Older Chicken with Rattle When Breathing

[Sdestep]

I have an older hen (unsure of exact age but at least 6 or 7) who rattles when she breathes. The rattle has been coming and going for months now. Weight is normal, poop is normal, comb nice and red. No sneezing, no runny eyes, nose etc. She’s eating and drinking. I’ve treated for gape worm and given antibiotics (Duramycin) for infection. She still rattles. No symptoms in our other 15 hens.
This hen also walks stiff-legged and has had most of her tail feathers ripped out, presumably by the other chickens but I haven’t witnessed it. I now separate her at night for protection. My flock free ranges during the day. I believe the stiff walking is probably due to injury from having her back pecked, not related to the rattle, but thought I’d include it. I’m not positive but I don’t believe she lays eggs anymore.
Can anyone help with these strange symptoms? Thanks!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I have an older hen (unsure of exact age but at least 6 or 7) who rattles when she breathes. The rattle has been coming and going for months now.

No sneezing, no runny eyes, nose etc. She’s eating and drinking. I’ve treated for gape worm and given antibiotics (Duramycin) for infection. She still rattles.

also walks stiff-legged and has had most of her tail feathers ripped out, presumably by the other chickens

I believe the stiff walking is probably due to injury from having her back pecked, not related to the rattle, but thought I’d include it. I’m not positive but I don’t believe she lays eggs anymore.

Welcome To BYC

Is it rattling or gurgling? Any way we can hear her? For video, upload to youtube and provide a link.

I would feel her abdomen to see if there's any bloat or feeling of fluid. Check her crop to make sure it's empty in the morning before she eats/drinks and look her over for lice/mites.

If she's not been laying eggs for a while she may have a reproductive disorder which can be common in laying hens. Reproductive problems can cause them to walk a bit different and sometimes they can have some fluid and/or inflammation in the body which is restricting the lungs/air sacs or if it's gurgling, then sometimes crop issues can also cause this.

 

[Sdestep]

Ok, wow, that’s more information than I’ve been able to find in hours of googling. No fluid or bloating on her abdomen. I don’t see any signs of lice or mites, but we did recently have to treat our goat herd for mites. I can’t seem to attach a video, it will only let me attach a photo. She seems to make the noise when she’s breathing in. I originally thought it was more of a rattle but it sounds like a gurgle now. It was more pronounced when I let her out of the coop this morning. That leads me to wonder if some thing in the coop is irritating her respiratory system.

 

[Sdestep]

Sorry, just reread your reply and saw that I need to upload the video to YouTube. I’ll get my daughter to do that and attach a link.

 

[Sdestep]

 

[Wyorp Rock]

It was more pronounced when I let her out of the coop this morning. That leads me to wonder if some thing in the coop is irritating her respiratory system.

Does she do that standing on her own or just when held?

I would definitely check to make sure her crop is empty/flat first thing in the mornings before she's had anything to eat/drink.

You mention it's more pronounced in the mornings, wonder if something in coop is irritating her - how much ventilation do you have? She's fairly old and I assume you've had her this whole time in the same coop/run/yard - any recent changes like bedding, new chickens, keeping a window closed that's normally open, any signs of mold/mildew/dampness around water stations or in the coop...anything like that?

If her crop is not a problem, then consider getting a fecal float to rule out worms as well. It may be that her age is starting to affect her - hard to know. Last resort would be to try an antibiotic to see if that clears up the respiratory issue. Tylosin is used to treat respiratory disease like Mycoplasma. If you are for sure she's not laying eggs, Enrofloxacin (Baytril) could be used - it's a stronger antibiotic, but it's banned for the use in poultry.

 

[Sdestep]

She makes the sound both standing on her own and being held. She does it both in the coop and free ranging. I’ll check her crop in the morning. No recent changes except that I did give the coop a thorough cleaning recently using the pressure washer. I do this a couple of times per year. I use water only, no harsh cleaners, so I’m not sure if the coop cleaning could be relevant. I did sprinkle PDZ underneath the bedding beneath their roost. Matilda (the hen) sleeps on the floor of the coop as she’s not able to get up onto the roost anymore. I wonder if she is breathing in some of the PDZ. I’ll clean out the coop and get rid of it.
The coop does have good ventilation. She has been living in it during the nights for almost 5 years, the period of time I have owned her. I don’t know how old she is, my realtor showed up with her when we first moved out to the farm. She said she got the chicken from a lady who had dozens and dozens of them living in a horse stall. She was molting when I first got her, so clearly not hatched that spring. which puts her at a minimum of six years old.
I’ll put feelers out to find out who can do the fecal float. Our farm but recently left the area.
Thanks for all the suggestions! She’s my favorite and I hate for her to suffer.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

She makes the sound both standing on her own and being held. She does it both in the coop and free ranging. I’ll check her crop in the morning. No recent changes except that I did give the coop a thorough cleaning recently using the pressure washer. I do this a couple of times per year. I use water only, no harsh cleaners, so I’m not sure if the coop cleaning could be relevant. I did sprinkle PDZ underneath the bedding beneath their roost. Matilda (the hen) sleeps on the floor of the coop as she’s not able to get up onto the roost anymore. I wonder if she is breathing in some of the PDZ. I’ll clean out the coop and get rid of it.
The coop does have good ventilation. She has been living in it during the nights for almost 5 years, the period of time I have owned her. I don’t know how old she is, my realtor showed up with her when we first moved out to the farm. She said she got the chicken from a lady who had dozens and dozens of them living in a horse stall. She was molting when I first got her, so clearly not hatched that spring. which puts her at a minimum of six years old.
I’ll put feelers out to find out who can do the fecal float. Our farm but recently left the area.
Thanks for all the suggestions! She’s my favorite and I hate for her to suffer.

I'm not a vet nor expert, but with her age and symptoms, I would speculate that she has a reproductive problem that is an "underlying condition".
It's possible the PDZ is causing some irritation, but with her not roosting anymore, Sadly, I've found this is usually a sign that there's more going on

If she were mine, I would check her crop for several mornings in a row, feel her abdomen between the legs below the vent just to make sure there's no bloat/fluid. If she's never been wormed, I would consider doing that if you can't get a fecal float. As for antibiotics, they are not a cure, but I have used them on pet hen to see if they made a difference (she did have bloat in the abdomen). Most of the time I don't use medication prophylactically, but she was a pet and it did make her more comfortable for a period of time.

Please keep us posted on how she's doing.

 

[Sdestep]

Matilda’s crop felt normal this morning. I didn’t get to check her first thing though because hubby did chicken duties this morning and I forgot to tell him. I checked her around 9am. Crop mostly empty, but not 100%. Quite “balloony” as I would expect it to be. Definitely processed the food that was in it last night. At bedtime her crop felt really full and slightly hard.
I’m thinking you might be onto something regarding a reproductive issue. I recently dewormed her for the first time, and I’ve treated with antibiotics. It might me that all I can do is try to keep her comfortable for the rest of her life. I read that aspirin is OK for chickens. Is that the best thing to use for pain relief?
Thanks for all your help!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I would re-check the crop for several mornings. If you treated her with antibiotics, then I would give her some probiotics or 1 tsp of yogurt for a couple of days.

Aspirin can be used for pain for a couple of days but it shouldn't be used long term.