Respiratory Distress?

[slpadgett]

My 9 month old Buff Orp is in distress. She seems to be choking, but I'm not sure if that's what it is. She is breathing rapidly, and wheezing. The wheezing is like a distress call vocalization. She sounds hoarse. Its a kind of honking sound. She sneezes sometimes, and shakes her head.

We have looked down her throat, and we don't see an obstruction.
We have isolated her in a dog crate. She has water, and wet food.

This came on suddenly. She was fine an hour ago.

A few times her comb has gone purple. She is up and walking around right now. She will eat and drink. But is obviously in serious distress.

Any suggestions?

 

[Lollipop]

Feel her legs. If they are warm, she has a fever. Could be a sinus infection. VetRX is a good remedy and certainly antibiotics would help......Pop

 

[slpadgett]

Her body temperature seems normal.
Will a sinus infection come on so quickly?
Like I said, she was fine an hour ago.

Really, it seems like an obstructed airway. She shakes her head, and looks like she is trying to gag something up.

We have given her a little oil, and acidic food, in case of an a crop issue.

 

[keljonma]

I think you did the right thing to isolate her. Just make sure she isn't in a draft. A blanket or towels or a cardboard box around the crate would help block any.

We don't use antibiotics, so this is just what I would do....

Usually when something comes on that quickly, the first thing I think is that the hen ate something and she's having trouble getting it down.

I've noticed when a hen's comb goes purple, it usually means she is dehydrated. Give water with electrolytes or PoultryDrench in it, at the side of her mouth with a needle-less syringe.

Put eucalyptus oil or VetRx on a qtip and wipe it across their nostrils. Use a clean qtip for each side.

If she has mucus coming from her nostrils, instead of the electrolytes or PoultryDrench, I would add 3/4 cup acv and 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper to a gallon of water and use that for her drinking water. The acv will help cut the mucus.

If I think she is "catching a cold", I would put a couple cloves of garlic in the blender till it is mushy, put the mushy garlic in some yogurt and try to get the hen to eat.

The scratching of her head could be similar to when a person gets a head cold and is trying to clear their ears. Or it could be ear mites, although I wouldn't think that would cause the wheezing.

Keep an eye on her droppings. Do they look any different from her normal droppings?

BTW - We had a similar situation once with our Columbian Wyandotte when she was 5.5 months old. It was December, so I had a heat lamp for her and I ran the warm-mist vaporizer with eucalyptus oil in it over night. We fed her crushed garlic and yogurt mixed with some of her feed. She was fine in two days. The vet thinks she had some chopped cranberry stuck, because that was the treat the flock had that day.

 

[Judy]

http://www.birdcareco.com/USA/USAArticles_and_advice/USBreederArts/US_Chick_Problems/us_chick_problems.html

Chickens do not get colds. There is an array of serious respiratory diseases they can get. In many cases, they will be carriers for life even if they survive. Culling the flock may be your best option, depending on your long term goals. You need to do some research.

I certainly hope it is something much less serious, like a temporary obstruction.

Good luck.

 

[slpadgett]

Thanks for the helpful advise.

Right now she seems stable in the garage, in a dog crate covered with blankets. She hasn't degraded since earlier, and is still eating and looking alert.

She doesn't have mucas drainage of any kind. Her other body functions are normal. She just has this persistant honking sound when she breaths.

Earlier it was changing from a squeeking sound to no sound (gasping) to a strong hoarse honk. She would extend her neck, open her beak and honk, squeek, gasp. Sometimes with a neck twist and a purple comb.

The birds free range in the yard all day. In spite of our best efforts, I'm sure there are many opportunities to ingest inappropriate materials. I'm hoping its just a stuck treat.

We will cull if she degrades and appears to be in pain.

 

[keljonma]

Quote:
Yes, I realize that chickens don't get colds. I used that phrase as an example. Yes there are an array of serious respiratory diseases out there that affect chickens. However, without vet testing or a necropsy, we are really just guessing at the problem.

 

[slpadgett]

Chicken is somewhat better this morning.

She is no longer making the gasping, squeaking, honking sound. She also is not doing the neckstretch / head shake. However, she sounds hoarse. She is making her normal quiet happy chicken sounds, but her voice is changed.

She is still eating, drinking and looking alert. Her droppings are normal. There is still no muscus on her beak. I haven't seen an egg yet today. But, I wouldn't normally excpect one until mid afternoon.

She remains isolated in the dog crate. I guess I'll keep her there until her voice sounds better.

 

[slpadgett]

I just found this online. You may all be familiar with it. It seems like a great source of information.

http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/toc_200000.htm

 

[keljonma]

That Merck Vet manual is something isn't it?!

Glad to hear your hen is doing better.