Two-month long respiratory illness? Need advice

[darlingdarla]

My hen has had this breathing problem for almost two months now, she acts completely normal, when i say normal i mean you wouldn't know she was sick unless you get down to her level and listen to her breathe. She is eating and drinking and still has enough fire to chase the subordinate hens halfway across the yard and steal treats from her flockmates.
I just need some help figuring out what to do from here, shes been on tylan50 already, didn't help. I've tried everything that has worked in the past when anyone has been wheezing and nothing is working now, which makes me think i have a bigger problem than i first realized. I have new chicks coming in nine days so i need to get back on top of this.

1) What type of bird , age and weight (does the chicken seem or feel lighter or thinner than the others.)
Three year old EE hen, i dont think she has lost any weight so far shes always been pretty hefty.

2) What is the behavior, exactly.
Wheezing constantly, and gaping when any kind of pressure is put on her lungs (no matter how light)

3) How long has the bird been exhibiting symptoms?
About two months but I'm not sure

4) Are other birds exhibiting the same symptoms?
No

5) Is there any bleeding, injury, broken bones or other sign of trauma.
No, i checked her throat for obstructions but i cant see anything.

6) What happened, if anything that you know of, that may have caused the situation.
I was sick myself for several months and let coop cleaning go a bit, i wonder if the ammonia in the air caused this but since i got a little better I've been cleaning the coop once a week (which is before it really starts to smell, even inside of the coop with the doors and windows closed)

7) What has the bird been eating and drinking, if at all.
She's been eating and drinking normal, i feed the flock Purina layers crumbles or pellets and she also gets the occasional kitchen scraps (leftover greens and other veggies). She drinks normal amounts as well, I've been adding electrolytes to the water for the last few days.

8) How does the poop look? Normal? Bloody? Runny? etc.
Completely normal, no runny droppings no blood, nothing weird.

9) What has been the treatment you have administered so far?
I put her through a round of Tylan50 when it didn't go away for a month, it didn't help at all, every once in a while i give her some vetRx but she fights me when i pick her up and that just makes her breathing worse.

10 ) What is your intent as far as treatment? For example, do you want to treat completely yourself, or do you need help in stabilizing the bird til you can get to a vet?
I dont have access to a poultry vet in my area, so i need to treat her myself.

11) If you have a picture of the wound or condition, please post it. It may help.
Sorry i dont think a picture would help.

12) Describe the housing/bedding in use
I keep seven hens in a pretty large coop, i have five standard size bird's and two bantams. I use wood shavings as bedding. They have a twenty foot by six foot run but they are confined to a large fenced in area most of the time so they aren't lacking in space.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Three year old EE hen, i dont think she has lost any weight so far shes always been pretty hefty.

Wheezing constantly, and gaping when any kind of pressure is put on her lungs (no matter how light)

I put her through a round of Tylan50 when it didn't go away for a month, it didn't help at all, every once in a while i give her some vetRx but she fights me when i pick her up and that just makes her breathing worse.

When is the last time she laid an egg?
She's hefty - does she have a saggy bottom?

It's possible you may be dealing with a respiratory disease, but if handling her makes the problem much worse, I would lean toward her having a condition like Ascites which is fluid in the abdomen.
Can you stand her up on a table where she doesn't have to struggle from being held and give her a good going over - feel the abdomen between her legs below the vent.
Also check her crop first thing in the morning before she eats/drinks - it should be empty.

 

[BrickCoop15]

I have a hen with a similar condition. She has had it for a few years now. I have tried two different antibiotics prescribed by an avian veterinarian and she has
never showed any improvement. I also tried Denagard without success. She is 5 years old and never appears sick, but you can here congested breathing sounds when you hold her. I have introduced new chicks many times and they have never shown any signs of illness.

 

[darlingdarla]

When is the last time she laid an egg?
She's hefty - does she have a saggy bottom?

It's possible you may be dealing with a respiratory disease, but if handling her makes the problem much worse, I would lean toward her having a condition like Ascites which is fluid in the abdomen.
Can you stand her up on a table where she doesn't have to struggle from being held and give her a good going over - feel the abdomen between her legs below the vent.
Also check her crop first thing in the morning before she eats/drinks - it should be empty.

