Tylan in 4 week chicks

[JacksonPearce]

I lost a chick last night, and while I can't be sure, I suspect it might be from upper respiratory infection. She was the runt and was already feathering slowly, but I worry that without treatment it'll get my four remaining chicks who right now are only slightly sneezy. I have Tylan-- what's the dosage, though, for a chick so small? Anyone? I've also changed out bedding and added probiotics to the water in the meantime, as well as given them a round of VetRx.

 

[JacksonPearce]

Just a followup-- I went with 1ml per and will do it twice a day for three days and go from there!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry to hear about your chick

Do you have photos of your chicks or a video of them sneezing?

How often are the remaining chicks sneezing? Does the sneezing coincide with any activity like eating/drinking, dust bathing, cleaning the bedding, preening, etc.?
Are they inside a brooder or do you have them outside in a coop - how much ventilation do they have?

Sneezing in itself, unless it's continuous, can be due to dry dusty bedding/feed, poor ventilation, molds or just sometimes they need to sneeze to clear their nostrils. Most of the time, if you are dealing with a respiratory illness, there will be other symptoms to accompany the sneezing (mucous, watery eyes, coughing, facial swelling, lethargy, not eating/drinking, etc.).

Some viral respiratory illnesses like Infectious Bronchitis can be fairly mild and the only symptoms you see would be sneezing, a reduction in activity and possibly not eating as much - unless complicated by infection - IB will usually run it's course in about 1month.

Antibiotics are helpful when treating secondary infections due to respiratory illness, but will not prevent a bird from getting sick and should not be used prophylactically . Treat only birds that are showing signs/symptoms of respiratory illness. You may want to try the VetRx first, check to make sure there is plenty of ventilation and reduce any dust/respiratory irritants before considering treating with antibiotics.

To answer your question - injectable Tylan50 dosage is .20ml per pound of weight. This can be given orally 2x a day for 5 days. You will want weigh each bird that you are treating to ensure you are giving the proper dosage.

Keep us posted.

 

[JacksonPearce]

Whew, I did a bit much then for this first round. I saw someone else was giving .1 ml and misread it as 1ml. I hope they aren't in big trouble on account of the OD-- the Tylan is a little old, so for one it might be a good thing if it isn't as effective as it ought to be.

They are currently housed in an outdoor brooder with a cozy coop heat panel (we're still in the 70s in GA most days, down to the 50s at night). We are having wild temperature swings here, and the humidity was quite high when they were indoors-- that's why I moved them outside, actually, to try and temper some of the condensation/cold water they were getting in the indoor brooder. I noticed two were getting a bit wheezy while they were still indoors, which means they've been exhibiting symptoms for about a week now. I don't think bedding or ventilation is an issue, but given that the one who died WAS lethargic and blinking a lot, I suspect it's upper respiratory in all of them, probably exacerbated by all those temperature/humidity swings.

 

[Eggcessive]

The safety of Tylan is pretty forgiving. Plumb's Veterinary Handbook states that dosage can be 10-40 mg per kilogram (roughly 5-20 mg per pound) 2 or 3 times a day, so there is a wide margin of safety. I would start with 0.2 ml per pound twice daily as Wyorp Rock posted. for chicks who are too small for muscle injections, I would give it orally. I would give the 0.2 ml even though it doesn't weigh a pound yet.

If they have a virus such as infectious bronchitis, they may not get better for almost a month, but the antibiotic may help prevent secondary bacterial infections.

 

[JacksonPearce]

I tried to get a sneezing video with no luck, but it's a somewhat dry sneeze-- nothing super snotty. I wouldn't think it was worth treating were it not for losing one last night, since it's minor compared to cases I've had before!

 

[JacksonPearce]

You know, after all this, I'm thinking it's coccidiosis. I couldn't see their feces very clearly in the coop, but I brought them in tonight and on puppy pads, it looks awfully coccic like to me. I've forced a bit of corrid/water orally and added it to their water, taken away medicated feed...fingers crossed.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

They are currently housed in an outdoor brooder with a cozy coop heat panel (we're still in the 70s in GA most days, down to the 50s at night). We are having wild temperature swings here, and the humidity was quite high when they were indoors-- that's why I moved them outside, actually, to try and temper some of the condensation/cold water they were getting in the indoor brooder.

noticed two were getting a bit wheezy while they were still indoors

Having wet/condensation problems in the brooder or housing is a ventilation problem.
Could be that they may have Coccidiosis as you suspect - having a fecal float can help you identify if that is a problem.
If the bedding was wet, mold could also be a problem.

If you have some photos of your housing, we may be able to give you some tips.
Chickens need a lot of ventilation, so having open windows for air flow is always a good idea even in winter time.

 

[JacksonPearce]

Thanks! The indoor/condensation problems are in a smaller brooder I keep them in for a small period; it wasn't an issue until the weather started to change. If I have more chicks I'll definitely adjust the ventilation though to adjust the problem!