Took bantam hen to vet. Turned out not to be a cold but much worse

[azygous]

By the way, the med you are giving your hen is not a cure. It's strictly to try to make her more comfortable and have an easier time breathing. You could try to treat the symptoms with Tylan 50, but if her immune system is compromised as the vet has discovered, it may not do much, explaining why the vet didn't choose that option to treat her.

 

[speckledhen]

Culling your entire flock is not necessary, though one option available. Good flock management to maximize health and strong immune systems is another option. I've chosen the latter. I have a healthy flock in spite of the virus they carry.

Very true. I would add for the OP that if you do have this in your flock and decide to keep them and try to bolster their immune systems, just be aware that you cannot ethically sell chicks to others. I'm sure you would never want to cause heartache in someone else's flock that way, meaning you close your flock and let them live out their lives in your care. You sound like a compassionate person who really cares for your birds. Thanks for your post, azygous.

 

[ronott1]

I'm so sorry about your little Gwen. I don't know what to do either, and I really wish I did. But tagging as many educators as I can is the best I can do.

@TwoCrows @Tony K T @Stellar @speckledhen @seminolewind @ronott1 @Ridgerunner @RAREROO @Miss Lydia @Bo Garrett

I hope with all my heart that your hen will be okay.

I had similar symptoms with a fungal infection in the throat that choked the hen.

Apparently the virus least to tumors so the vet might have seen a tumor in the throat?

I do agree that a swab test or necropsy would be a good idea. If possible, check the rest of the flock to see if they have the virus too. It would be best to cull all positive flock members sadly.

 

[azygous]

Your hen appears to have a compromised immune system. What that means is she may not have the strong cells in her blood to fight off secondary infections, her respiratory issues being just one of many. She may rally with the steroid and get past her respiratory infection this time around, but she may not be as successful with future infections.

Most flocks with chickens that live for more than a few years as in flocks where they're raised as meat, can develop infections of various kinds as normal aging affects their immune systems. When you add on the burden of carrying an avian virus, it can further take a toll on immune systems. I've lost more hens to reproductive infections than directly because of the leucosis virus.

No one can say whether your hen will kick her infection this time and go on to live another few months or even a few more years. It's all up to her body and whether she fights this off or not. The signs are that she has a chance to live a few more months, but her long term prognosis isn't encouraging.

What you can do is give her, as well as your entire flock, the best care and feeding you can in order to maximize their health and their immune systems. I do this by keeping an immaculate coop and run to reduce the bacteria they encounter and must fight off, and I feed fermented feed which maximizes nutrition they derive from their feed. These strategies give their immune systems all the help they can get.

 

[Featheryyards]

Very true. I would add for the OP that if you do have this in your flock and decide to keep them and try to bolster their immune systems, just be aware that you cannot ethically sell chicks to others. I'm sure you would never want to cause heartache in someone else's flock that way, meaning you close your flock and let them live out their lives in your care. You sound like a compassionate person who really cares for your birds. Thanks for your post, azygous.

I have no intention of selling or giving away any of my birds. And outside of the clutch she hatched December last year I have no intention of letting her hatch any more babies. I just want the ones I have now to be able to live happy lives as long as we can manage.

 

[Featheryyards]

Your hen appears to have a compromised immune system. What that means is she may not have the strong cells in her blood to fight off secondary infections, her respiratory issues being just one of many. She may rally with the steroid and get past her respiratory infection this time around, but she may not be as successful with future infections.

Most flocks with chickens that live for more than a few years as in flocks where they're raised as meat, can develop infections of various kinds as normal aging affects their immune systems. When you add on the burden of carrying an avian virus, it can further take a toll on immune systems. I've lost more hens to reproductive infections than directly because of the leucosis virus.

No one can say whether your hen will kick her infection this time and go on to live another few months or even a few more years. It's all up to her body and whether she fights this off or not. The signs are that she has a chance to live a few more months, but her long term prognosis isn't encouraging.

What you can do is give her, as well as your entire flock, the best care and feeding you can in order to maximize their health and their immune systems. I do this by keeping an immaculate coop and run to reduce the bacteria they encounter and must fight off, and I feed fermented feed which maximizes nutrition they derive from their feed. These strategies give their immune systems all the help they can get.

I will definitely be doing my best to keep them as healthy as possible. I just went and got a fresh bag of feed and I plan to be making sure they are getting their supplements in their water and feed daily. I hope it at least gives me a little bit longer with her

 

[Featheryyards]

Your hen appears to have a compromised immune system. What that means is she may not have the strong cells in her blood to fight off secondary infections, her respiratory issues being just one of many. She may rally with the steroid and get past her respiratory infection this time around, but she may not be as successful with future infections.

Most flocks with chickens that live for more than a few years as in flocks where they're raised as meat, can develop infections of various kinds as normal aging affects their immune systems. When you add on the burden of carrying an avian virus, it can further take a toll on immune systems. I've lost more hens to reproductive infections than directly because of the leucosis virus.

No one can say whether your hen will kick her infection this time and go on to live another few months or even a few more years. It's all up to her body and whether she fights this off or not. The signs are that she has a chance to live a few more months, but her long term prognosis isn't encouraging.

What you can do is give her, as well as your entire flock, the best care and feeding you can in order to maximize their health and their immune systems. I do this by keeping an immaculate coop and run to reduce the bacteria they encounter and must fight off, and I feed fermented feed which maximizes nutrition they derive from their feed. These strategies give their immune systems all the help they can get.

I don’t know how to explain it but is it normal if she is getting worse at night? She sleeps in my moms room at night. During the day she is sounding so much better. We are giving her the medicine from the doctor and I’m giving her supplements in her water and stuff. When you Listen to her it’s very very little gurgles. But only gurgles. But when nighttime comes and everyone gets ready to sleep (around 11:00pm) she gets more gurgly, raspy, sneezing, coughing, and what my mom says looks like gasping for air. It scares me so much seeing her like that and I don’t know how to comfort her.

 

[azygous]

Respiratory issues are always worse at night because the mucous is worse without the movement the body does during the day. Old humans with respiratory issues often need to have an oxygen machine help them breathe at night, it's so common. So your hen could benefit with a little help from a mister or vaporizer directed over her at night with a little peppermint oil in it to help the mist penetrate into her lungs. That's the only thing you can do short of renting an oxygen tank and rigging an oxygen tent for her to sleep in.

Is her comb getting a dark purple when she struggles at night? If that's happening, her organs aren't getting adequate oxygen and it could indicate she may die soon.

 

[Featheryyards]

Respiratory issues are always worse at night because the mucous is worse without the movement the body does during the day. Old humans with respiratory issues often need to have an oxygen machine help them breathe at night, it's so common. So your hen could benefit with a little help from a mister or vaporizer directed over her at night with a little peppermint oil in it to help the mist penetrate into her lungs. That's the only thing you can do short of renting an oxygen tank and rigging an oxygen tent for her to sleep in.

Is her comb getting a dark purple when she struggles at night? If that's happening, her organs aren't getting adequate oxygen and it could indicate she may die soon.

Her comb looks a bright red. I havnt seen it go purple yet. It is mainly either bright red and sometimes a bit pale. I do have a nebulizer. Would putting some peppermint oil in it and giving her a breathing treatment with that work similar?

 

[azygous]

Yes, any kind of moisture in the air she breathes will soothe her breathing membranes and make it easier on her. Give it a try, especially at night. Only don't set it up to force the moist air into her. Just mist it over her.