Respiratory issue with a chicken.

[sass.joel]

hey all. I have an old barred rock hen who we really love. Her name is Chick-choo. She's done laying, probably five years old, but she's really sweet.

It's spring here, and we've let our chickens out in the yard, and we noticed Chick-choo listless and gasping for air. Her comb appeared to be hypoxic. Neither of our other chickens appear to be experiencing these issues, and we're not sure if they are less prone to infection being different breeds, or some other issue.

Her symptoms:

Hypoxia with a bluing comb on occasion. During inhalation, she will slightly open her beak and stretch her neck out a little bit. On occasion, when she's having trouble, she will shake her head and let out a peep/cough, then breathing seems to get a little easier for her. It seems like if she's sitting perched, she can breathe easier than if she's standing or sitting on a flat surface. I've massaged her crop, and it doesn't appear to be swollen or distended, though i have found that holding her in a vertical position seems to allow her to breathe easier. There does not appear to be any mucus build-up around nostrils or eyes. Stool is ropy green, white sediment and clear liquid.

We took her to the vet on Tuesday, and he'd given us some Tylan, with the assumption that she has a lung infection. He also suggested we keep her in a quiet spot, and heat the room to ~80 degrees F. We've put her in a room in our basement, treated her water with Tylan, and waited.

She seems to eat on the regular. We've been making her scrambled eggs with a little olive oil and some plain yogurt mixed in. She seems to enjoy the meals. She's been drinking water well enough as well.

The treatment suggested does not seem to have an effect. She's been drinking and eating. I was just massaging her crop again after noticing that she could breathe more easily afterward, and I noticed a mite of some sort crawling on my arm, so I have treated her feathers and bedding with food grade Diatomaceous earth. I also went outside and mixed some into the coop bedding.

I spoke with my vet today after letting him know that the antibiotics don't seem to be having an effect, and he suggested tetracycline as a next step.

I'm pretty dour about chick-choo's situation, but am wondering if anybody's seen these symptoms, or has any advice. I have not seen evidence of worms, and my other chickens do not appear to be affected by any disease.

Anyone have any suggestions?

 

[nightowl223]

hey all. I have an old barred rock hen who we really love. Her name is Chick-choo. She's done laying, probably five years old, but she's really sweet.

It's spring here, and we've let our chickens out in the yard, and we noticed Chick-choo listless and gasping for air. Her comb appeared to be hypoxic. Neither of our other chickens appear to be experiencing these issues, and we're not sure if they are less prone to infection being different breeds, or some other issue.

Her symptoms:

Hypoxia with a bluing comb on occasion. During inhalation, she will slightly open her beak and stretch her neck out a little bit. On occasion, when she's having trouble, she will shake her head and let out a peep/cough, then breathing seems to get a little easier for her. It seems like if she's sitting perched, she can breathe easier than if she's standing or sitting on a flat surface. I've massaged her crop, and it doesn't appear to be swollen or distended, though i have found that holding her in a vertical position seems to allow her to breathe easier. There does not appear to be any mucus build-up around nostrils or eyes. Stool is ropy green, white sediment and clear liquid.

We took her to the vet on Tuesday, and he'd given us some Tylan, with the assumption that she has a lung infection. He also suggested we keep her in a quiet spot, and heat the room to ~80 degrees F. We've put her in a room in our basement, treated her water with Tylan, and waited.

She seems to eat on the regular. We've been making her scrambled eggs with a little olive oil and some plain yogurt mixed in. She seems to enjoy the meals. She's been drinking water well enough as well.

The treatment suggested does not seem to have an effect. She's been drinking and eating. I was just massaging her crop again after noticing that she could breathe more easily afterward, and I noticed a mite of some sort crawling on my arm, so I have treated her feathers and bedding with food grade Diatomaceous earth. I also went outside and mixed some into the coop bedding.

I spoke with my vet today after letting him know that the antibiotics don't seem to be having an effect, and he suggested tetracycline as a next step.

I'm pretty dour about chick-choo's situation, but am wondering if anybody's seen these symptoms, or has any advice. I have not seen evidence of worms, and my other chickens do not appear to be affected by any disease.

Anyone have any suggestions?

Well, give tetracycline a try, as it does cover several kinds of germs that Tylan doesn't. It's also possible she has something else going on, like a tumor or something internal. Did your vet check her abdomen, or note the (what your description leads me to believe are) feather lice? If not, then I'm not too thrilled with his or her examination. I'd suggest ivermectin for the feather lice, and give the tetracycline a try.

Also, check her abdomen, and see if it's tight, as if it might be full? Older hens can develop a disease called (if memory serves) ascitis, caused by the heart or liver developing disease. It causes liquid to build up inside the abdomen (not in the intestines or anything, just loose in the abdomen, and draining it can help lengthen their lives and allow them to breathe better and not be in so much distress.

(edited to fix typo)

 

[nightowl223]

Ah, I found a recent post about the disease that causes liquids internally:

Ascites is common in some hens from heart or liver failure, and also in reproductive disorders. A vet could drain her belly, and that might help her temporarily, but the fluid does accumulate again. You can try draining yourself with a 14 gauge or 16 gauge needle, but it is not without risks. Here is a YouTube video about how to drain:

Edited to add the link that didn't follow me like I asked it to, LOL