Sneezing/Coughing a lot but mostly breathing normal...

[krissyweso]

Any ideas?

A little background....I rescued a group of young chickens who were abandoned in 100 degree heat with no food or water about three weeks ago. One was dead upon my arrival, one died a few days later, and they were ALL in really really bad shape... Totally emaciated and heat stressed.

Despite all of our efforts (vitamins, minerals, corid, electrolytes, regular starter/grower feed, treats of all kinds, lots of love), it has been a slow go getting some of them to bounce back.

This one, in the video below, I think, has a respiratory infection, but a part of me thinks it could be gapeworm.

She usually has bouts of like three and four sneezes / coughs in a row (I couldn't get it on camera, though), but, otherwise, she's not like stretching her neck forward or open mouth breathing. She just stands there breathing normally.

Any ideas about this? I started her (her? him? Idk yet) on SMZ/TMP and Safeguard to treat for both, but I wanted to know if anyone had experienced this exact thing before.

 

[Will You Rescue Me]

Any ideas?

A little background....I rescued a group of young chickens who were abandoned in 100 degree heat with no food or water about three weeks ago. One was dead upon my arrival, one died a few days later, and they were ALL in really really bad shape... Totally emaciated and heat stressed.

Despite all of our efforts (vitamins, minerals, corid, electrolytes, regular starter/grower feed, treats of all kinds, lots of love), it has been a slow go getting some of them to bounce back.

This one, in the video below, I think, has a respiratory infection, but a part of me thinks it could be gapeworm.

She usually has bouts of like three and four sneezes / coughs in a row (I couldn't get it on camera, though), but, otherwise, she's not like stretching her neck forward or open mouth breathing. She just stands there breathing normally.

Any ideas about this? I started her (her? him? Idk yet) on SMZ/TMP and Safeguard to treat for both, but I wanted to know if anyone had experienced this exact thing before.

I don’t know enough about chickens to know if this applies, but I’ve found that a lot of humans and dogs and other animals when they’ve experienced starvation they have a difficult time relearning how to digest their food and watered down foods like oatmeal or poriages or wetted kibble had made it easier for them to consume their meals. I don’t know if this is the same for chickens so I’d definitely do more research but if worst comes to worst it might be an option. I found sometimes vets are willing to give free bits of advise if you ask nicely. Though they won’t see them personally without an appointment sometimes they’ll give you some general suggestions or information.

 

[krissyweso]

I don’t know enough about chickens to know if this applies, but I’ve found that a lot of humans and dogs and other animals when they’ve experienced starvation they have a difficult time relearning how to digest their food and watered down foods like oatmeal or poriages or wetted kibble had made it easier for them to consume their meals. I don’t know if this is the same for chickens so I’d definitely do more research but if worst comes to worst it might be an option. I found sometimes vets are willing to give free bits of advise if you ask nicely. Though they won’t see them personally without an appointment sometimes they’ll give you some general suggestions or information.

Thank you so much! Yes, we'd been doing that during the early days to get some extra water into them, also, but I didn't think about it being easier to digest. I'll keep doing that now! It's worth a shot. Thank you!

 

[Eggcessive]

It looks like a respiratory disease, possibly infectious bronchitis virus, the most common one. It causes sneezing every few minutes, congestion, and the head shaking and swallowing mucus. If you see any eye bubbles or foam, or swollen eyes it could be mycoplasma (MG.) IB virus will not respond to antibiotics and lasts about 3-4 weeks. MG can respond to Tylosin or Denagard. If you see any wrinkled egg shells, that can be another sign of IB virus. I would offer them chicken feed, and you can wet some of that. Oatmeal is not best, but the balanced chicken feed is good.

 

[Will You Rescue Me]

Thank you so much! Yes, we'd been doing that during the early days to get some extra water into them, also, but I didn't think about it being easier to digest. I'll keep doing that now! It's worth a shot. Thank you!

No problem. I know from personal experience when you rescue animals the frantic chaos of trying to find something that works when presented with a scary and uncommon situation. God knows I’ve taken home some strange creatures in the past that not even google knew what to do with. I wish you the best of luck though! And don’t beat yourself up too much, just try and keep in mind that you rescued them and whatever happens, you showed up and you tried for them when no one else had. I die a little inside every time we lose an animal, even though a lot of the ones we take in we do so with a near garauntee that they may not last the night. Just make sure to keep everything sterile and keep them isolated from any other pets and animals. I take things to the extremes with quarantining but I just get so scared of something spreading.

