Rooster with breathing issues

[Myah1011]

Not my rooster but a friend's rooster has been having breathing issues for about 3 to 4 months (I only just learned about the rooster.) And so at times his wattle and comb turn purple but the purple has gone down a tad bit lately, he's also gasping for air and his Beak is constantly open. He's pretty lethargic and is pretty tired, when feeling him I also felt that he was very skinny so he probably isn't eating much or drinking a whole ton, when I approached him he didn't even move at all or get fussy, he's that tired.. I haven't seen what his droppings look like because I haven't looked at him for long but my only guess so far since it's obvious that he's lacking oxygen and not eating is that he possibly has impacted crop, nothing is leaking out of his beak and no foul smell so its probably not sour crop so I just feel like it's impacted crop. Unless it's some type of respiratory issue I'm not thinking of? It also hasn't spread to any of the fellow flock mates so I doubt it's bacterial. Anyways that's all the information I have, does this sound familiar to anyone? I've never encountered impacted crop before so I'm unsure if they have it, I did feel their crop but like I said I have never dealt with this before so I can't fully tell if it is impacted crop or not. Any advice is appreciated!

 

[coach723]

An impacted crop does not usually cause breathing issues unless contents are coming back up and the bird aspirates it. It sounds more respiratory. There are virus's, bacteria and fungal causes of respiratory problems. Also possible he aspirated something, depending on what that might be, it could cause pneumonia. Also possible that he has a heart problem. Gapeworm is not the most common parasite, but can cause gasping for air.
To rule out the crop, feel the crop and see if it's empty, full, soft and squishy, hard, etc. Then feel again first thing in the morning before he's had access to food or water, it should be empty then. If he's not eating, then likely it will feel empty both times. If the crop is impacted, or there is an impaction lower down, the crop will not empty of it's contents, that's why you need to check first thing in the AM, before he's had anything to eat or drink.
A couple of articles on crop issues, and one on gapeworm vs respiratory. If you decide to treat for gapeworm you can use Safeguard Liquid Goat wormer, dose is .25 ml per pound of body weight, orally, 5 days in a row.
https://www.dineachook.com.au/blog/what-are-the-symptoms-of-chicken-gapeworm/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ntion-and-treatments-of-crop-disorders.67194/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...dications-to-all-poultry-and-waterfowl.73335/

 

[Myah1011]

An impacted crop does not usually cause breathing issues unless contents are coming back up and the bird aspirates it. It sounds more respiratory. There are virus's, bacteria and fungal causes of respiratory problems. Also possible he aspirated something, depending on what that might be, it could cause pneumonia. Also possible that he has a heart problem. Gapeworm is not the most common parasite, but can cause gasping for air.
To rule out the crop, feel the crop and see if it's empty, full, soft and squishy, hard, etc. Then feel again first thing in the morning before he's had access to food or water, it should be empty then. If he's not eating, then likely it will feel empty both times. If the crop is impacted, or there is an impaction lower down, the crop will not empty of it's contents, that's why you need to check first thing in the AM, before he's had anything to eat or drink.
A couple of articles on crop issues, and one on gapeworm vs respiratory. If you decide to treat for gapeworm you can use Safeguard Liquid Goat wormer, dose is .25 ml per pound of body weight, orally, 5 days in a row.
https://www.dineachook.com.au/blog/what-are-the-symptoms-of-chicken-gapeworm/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ntion-and-treatments-of-crop-disorders.67194/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...dications-to-all-poultry-and-waterfowl.73335/

Do respiratory issues really last for 3-4 months, I'm definitely not an expert but I thought that respiratory issues killed birds somewhat quicker? But if it's not impacted crop I guess this is the best option because my friends don't believe that it's gapeworm because they dewormed their flock recently.

 

[coach723]

Gapeworm can require slightly different dosing, so depends on what they used and the dose for that. Some respiratory virus's are chronic, the bird carries them, they are not cured. Symptoms can come and go, often triggered by stress, their entire lives. Mortality can vary depending on the individual bird and immune system. Treatment is usually Tylan or Tylosin for symptoms, but for many virus's that will only treat the symptoms, and they may recur periodically. MG (mycoplasma gallisepticum) is fairly common. Common symptoms are discharge from eyes, nares, beak, bubbles in eye, coughing, sneezing, wheezing, facial swelling.
Aspergillosis is a fungal infection that can present with breathing difficulties without the discharge and coughing. Without vet care and testing, I can't tell you for certain if any of those things are what is going on. Aspergillosis can be treated with oral prescription antifungals in pet birds, not in birds that are used for food, it's also stubborn and hard to treat.
A couple of links:
https://www.freedomrangerhatchery.com/blog/protecting-your-flock-what-you-need-to-know-about-mg-ms/
https://extension.psu.edu/aspergillosis-in-poultry

 

[User635240]

Do respiratory issues really last for 3-4 months, I'm definitely not an expert but I thought that respiratory issues killed birds somewhat quicker? But if it's not impacted crop I guess this is the best option because my friends don't believe that it's gapeworm because they dewormed their flock recently.

If it's lasted for months I'd suspect mycoplasma galliseptum.