Questioning Gapeworm....my barred rock is very sick, need some advice.

[byouland]

My hen has been resting in her nesting box, and has been acting different. I noticed her crop was full of food, so I gave her olive oil and massaged it. It seems to be better, but her trachea seems very thick. She is stretching her head up and looks like she is gasping for air. This has been going on for four days now. We assumed it was because she was impacted with food. But now I'm questioning gape worm. I looked down her throat and don't see anything. But tonight she sounds like she is wheezing. How do you tell if that is what it is, and how do you treat this? Is she contagious around my other hens?

 

[teach1rusl]

Has she been drinking and eating?? Is the stretching out the neck continuous or just every once in a while?

 

[byouland]

She does eat and drink a little when I pick her up and make her move around.

 

[byouland]

She stretches her neck not all the time but once in awhile. I asked my husband if her
Comb looks like its turning blue because it looks that way tonight. He couldn't tell. But it does to me.

 

[teach1rusl]

The comb turning purplish/blueish indicates an oxygen problem. That would fit with the wheezing - if she's struggling a bit to breathe, then her body is not getting the oxygen it needs. So I would rule out gapeworm. Maybe she has a really bad upper respiratory issue...no sneezing or anything??? Or she could have a blockage of some kind in her air passageway. Last week one of my oldies sounded like a daggone lamb - horrible wheezing sound. I thought "Oh crap - some kind of respiratory problem!" It was evening time and dark, so I figured I'd wait until morning to examine her. It must have been a piece of hay or something stuck in her throat though, because she sounded perfectly normal by then.

But if your girl has been wheezing for several days, then I'd think an URI. If you can handle giving shots, you can try Tylan 50. I use the half inch insulin needles (pharmacies carry them behind the counter). You have to give the shots into the muscle (breast is easiest) for three days in a row. I've oinly treated one girl with it, but it worked quickly on her...

 

[Eggcessive]

I agree that it sounds like a respiratory disease. They get worse at night. How does the crop feel early in the morning. Chickens will gape a bit with crop problems, but respiratory infection is more likely. Gapeworm is treated with Safeguard wormer (fenbendazole) 25 mg per pound for 3 days in a row, then repeat in 10 days, but with gapeworm the gaping would be continuous.

 

[byouland]

What do you do for respiratory infection?

 

[Eggcessive]

Some are viruses that don't respond to antibiotics, but since your chicken is sounding pretty bad, I would start the Tylan 50 injections daily for 3-5 days. Do you think she still has an impacted crop? It may be that she choked on the oil that you gave her. Was she wheezing before that? If you think she is wheezing and gaping because of respiratory infection, I would start antibiotics. Tylan Soluble Powder can be used in the water, but the shots are faster and stronger.

 

[byouland]

No her crop doesn't feel impacted anymore. I brought her in the house to watch her and noticed she really liked it inside. She walked around and even drank water. Your probably right that she must have choked on the oil. I think I'm calling the vet tomorrow.

 

[Eggcessive]

Let us know what you find out at the vets.