Ugh...new chicks with watery nasal discharge

[sred98]

I just got these chicks yesterday. They are about 8 week old Modern games. I get them home and settled into their temporary home and notice that one of them sneezed and water-like droplets sprayed everywhere. Wonderful.

I've never had any birds that might be contagious before. There's no odor, swelling or diarrhea. But the one bird's eye is closed. No discharge or crust on it. It's just closed like it doesn't feel well, and a little puffy. One of the other ones sneezed a few times. But this is the only one that "looks" sick.

Now, I have these 4 quarantined, and the 8 Cornish I got from the same guy. I am really mad! I've got 12 birds inside that I wasn't planning on. I'm debating culling the one that is showing the most symptoms and hoping for the best with the others.

What should I be treating with? What could it be? I have corid, but haven't started treatment. Can it just be a simple respiratory illness from being crowded?

Thanks,

Shelly

 

[sred98]

And I just got a call our fair broilers are in 2 weeks early!!!

Shelly

 

[chicmom]

I would treat them with a product called Denegard. If you can't find that, then I would recommend Tylan. You put it in their drinking water, and it will nip that right in the bud.

Keep in mind, they may be carriers for life. I've just learned about this myself. I believe someone sold me birds with MG at a poultry show. Mine seem to get this respiratory condition about once every six months or so. I've normally used Tylan, but I found that Denegard is very effective. I suspect this illness is called MG. (Mycroplasma...something)

My flock is closed now. I don't want to cull all 23 birds that I have, and I can't sell them. I don't believe that everybody is irresponsible, selling sick birds on purpose, but I do think people are uneducated. They think that, once you cure them, they're fine. (I used to think that too.)

I'm keeping my birds because I'm not a breeder, my flock is for my enjoyment, plus eggs. And some of my chickens are sooo pretty...I've got a lavender orp that is just gorgous, a few turkeys, a silkie, some frizzles, and some beautiful red laying hens, buckeyes, barred rock, cream brabanter......frizzle cochins....so many beauties! I love them.....

So sorry this happened to you,
Sharon

 

[Tracydr]

I would cull them. With your broilers coming in, you can't afford the risk of something serious going around, not to mention giving it to your current flock.
Whatever you do, read up on biosecurity measures for poultry. This means changing clothes, hand scrubbing, dunking shoes in FRESH bleach solution (gotta change bleach solution daily) and making sure no equipment gets used between pens.
Are you prepared to continue doing this for weeks, maybe months?

 

[KDailey]

Unfortunately I just had my favorite little pullet die last night and her symptoms were just like your little chicks except more severe. I've been reading up on it and everywhere I go I see that even when the symptoms go away they can be carriers for life.

I don't want that in my flock because I do intend to breed and sell. So I've got two new silkies I bought about two weeks ago that my boyfriend is going to take care of today before I get home from work. I'm pretty sure this is where my favorite pullet got it from.

We were already in the process of building more covered pens but now we're speeding up the process so we can seperate my original birds from the new ones and watch what happens. The germs stay in the run/dirt/coop/feed bowls/water bowls/etc so I'm leaving the new birds in the original pen and moving my original birds to the new, uneffected, pens. They're getting new feed/water bowls, everything. As soon as a bird shows signs of having this disease they're gone.

I'm a softie and this is my first time having to make a decision like this. But I decided last night that it is a decision that has to be made if we're going to get into this. You can't let emotions overcome the health of your flock.

It's hard, but my suggestion would just be to either 1. see if the guy will give you a refund and return the chicks or 2. put them down.

 

[sred98]

Well, I just called the guy. There's nothing wrong with his birds, they're all healthy. He doesn't want them back, but he doesn't want me to cull them.

He said he'd talk to his wife. Whatever. Is this something that I should call the state about? I've never had to deal with anything like this. The sick birds are in my house in the sunroom. I can bleach it. They haven't been outside at all.

Shelly

 

[KDailey]

He may truely not know that any of his birds are sick. This is the main reason why I'm not going to be keeping any birds that even look like they've got it. They can easily be carriers of it and show no signs yet transfer it to other birds that would show symptoms and they might die from it.

If he bought birds one time that have had the disease before but not when he purchased them or anytime after that he wouldn't even know. His birds would just be carriers and these chicks may be the first to show the signs.

The disease doesn't transfer from the hen to the egg though. So if his hen had the disease, her chicks will be fine as long as they were completely seperated from the adult birds and anything those birds had made contact with.

I don't think you need to call the state or anything unless he's supposedly NPIP certified. I don't know if they actually test for this particular disease but they are supposed to be disease free.

 

[sred98]

So, there is no way it could be a simple respiratory thing? I'm getting ready to cull them, but want to be sure. My DH suggested moving them to another part of the property, but I hate to do that, in case it is really bad. What IS it??

Shelly

 

[KDailey]

Quote:
You can keep them and just try to get them over it. If you're just keeping birds for laying or your own personal enjoyment then you'll be fine. You just might have to put up with birds getting sick sometimes.

I'm just not going to keep any because I want to actually breed and sell adults as well as chicks and I don't want to risk somebody else's flock getting sick because I sold them a bird that was a carrier. That's just not nice. lol.

 

[dawg53]

Unless bloodwork or a necrosy is done, it is not known what disease the OP's birds have. (I have my suspicion though) There are many diseases that are passed through eggs: Newcastle, IBV, MG, MS, MM, LL, pullorum. Here's a list of respiratory diseases that chickens can get:
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps044
Here's what I suspect:
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps034
Here's what you can treat it with:
http://www.denagard.com/pig-poultry-public/en/index.shtml
Or you can cull. The choice is yours.