Swollen Red Wattles on hen

[aellis4902]

Good morning.
One of my Red Star hens came out of the coop this morning with very swollen wattles on both sides of her neck. She is acting more skittish than usual, hiding etc. She is the low hen on the pecking order as well. Is there anything besides fowl cholera that would cause this? I couldn't catch her before I had to go to work. My hens are free range and have a large pasture to roam with my sheep and guinea fowl. If it is fowl cholera, how do I treat the rest of the flock? I have about 30 chickens of various breeds altogether and would hate to lose them all.

Thank you in advance.
Amy

 

[Quackers3211]

When you get home could you please post a picture of her and separate her from the rest of the flock in case it is a contagious disease. You will also be able to monitor her food and water intake. If you where trying to catch her and failed that is a good sight because it means she is still healthy enough to run from you instead of being to sick to not.

 

[Eggcessive]

Any pictures? Stings and tick bites can cause swelling of the wattles. Look for any signs of a sting or any insects or ticks. Tick bites can cause hemorrhage into the tissues, and can appear bluish. Ticks can also cause diseases. You might try 1/2 of a 25 mg benadryl tablet to see if it helps. Fowl cholera would cause obvious symptoms and serious illness.Here are signs of fowl cholera if you want to rule that out:
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/61/fowl-cholera-pasteurellosis/

 

[aellis4902]

Upon closer inspection, she has a mass under her beak that that is swollen. She keeps shaking her head. I put her in the "infirmary" pen with clean water and food. No discharge from her nose or eyes, she is active, and no diarrhea. She has been hiding at night and not going into the coop so she may have been bitten by something, though I could not see any puncture wounds. It's a miracle an owl or coyote has not gotten her.

She's also molting - so not looking her best

 

[Eggcessive]

It looks blue like a hemorrhage. I would give her 1/2 a benadryl once to see if it starts to go down by tomorrow.

 

[Ellieschickies]

My hen is looking very similar to yours. Please can you update with the outcome and how you treated this?

 

[Eggcessive]

My hen is looking very similar to yours. Please can you update with the outcome and how you treated this?

Do you have bees or ticks around? Those can be common things that may cause swelling from stings or bites. Of course, respiratory diseases may also cause swollen wattles. Have you seen any respiratory symptoms, such as sneezing, gasping, rattly breathing, or watery eyes? If there are no symptoms, you could give one dose of benadryl (diphenhydramine) 1/4 to 1/2 of a 25 mg tablet to see if it helps.

 

[Ellieschickies]

Do you have bees or ticks around? Those can be common things that may cause swelling from stings or bites. Of course, respiratory diseases may also cause swollen wattles. Have you seen any respiratory symptoms, such as sneezing, gasping, rattly breathing, or watery eyes? If there are no symptoms, you could give one dose of benadryl (diphenhydramine) 1/4 to 1/2 of a 25 mg tablet to see if it helps.

Thank you for replying. I will try that!! I am a bit more concerned now as she had discharge from her mouth after drinking but hopefully the Benadryl will work

 

[Eggcessive]

The mucus from the beak could be from respiratory infection, or due to a possible insect sting or tick bite. I would watch for any watery eyes, bubbles in an eye, swelling of the face or an eyelid, sneezing, or other signs.