Noisy breathing

[Kwartel]

I have a buff brahma bantam roo that has had noisy breathing for the past week or so. He is otherwise healthy, with no nasal discharge or any other issues. His hen has only been laying for a couple of months and her eggs alternate between hard and soft-shelled. Otherwise she is fine. We have also been in the triple digits in temperature for the last few weeks here, which has stopped most of my birds from laying at all.

My question is, does this sound like a reaction to extreme heat and the normal cycle for a young hen, or does it sound more sinister, like infectious bronchitis?

 

[RedRoosterFarm]

can you put her in a cool place or spray the roof to cool things down?

 

[dawg53]

Noisy breathing could be an indicator of infectious bronchitis (IB). It is very contageous. However with IB there are other symptoms. I recommend you go to the "merck vet manual" and read up on IB. If your hens get IB their eggs will look 'wrinkled,' really weird looking eggs. You would end up having a closed flock. The good news is that I dont think it's IB. We're having record heat as well and I'm lucky to get 5 eggs a day if that. I suspect your rooster has a cold and recommend an antibiotic to give him. (I've never had to use antibiotics, use the search box to find what would be best in your case.) Provide crushed oyster shell for your hens to eat. You can add crushed calcium tablets in their feed to help harden the shells in addition to the crushed oyster shells.