watery mucus from beak...5 month old americauna hen

[lmggabe]

Hello. I just got a new Americauna hen, about 5 months old. Not laying yet. I have one Golden Sex Link. The Americauna, "Claire", is separated from the sex link, in her own coop and run in a different part of the yard. She looks well, active, eats heartily, scratches all day and all in all a great chicken. I noticed today a watery mucus occasionally coming from her mouth. Not all the time, she eats then it might come up. Her beard is a bit matted down, most likely from the spit up. I got her from the same spot my sex link came from. She will stay quarantined for at least a month, so do I start antiobiotics? Her run has sand/dirt combo and was covered by pine nuggets she has scratched away. I rake the run in the am before I put her in. I also checked her crop and didn't feel anything and her nares and eyes look good. Is she getting 'used to' our yard or should I start a round of antibiotics to be sure? Thanks.

 

[Eggcessive]

Sometimes chickens will tend to "drip" water from their beaks if their head is down and they have just drunk water. But I would check her crop for a possible impaction or sour crop. Feel of the crop to see if it is empty, full, hard , or soft, or like a balloon. The first thing in the morning, feel it when it should be empty. If she has something stuck in her crop like loss grasses, she could be drooling and have a foul odor around her beak. Hopefully it is not a crop problem, but here is some info to read about crop problems.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/impacted-slow-and-sour-crops-prevention-and-treatments
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/04/answers-from-chicken-vet-on-impacted.html
http://www.chickenvet.co.uk/health-and-common-diseases/digestive-problems/index.aspx