Sneezing Hens/Nasal Discharge????

[itsmyaddiction]

Okay, I am going to try to make this as short as possible. I need some insight on a respiratory thing that some of my older girls in my flock have. About a week ago one of my BR hens started sneezing, then I noticed a few small bubbles in her right eye. A few days passed and she sneezed when she was standing nest to me and I could see clear fluid on her beak. I started duramycin on Wednesday because she and my Polish splash roo were crackling. They have been inside the coop since Wednesday. They free range my property so as you can imagine they are NOT happy.
What would cause this first of all? Also what can I do to get them better? At this point I am not sleeping and I am worried that I am going to have to kill ALL 14 in that flock

I went out today and purchased Aureomycin medicated crumble to add to their food and oxytetracycline-343 for their water. The duramycin doesn't seem to be doing a thing so I opted to try the Oxy. I have other chickens and ducks that free range my property and I don't want them to get sick either. I am beside myself in knowing what else to do. Can someone please help me?

Btw, the sick coop is eating and drinking just fine, going through 2 gallons of the medicated water daily. Hope to hear from ya'll SOON!

Thank you in advance

 

[MandyH]

Are these new birds or have you had them a while?

 

[itsmyaddiction]

Quote:
I got them as chicks last year so they are a year old. Have never ever had any issues with them. They are still laying brown eggs every day even though I know we can't eat them because of the antibiotics.

 

[ams3651]

Id like to know this answer too, I noticed today a couple were sneezing but no discharge, at least not yet. Its been very wet, damp and humid here lately but no new birds other than ones hatched by one of my hens. I havent been around any other birds either.

 

[horsejody]

I think that ammonia build up in the coop can be a respiratory irritant. Is the coop clean and well ventilated?

 

[ams3651]

with the dampness and humidity it probably would be a good idea to clean it out. any way to treat the sneezing or will it go away

 

[horsejody]

Quote:
That depends on if it is caused by an irritant or a disease. If it's ammonia, cleaning and ventilating the area should help very quickly. If it's a disease, all bets are off. Some are mild and curable. Some cause a bird to be a permanent carrier. I would isolate all with symptoms from the flock and clean the coop thoroughly. If there is not improvement, you will have to investigate the possibility of disease.

 

[itsmyaddiction]

Quote:
That is a possibility also. I have talked with someone local and she told me that if it was disease where they are all living together everyone would have the same symptoms. It was just 2 and the others are fine. I will clean everything out GOOD and see if that helps-- sounds like it would be safe to let them free range again????
We have had rain, rain and more rain here too so that may have something to do with it also. Another pointer the local gave me was dust in the hay that I use in their nest boxes..... something else to consider!

 

[WalkingWolf]

There seems to be a lot of posts along these lines lately. Now I am relatively new here and maybe this is normal after winter. But I do know the current scare which turned out to not be much with swine flu is contagious to birds from what I understand.

This is what I pulled from WHO when I was looking for flu symptoms in poultry.

Avian influenza is an infectious disease of birds caused by type A strains of the influenza virus. The disease occurs worldwide. While all birds are thought to be susceptible to infection with avian influenza viruses, many wild bird species carry these viruses with no apparent signs of harm.

Other bird species, including domestic poultry, develop disease when infected with avian influenza viruses. In poultry, the viruses cause two distinctly different forms of disease – one common and mild, the other rare and highly lethal. In the mild form, signs of illness may be expressed only as ruffled feathers, reduced egg production, or mild effects on the respiratory system. Outbreaks can be so mild they escape detection unless regular testing for viruses is in place.

It is just a thought and I wonder if CDC has tested any poultry lately, and the results.​

 

[SteffyK]

How would one go about testing for diseases if the sneezing didnt clear up? I dont have the first idea of who or where to begin searching. I also have a couple of hens who started sneezing and just cant seem to get over it. Maybe I need to try a new antibiotic?