Wheezing

[arfarmer]

Hey! Thanks in advance

I have 6 hens currently and tonight while in the coop at night we noticed two of them were wheezing. The wheezing would come and go and I heard one of them sneeze over a span of approx 5 mins. Other than that they seemed completely healthy - they were out free ranging all day and acted completely normal. Other than one of them just started moulting heavily yesterday. I’ve only had chickens for a year and a half, so I’m new to this and am not sure what I should be doing. Any advice?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

How's the ventilation in your coop? Have you closed up windows for winter, added new bedding recently or added new birds?

I'd observe for a day or two to see if there's any more respiratory symptoms that would be cause for concern like increased sneezing with mucous, difficulty breathing, coughing, bubbles in the eyes, lethargy, etc.

 

[arfarmer]

Thanks! The ventilation is good. I did just clean their coop out and put straw down for the winter, so maybe just the dust..

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'd observe for a couple of days if you just put down new straw.

 

[dawg53]

The wheezing and sneezing could possibly be due to the dander from the molting hen.