Rooster boy constantly swallowing - help

[kcan2]

I cannot figure this one out. My bantam boy keeps swallowing and head shaking constantly. Something is really bugging him. I don't think it's gapeworms as he has been wormed with Safeguard - 5 days, full dose. My other chicken is not doing this. I switched their feed from crumbles to pellets, tried cleaning all of the diatomaceous earth out of their indoor food/coop. They do have a sand bath, grit, and oyster, plenty of water and food. They are indoors and have pine shavings in their coop.

Could it be the pine shavings irritating him? It's about the only thing I haven't tried to switch out. He has been struggling with this since October. Eating and drinking fine.

Thanks for any input!

 

[kcan2]

You can drop 1 drop of Peroxide in the ear, then wipe it out.

His nostril looks clogged up as well. Same thing, 1 drop of Peroxide, let that sit for a minute to help soften it

Hey there, I wanted to update to state that administering the peroxide seems to have given him the most immediate relief!

I didn't have an empty eyedropper so I put the peroxide in a near-empty systema eyedropper bottle, so sort of a peroxide/systema/saline mix. When I put it on his nostril, I was afraid some got in his airway and was drowning him because he began shutting his inner membrane eyelid and opened his beak wide like he was trying to breathe. A bit startling but it wore off quickly and he seemed much more comfortable right away. I have only treated his right ear and nostril so far.

Last night, his crop was actually nice and full at the end of the day, like he had been eating better. Swallowing action is much reduced. I also gave him a bit a bread with olive oil and coconut oil bits just in case he has a crop issue. However, since it seems to be more of a crusty accumulation in his ears and nostrils issue than a crop problem, I plan to proceed by focusing on keeping his upper passageways clean (short-term) while increasing ventilation in the indoor run area as a hopeful long-term prevention of reoccurrence.

I guess my only question now - is if I did anything wrong when I was cleaning him? I got that startling reaction where he opened wide his beak as if he couldn't get a breath and shut his eyelid. Not sure if some went down his airway or if it just fizzed and caused him to react in that odd way. I'd like to clean him again on his left side but am a bit hesitant.

He's a good boy and I'm thankful for your help!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

You could try putting a dab of coconut oil or mineral oil on there to see if that helps soften it. Most have found that they have to dab a drop of Peroxide, then dig a little. Put another drop, dig some more to loosen. It's a process.

It's good that his ears are clear.

Hopefully once you get the debris from his nostrils he will do much better.

 

[Tonyroo]

If he still has a hard crust blocking his nostrils.

This what I did when my rooster had the blockage.

I got a cup, put really warm water in it, grab a couple of cotton swab, and a tweezer or a dental scrapper.

I dipped the tip of the swab in the really warm water, then press against the cup to remove some of the water off the tip. Then placed it on the blockage for a minute holding it in place. Then used a dental scrapper to scratch off a little bit of it. I repeated the process till it was all clean.

 

[kcan2]

If he still has a hard crust blocking his nostrils.

This what I did when my rooster had the blockage.

I got a cup, put really warm water in it, grab a couple of cotton swab, and a tweezer or a dental scrapper.

I dipped the tip of the swab in the really warm water, then press against the cup to remove some of the water off the tip. Then placed it on the blockage for a minute holding it in place. Then used a dental scrapper to scratch off a little bit of it. I repeated the process till it was all clean.

Thanks for that, I've been gradually working at carving that stuff out without upsetting him too much. The warm wet qtip has seemed to work well. I didn't think to use a dental scraper, but a toothpick helped a lot.

At the time I thought, some people are out training for the Olympics, but I'm here finessing boogers out of a chicken's nostril with a toothpick.

 

[Eggcessive]

How does his crop feel? Does it empty by morning? If he has any respiratory symptoms or mucus from his nostrils, or eye bubbles or drainage? They can have mucus drain in the back of the throat and swallow frequently. Gaping and head shaking can also be a sign of a crop problem.

 

[Eggcessive]

If his crop empties every morning, he probably doesn’t have a crop problem. If he has crust around his nostrils, he may be having some nasal drainage which could be a respiratory disease or irritation from something. Pine shavings are fine. Make sure that you have good ventilation in the coop overhead. Ammonia fumes from droppings or dust can irritate the nasal passages. Is there any mold or moisture?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Well, their coop is parked in the garage for the winter, I did have a box fan for cool air circulation going out there but did remove it around the time he started this behavior due to cooler weather. Do you think I should put the fan back out there? The garage is holding around 35-40° to keep their water from freezing.

I would give them ventilation and fresh air.

The actions he displays, I would still re-check his crop first thing in the morning before he's had anything to eat/drink to make sure it's empty/flat.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Giving a teaspoon of coconut oil won't hurt anything.
Put it in the fridge to harden it up, break it into small pieces and let him eat it. My birds love coconut oil.

You may want to look inside his ears just to rule out ear infection and take another look inside the beak for obstruction or yellow/white pasty material as well.

Keep us posted and let us know if he improves once you add more ventilation.

 

[Eggcessive]

You can run your hand up and down his right chest to find the crop. Feel if it is hard or doughy. You can massage it several times a day as long as it is not puffy/soft, full of liquid. The coconut oil plus drinking water may break up any blockage. Compare his crop to the other’s crops. If his is not empty by morning there may be a blockage. Do you have granite poultry grit out for the chickens to take as needed?