 

[krissyweso]

It looks like a respiratory disease, possibly infectious bronchitis virus, the most common one. It causes sneezing every few minutes, congestion, and the head shaking and swallowing mucus. If you see any eye bubbles or foam, or swollen eyes it could be mycoplasma (MG.) IB virus will not respond to antibiotics and lasts about 3-4 weeks. MG can respond to Tylosin or Denagard. If you see any wrinkled egg shells, that can be another sign of IB virus. I would offer them chicken feed, and you can wet some of that. Oatmeal is not best, but the balanced chicken feed is good.

Thank you, @Eggcessive. I haven't noticed eye bubbles or anything MP related, and, I didn't know her exact age, but since I have another mille fleur, I do know that she's too young for egg laying.

So I'll need to keep her isolated by herself for another month? We've been keeping the rescued group quarantined from the rest of our flock for the last three, almost four, weeks.

I'll be honest, I'm pretty nervous about this spreading. I have a great flock with four two-month-old I hatched. I'm afraid they will catch it. I'm not wearing the same clothes or shoes around the sick pullet, the rescue group, or my flock as a precaution. I'm wondering, though, as the sick chicken is in a dog crate in my house (which is a small, one floor cottage), should I not bring my other chickens in and watch TV on the couch with them during this time? Lol. I know it's a silly question, but it's something I love to do every night that I can. I don't want to, though, if it's probably not safe to do so.

As always, thank you, again, for your help.

 

[krissyweso]

No problem. I know from personal experience when you rescue animals the frantic chaos of trying to find something that works when presented with a scary and uncommon situation. God knows I’ve taken home some strange creatures in the past that not even google knew what to do with. I wish you the best of luck though! And don’t beat yourself up too much, just try and keep in mind that you rescued them and whatever happens, you showed up and you tried for them when no one else had. I die a little inside every time we lose an animal, even though a lot of the ones we take in we do so with a near garauntee that they may not last the night. Just make sure to keep everything sterile and keep them isolated from any other pets and animals. I take things to the extremes with quarantining but I just get so scared of something spreading.

It's nice to know I'm not the only one who worries. I've had a nightmare every night this week about something spreading to my existing flock... Even before this particular illness happened. This just made them worse. I'm constantly changing and washing my clothes and shoes and making sure my husband does, too. It's a lot to think about! Kind of feels like my COVID strategies are being put to use again.

Thank you, again, for reaching out! It does help take the edge off when you know there are others empathize.

 

[Eggcessive]

It would be good to try and get some testing to find out if it is infection bronchitis or something else. It just helps to know if you are dealing with MG or IB, since MG makes them carriers for life. IB is contagious and spreads by droplets as well as direct contact. They can be carriers for 5 months. My flock had suspected IB virus years ago, which spread through the flock, and I controlled the spread by not adding any new chicks for a year. Your state vet lab might have suggestions on how to get testing, but there are labs such as Zoologix and others who will send you materials to collect swabs for testing. They offer a panel test for 8 different respiratory diseases:
https://www.zoologix.com/

 

[krissyweso]

So, it's been over a month, and she hasn't gotten any worse or any better.. She still is making the gurgling noises, coughing, and sneezing. I've had her on antibiotics for weeks. She hasn't spread it to her partner roo. I'm so confused!!!

Could the heat stress have just damaged her trachea or lungs or something structurally?

 

[Bird-Whisperer]

So, it's been over a month, and she hasn't gotten any worse or any better.. She still is making the gurgling noises, coughing, and sneezing. I've had her on antibiotics for weeks. She hasn't spread it to her partner roo. I'm so confused!!!

Could the heat stress have just damaged her trachea or lungs or something structurally?

I'm having a similar experience: We recently had a heatwave where I live and it hit 115+/- a few degrees for 4 days in a row. It's been about 2 weeks since and I've had a few chickens develop a "yelling", sometimes wet sounding, cough that hasn't improved since. They don't have any other symptoms and it doesn't seem to be spreading. I'm going to do a deep clean of the coop today to see if that helps (maybe the heat has made them more sensitive?). I saw on another thread that a lot of people recommend the VetRx for respiratory, so I'll get some and see if that helps.