NewFlockOnTheBlock
Songster
We're dealing with our first case of salpingitis... One of our two Silver Cuckoo Marans, Tiny, laid a "lash egg" last night. I brought her inside, cleaned her up, and crated her overnight. She is still inside this morning, back in the crate after breakfast and a walk around the house.
There are no vets in our area that treat chickens. After reading up on salpingitis, I'd like to try and treat with antibiotics. The only antibiotic currently available at our local feed store is injectable oxytetracycline, formulated for cattle and pigs. Is it OK to give it to a chicken, provided I calculate the correct dosage based on her weight, of course? And, can injectable oxytetracycline be administered orally instead?
I really hope we can save Tiny before it's too late, or at least prolong her life and make it as comfortable as possible. She is a special chicken, having almost died as a baby chick when she stopped eating and drinking and couldn't keep anything down at just a few days old. My husband nursed her back to health and she has "thanked" us by laying the largest and prettiest eggs of all our chickens.
At the same time, there has always been something off about her reproductive system. She has laid many double-yolkers whereas our other chickens have laid none, or one each at most. Tiny has also laid more than her fair share of bumpy or misshapen eggs.
Tiny is currently going through a hard molt but has been acting normal, foraging and eating together with the other chickens and keeping up with her role of second-from-the-top hen. The only thing that's been unusual for the past week is that she's been settling down on top of one of the nest boxes at roosting time rather than roosting as usual. We've attributed this to molting, as our other hen that is going through a hard molt has also been isolating herself, settling down on the opposite end of the roost from everyone else at night, and mostly keeping to herself during the day. However, now I wonder if there is something more to this behavior.
Also, Tiny's comb and wattles are bright red despite the molt, which I think is odd. Our other molting chickens all have pale combs and wattles. She has been visibly molting for about 7-10 days, and has not laid an egg in at least a couple of weeks. I've read that hens with salpingitis can still be ovulating, which will actually make their condition worse, but how can she be ovulating while molting?
There are no vets in our area that treat chickens. After reading up on salpingitis, I'd like to try and treat with antibiotics. The only antibiotic currently available at our local feed store is injectable oxytetracycline, formulated for cattle and pigs. Is it OK to give it to a chicken, provided I calculate the correct dosage based on her weight, of course? And, can injectable oxytetracycline be administered orally instead?
I really hope we can save Tiny before it's too late, or at least prolong her life and make it as comfortable as possible. She is a special chicken, having almost died as a baby chick when she stopped eating and drinking and couldn't keep anything down at just a few days old. My husband nursed her back to health and she has "thanked" us by laying the largest and prettiest eggs of all our chickens.
At the same time, there has always been something off about her reproductive system. She has laid many double-yolkers whereas our other chickens have laid none, or one each at most. Tiny has also laid more than her fair share of bumpy or misshapen eggs.
Tiny is currently going through a hard molt but has been acting normal, foraging and eating together with the other chickens and keeping up with her role of second-from-the-top hen. The only thing that's been unusual for the past week is that she's been settling down on top of one of the nest boxes at roosting time rather than roosting as usual. We've attributed this to molting, as our other hen that is going through a hard molt has also been isolating herself, settling down on the opposite end of the roost from everyone else at night, and mostly keeping to herself during the day. However, now I wonder if there is something more to this behavior.
Also, Tiny's comb and wattles are bright red despite the molt, which I think is odd. Our other molting chickens all have pale combs and wattles. She has been visibly molting for about 7-10 days, and has not laid an egg in at least a couple of weeks. I've read that hens with salpingitis can still be ovulating, which will actually make their condition worse, but how can she be ovulating while molting?
