Respiratory disease?

[PurplePoppiPpl]

I posted a while ago about my chicks sneezing and after a few recommendations i got them on antibiotics. Well its a couple of weeks later and they still are sneezing! (They are almost six weeks old) They seem fine other than that, they are active and chirpy
Is this normal or are they actually really sick?

 

[Year of the Rooster]

Some things to consider:

1. How dusty is their environment?
2. Is there nasal discharge with the sneezing?
3. Is there a particular time when they sneeze? e.g. at feeding time?

 

[Eggcessive]

Do they have any other symptoms now other than sneezing? Did they have other symptoms when you started antibiotics? And did your older chickens have any of these symptoms before you got the new chicks?

 

[PurplePoppiPpl]

While holding them i have noticed that sometimes there is discharge (when the sneeze) they kinda spray all over like when a person sneezes... they also shake their heads alot. I hatched half from a broody and half from the bator and they are in a large plastic tub inside the house. My adult chickens have also been sneezing.

 

[Wyandottes7]

Dusty conditions and high ammonia levels can cause sneezing. Also, some types of respiratory diseases are viral, and won't respond to antibiotics.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would suspect it has been either dust, ammonia, or some other irritant in your coop, or infectious bronchitis (IB.) IB will affect 100 % of your flock, but can affect chicks much worse. It typically runs it's course in 4-6 weeks, and since it is a virus, it won't respond to antibiotics unless they get a secondary bacterial infection. Another possibility is a very mild case of mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG or CRD.) But since they are still sneezing after you treated with Duramycin (I saw in your old thread) it is more likely an irritant or IB.

 

[PurplePoppiPpl]

So will they be alright, like i said before other then sneezing and headshaking they seem completely healthy and active chicks... Would it be helpful to put them on vitamins and electrolytes?

 

[Eggcessive]

Vitamins and probiotics in their water would be better. They need probiotics to get their gut bacteria back in order from the antibiotics, and if you can only get vitamins with electrolytes, that would be fine too. You could use these about 3 days a week. IB can cause a decrease in egg laying in hens that is usually temporary, and it can affect egg laying later in chicks who had it. If you ever notice any wrinkled eggs from your chickens, then that is a sign of IB. Here is a link on it: http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/78/infectious-bronchitis-ib