Need advice: vent gleet & respiratory symptoms

[chickmamato7]

I have a 1 year old Silkie hen with vent gleet, & respiratory symptoms.

Back story: added some new flock members from 2 different NPIP breeders and acquired a mite infestation (the little black dot variety). One day after treatment with Pen & Poultry Spray & Gardstar Garden & Poultry Dust, I found my Silkie hen wheezing, sneezing and making a strange honking noise. No other chickens are showing any symptoms. Upon further inspection I discovered that she had vent gleet (white, oozy, smelly discharge). This was day 1 of this issue, since I had just inspected all vents the day prior when treating for mites. Her crop also felt unusually full & squishy.

Treatment so far:

Vent Gleet: cleaned her vent area with an Epsom salt bath & applied 2% Monostat antifungal cream. The vent area is improving, but wondering if I should also give 1/3 suppository orally?

Crop Issue: withheld food, gave some coconut oil & massaged her crop several times. Added some molasses & probiotics to her water. In the morning, her crop was still full & felt like a hard mass. I gave her more coconut oil & massaged her crop again. It cleared, so I gave her food. Problem seems resolved.

Respiratory symptoms: put a few drops of Poultry RX under her wings, on head & in bedding. Honking sound has stopped, but rattled, wheezy breathing/ sneezing continues. Could this be Pneumonia due to the crop issue? What antibiotic works best for this that can be purchased without a prescription?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

You can try Tylan/Tylosin for the respiratory issue, it may help.
The gurgling sound may be due to the crop not emptying.

Here's how to treat the crop https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

Here's how to treat vent gleet https://www.tillysnest.com/2012/12/vent-gleet-prevention-and-treatment-html/

 

[chickmamato7]

Thank you for responding! I had read both those articles and was following the advice provided in them. I was able to clear the crop completely and do suspect that the gurgle & sneeze is due to material in the lungs from the now resolved crop issue. How do I help her clear that? Does holding her with her head down and patting her back work, or should I remove her feed and substitute eggs for a bit?

Tylan/ Tylosin is very expensive, especially with the expedited shipping charges, so if I don't really need to treat with antibiotic, then is it safe to wait and see? Also, how long should she be separated indoors? It seems like running around outside would be helpful to clearing the lungs vs sitting around in a small cage. If it doesn't progress to more serious breathing issues & no other birds seem sick, can I assume she just needs to clear this on her own & return her to the flock?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

If she aspirated, then there's not a lot you can do. An antibiotic might help with infection.

If she's able to eat/drink on her own and isn't getting picked at, I agree, she would best be with her flock or outside to get fresh air, move about, etc.

Her normal feed is fine.

 

[chickmamato7]

Thank you. She is doing much better today. Eating and drinking on her own. Poop looks normal. Her breathing sounds much better, but she is still sneezing. I'm going to give it one more night inside, just to be sure she is improving.