I've done all of that, none the less i went back out to check real quick before i replied. The only thing that is a bit odd right now, is a little bit of dry yellow residue around her vent which was not there three days ago (the last i checked her vent). Still, her vent doesn't look red or irritated, so i think this is a new development.

No water belly, her belly is normal (i have another hen with ascites, so i understand what it is and what it feels like) Her crop is empty every morning and full by the time she goes to bed. I looked her over real good, and nothing else is out of the ordinary.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

only thing that is a bit odd right now, is a little bit of dry yellow residue around her vent which was not there three days ago

Does the yellow residue look like it could possibly be egg yolk?
Is she still laying eggs fairly regularly?

If you feel it's respiratory disease and you treated with Tylan with no improvement, then I it could be viral like Infectious Bronchitis for which there is no treatment, it would need to run it's course.

 

[darlingdarla]

Does the yellow residue look like it could possibly be egg yolk?
Is she still laying eggs fairly regularly?

If you feel it's respiratory disease and you treated with Tylan with no improvement, then I it could be viral like Infectious Bronchitis for which there is no treatment, it would need to run it's course.

Number one, sorry i thought i said, she hasn't laid eggs in over a year now, i believe i started a thread on that several months ago and ultimately it seemed like she just stopped because of her age. All of her older flockmates have slowed down substantially to three eggs a week by now as well. And no it does not look like egg yolk.

I was just out with her, and I'm seeing her yawn a lot, as in i lost count at twelve in one minute. What are your thought on this? The first two times she yawned ifigured she was just adjusting her crop but after watching her do this over and over I'm thinking otherwise.

And before i forget again, thank you so much for your advice and knowledge i appreciate it.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I was just out with her, and I'm seeing her yawn a lot, as in i lost count at twelve in one minute. What are your thought on this? The first two times she yawned ifigured she was just adjusting her crop but after watching her do this over and over I'm thinking otherwise.

she hasn't laid eggs in over a year now,

Can you take a fecal float to your vet?

I would still check her crop again. The yawning is concerning. Does she cough too?
Not laying an egg in over a year, I would still suspect she's having a reproductive problem - could be that she doesn't have fluid in the abdomen, but at her age she should still be producing eggs - maybe not as many as she used to, but I would still expect her to be laying eggs.

 

[darlingdarla]

Can you take a fecal float to your vet?

I would still check her crop again. The yawning is concerning. Does she cough too?
Not laying an egg in over a year, I would still suspect she's having a reproductive problem - could be that she doesn't have fluid in the abdomen, but at her age she should still be producing eggs - maybe not as many as she used to, but I would still expect her to be laying eggs.

I dont have access to a poultry vet, i mean at all, I'll look into getting a fecal float done though, i could call my exotics vet but i dont think he'd do it.
No coughing, nothing but the wheezing and occasional gaping.
I suppose it could be reproductive issues but i dont think its unheard of for a hen to stop laying young, its something I'll need to think about now i guess but i dont think that is what is causing her breathing problems. Again i could be super wrong i dont have experience with any reproductive issues, either way i appreciate the information you are providing.

 

[darlingdarla]

I'm wondering what the likelihood is that it could be gapeworm causing her ailments?
I know gapeworm is pretty rare in chickens but everything I've read about it says that often breathing problems are the only symptom until the infestation gets pretty bad. i dont know, maybe I'm grasping for straws here but it seems plausible to me.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm wondering what the likelihood is that it could be gapeworm causing her ailments?
I know gapeworm is pretty rare in chickens but everything I've read about it says that often breathing problems are the only symptom until the infestation gets pretty bad. i dont know, maybe I'm grasping for straws here but it seems plausible to me.

That's why I was wondering about getting fecal float. Gapeworm is fairly rare - what I understand the symptoms are quite severe with the chicken coughing, gagging and gaping, they also are not able to eat/drink very well or at all either.
IF you can't get a fecal float, then you may want to de-worm her to see if that makes a difference. I would use Safeguard (Fenbendazole) dosage is .23ml per pound of weight given orally for 5 days. You can find that at Tractor Supply.

Do you have a video of her making those motions? If you do, upload it to youtube and provide a link.