ll check out those links. Apparently my state’s government website has free poultry testing. I might look into that as well.
So is there a chance that this might be a different, less serious issue?
@Eggcessive

 

[GermanKennhuhn]

Today the chick with the watery eye looks worse. Could this be from possible MG, or could it be from pecking? Her other eye looks normal.

 

[PeterJohn86]

This does look like MG, but I would still consult a vet.

Can you smell any odors coming from her beak?

 

[GermanKennhuhn]

Thanks for replying. I’m currently arranging testing, so hopefully I’ll get that scheduled soon.
I’ll check and get back to you shortly.

 

[GermanKennhuhn]

So, no obvious odor. She did seem to have a lot of mucus in her throat though.

Also, if I have pullets in a separate coop, but I’ve been going between coops with the same clothing and shoes on, there’s no chance that the pullets haven’t caught whatever this is, right?
@PeterJohn86

 

[Eggcessive]

It is a good idea to use good biosecurity practices between the 2 coops. Handwashing, changing shoes,etc. The mucus in the throat is probably related to the swollen eye and a respiratory disease. There can be milder strains.

 

[GermanKennhuhn]

Yeah. I should have done that, but at the time I didn’t think it mattered as I planned to combine the flocks. Is it too late now? I planned on moving half of them to a coop, adjacent to the one holding the main flock, to give the little ones some more room.

 

[Eggcessive]

It might not be too late, but hard to know. If she has MG, she will be a carrier from now on. Here is some reading about MG:
https://extension.umd.edu/sites/ext... Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) Infecti....pdf