Rooster exposed to weather. Need advice

[kellim]

Just an update. I rubbed him down with Vicks Vapo Rub and gave him another dose of the antibiotic. He has a yellow discharge coming out of his nose so I have been cleaning that away with a qtip every few hours. He is sleeping on the floor of the cage with his head laying on the floor, but he is breathing, is that normal for a sick chicken to be so drowsy? We just passed the 24 hour mark so I hope that is a good sign. A few hours ago he felt so much better that he was standing up tall and looking around and eating and playing around with the female, that lasted about an hour and now he seems to be feeling poorly again. Maybe he is just tired. He has been breathing hard, I hope he is going to be okay...Any ideas?

 

[rooster-red]

Vapo rub can be very harmful to a chicken, I'd get it off quickly.

 

[ibpboo]

There's this stuff called VetRX you can get at the feed store. It has a few uses, maybe check it out and see if it could help in your situation.

http://www.circle-k.com/Vetrx.htm

http://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/product/vet_r_x.html

http://www.pbsanimalhealth.com/cgi-local/SoftCart.exe/bird/vetrxpoultryremedy.html?E+scstore

 

[CUDA]

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Vicks has the same active ingredient as vet-rx, without the big price tag. It won't hurt the chicken.

 

[ibpboo]

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Vicks has the same active ingredient as vet-rx, without the big price tag. It won't hurt the chicken.

that would be camphor

 

[dlhunicorn]

chickens are very sensitive to aromatics... camphor can be absorbed through the skin. Camphor is toxic to birds and while a little dab under the wings might not killl the bird on the spot , personally I wont touch anything with camphor in it or use it around my birds.
PLEASE do not use any more.
Terramycin may be insufficient to deal with this.
please switch over to tylan50 injectible... there are several posts on how to use and inject it.

 

[ChinaChicks1]

Well if you're on a tight budget and you want to save your birds, i say use the vicks. It doesn't take much. I've been raising chickens for over 20 yrs and have NEVER had a chicken die or become ill or deformed or disabled because of vetrx or vicks..

 

[dlhunicorn]

vicks/vet RX at best will ONLY provide symptomatic relief and do nothing whatsoever to actually TREAT what is causing the respiratory distress. (If its sinuses are plugged with crud then unplug them and do a sinus flush with sterile saline) and if you do choose to use this product (which has a very narrow therapeutic range which means you risk toxicity complications ) then you should be aware of the risk and especially vigilant for signs of toxicity.
http://www3.sympatico.ca/davehansen/avpoison.html
(A great overview of toxic substances to birds by pharmacologist Gillian A. Willis)
4.3 Camphor
Present in topical liniments and rubs. Toxicity: Stimulates central nervous system (CNS) to cause seizures. Toxic from all routes of absorption. A budgie developed seizures as a result of skin absorption, vapour inhalation and ingestion when the owner handled it after using Campho-phenique without washing his hands."

http://www.emea.europa.eu/pdfs/vet/mrls/068499en.pdf
COMMITTEE FOR VETERINARY MEDICINAL PRODUCTS
"... camphor, due to its lipophilic character, is generally considered to be rapidly absorbed in significant amounts through mucous membranes and intact skin. Metabolism is by hydroxylation and conjugation of the substance with glucuronic acid. Camphor and its metabolites are excreted mainly via urine.
Camphor is acutely toxic and the therapeutic range is considered narrow. The reported human lethal dose is 15 to 500 mg/kg bw. Infants are most vulnerable because of lower activity of liver enzymes able to hydroxylate and conjugate camphor with glucuronic acid. Acute camphor
ingestion may lead to neonatal toxicity because camphor crosses the placenta.
Symptoms of camphor poisoning are hepatotoxicity and neurotoxic effects presenting as confusion, respiratory dysregulation and tonic-clonic convulsions...."

 

[CUDA]

I respect you Dianna, but I feel you are wrong on this point. Using the vicks is the same as using the vet-rx, and the reason for doing this is to help clear out the lungs and sinuses, just like if you would use it on yourself. The chickens in question are having problems due to being thoroughly soaked, and do not necessarily have any kind of infection. It won't hurt to use antibiotics, but don't sell things like camphor oil short, as it has its purpose as well, and can help. I have used it with great success in the past, and is has never hurt any bird. The Vet-RX is made special just for birds after all, and vicks is basically the same thing, and like ChinaChicks said, you only need a little dab to do the job.

 

[dlhunicorn]

I stand by my warning based on many cases (including human) many near death or deaths (such as reported by the avian toxicologist)... ppl need to be aware of the risk if they choose to use it...
Vet RX has been around for over thirty years and they may not have been aware then of the extremely narrow therapeutic range and toxicity of camphor then as we are now... the toxicity is also accumulative ...
Use it with full knowledge of the risks and use it sparingly if you decide to do so ...the OP's wording gave the impression that the vicks was used in quite an amount and that after the bird was feeling poorly again which is why I suggested that they discontinue using it (or vetRX) and posted the warnings:
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