[tamnwill]

Hi there, my 7 rare breed hens are suffering from a respiritory infection? The symtoms are sneezing, mucas around the nasal passages (that goes crusty if not removed & smells fowl! sorry for the pun!) bubbles in the eyes. When we first discovered this in one of them her eye was totally closed and swollen to such a degree that the side of her face was swollen too. I have treated them with Aureomycin Ophthalmic eye ointment and now Aureomycin soluble ( for the water contain) to gain herd treatment, but they are still suffering. I did get some Linco Spectin 100 soluble powder from the farmer who sold them to us and it did seem to do the job well for about 3 weeks, but why does it keep coming back please? Any help would be well received as they are ace little creatures that I have become very attached to. I want them healthy .
2 Brahamas, 1 Andolucian, 1 Ancuna, 1 Polish, 1 Maron, 1 Orpington.They are happy, they have free range of the garden all day and the two oldest (Ancuna & Polish approx 6 months) lay eggs. They come to me when I go outside to get their treat of meal worms and seeded bread. Their coop is like the Ritz lol, concrete base with comfy shavings on the floor and the raised sleeping/nesting/perching area is cleaned once a week . The farmer again has given us some meds to treat them with called Tylon Soluble.....................but 24 hours later an still no improvement. May I ask how long should I wait before getting the vet out again? He seems incredibly laid back about it all, I guess coz they're just chicken!!!!! GRRRRRRR .
They are fed on a mix of the corn and pellets and have the broken shell stuff too. PLEASE HELP. Many thanks. (Sorry if there are spelling mistakes in the breed names and for the rambling on..........................but I think they are ace and want them healthy) Any advice really welcome. Thanks   

[Bonniebean]

So sorry to hear of your problems Tamnwill, hope someone comes along soon with advice to help. Thinking of you x

[joyfull]

I would get them (or at least one of them) to the vets asap. It could be mycoplasma (although without a blood test you cannot be certain) which will remain with them for life and anytime when they are under stress it may show again. Aureomycin is what my vets give along with metacam to reduce any inflamation and helps them to swallow, but some vets give tylan or baytril. All are good antibiotics. Yours may need an abtibiotic injection first to just speed up the recovery process. Whilst on these treatments and afterwards (your vet will advise the time span) do not eat the eggs. Unfortunatly with myco you cannot use these hens to breed from as it can be passed to the young.
The illness is manageable you just need to find out first which respiritory illness it is and then which treatment is best for that and a vet is the best person to do that.

I am just going to move this over to the hen house as it really needs to be there rather than in the chicken chat section.

[hillfooter]

This disease is CORYZA and will need an antibiotic as Joyful says Baytril will do the trick but it's not good news and although this might be controllable it's often associated with other Chronic Respiratory Disease which remains dormant and can breakout after stress.   Even birds without symptoms can remain as carriers so don't introduce new birds or as Joy says don't breed from them or whilst on a/bs eat the eggs for at least 7 days after ceasing treatment.  It sounds very virulent your outbreak and a good disinfection is advisable and/or leaving the housing vacant for around 3 weeks would also help.

HF

[joyfull]

Following on from what Hillfooter has said I use Vanodine V18 disinfectant which is a very good germicide. You will though need to make sure that the coup is dry before they go back in, if it is too wet to use a liquid then get something like Stalosan F but make sure you sprinkle it everywhere including the ground outside.

[hillfooter]

Just noted you've already used 2 A/Bs Linco Spectin is for CRD Mycoplasmosis and I have not found it very effective against Coryza, and Tylan which should be effective I would have thought.  Don't expect to get results for 3 to 4 days and the treatment should be for about 7 days as advised by your vet.  But as I said this is not good news and repeat outbreaks can be expected under stress conditions such as moult or heat or other stress caused by moving or other disease.  If it continues to reoccur it might be best to cull and start again with infection free stock that's what many more commercial keepers would do.
Sorry for not being more hopeful.
HF

[spider]

Mine had something very similar, puffy eyes and sneezing, smelly mucas, but had rattly chests as well.
I ended up, after searching the internet, asking the vet for Baytril (antibiotic)
 I bought a full bottle (£44.00) a bit expensive, but the recovery in the chics was dramatic
I had one cockerel that was very poorly, the very next morning he was eating and drinking, the night befor he was at deaths door.
I lost a couple befor getting the Baytril, but the rest after having the antibiotics made complete recoveries

Tylan is also an atibiotic, and I would have thought this would have a similar effect on the chics as the Baytril ?

I reckon mine had I.B. infectious bronchitus, though that just me guessing.

Spider

[hillfooter]

Having read Spiders post I'd be pretty confident his chicks were also suffering from Coryza (or just possibly Mycoplasma MG ) as the symptoms are typical and IB usually only strikes older (over 2 years old) birds.  Both can produce similar symptoms the way to tell the difference is that MG has a two to 3 week incubation period and a slower onset whereas Coryza is very quick just a couple of days and the onset is sudden.  With Coryza the mortality is low usually less than 20% though the morbidity (spread through the flock) is usually 100%.  It can take up to 10 weeks or so to run its course and even when treated with Baytril which is effective against both these infections they will remain carriers and any new birds you eventually introduce, must be vaccinated against these respiratory diseases.

A note on nutrition.  Feed just layers pellets and do not mix in corn but hand feed in the evening just one small handful each and cut out all other treats and scraps until this is over.  Also only make oyster shell available adlib (actually young birds particularly if they aren't laying don't need it) and don't feed it mixed with pellets, though insoluable grit should be readily available.  

Vanodine V18 can be used in their water at the recommended rate to help stop the spread of infection via communial drinkers however Coryza is so contagious you can bet they will all be infected already.  I would avoid the use of any dusts in the house as anything which might irritate their respiratory tract will add to their problems and dust is a great vector for viruses though Coryza and MG are bacterial, you don't want to cause secondary infections whilst their defences are low.  You can use the Vanodine in the house though don't soak the litter.

Best of luck
HF

[tamnwill]

I cannot thank you all enough for taking the time to reply to offer experience and support. I am devistated to read that this will be an ongoing struggle for my girls and that reality is is that some probably wont survive. I never thought that I would be so attached to hens. We have many other animals but my usually happy hens with their little quirky friendly antics have meant I have waisted hours simply watching them go about their days exploring new plants and parts of the garden. They get on well with the cats/dogs and rabbits!!!! And it's usually a job to get them 'not' to come into the house via the conservatory when I'm cleaning......................kinda defeats the object I know but they are so funny I can't turn them away. I don't mind at all the efforts involved in attempting to keep them alive, however painstaking that may be. I am a house mummy so can be on tap all day for them. I individually clean their noses and eyes twice a day. I am committed. It's too easy to cull in my humble opinion, if they are in pain then that's a different story ofcourse...................To give you an idea of my love for all my animals, my oldest Golden Lab bitch of 12 years got arthritis to such a degree the vet said she needed a specialist orthodepic surgeon to perform major surgery on both legs as they were shot.................soooooooooooooooooo after pawning my diamond engagement ring and cartier watch, fetching 2,500.00, she now, 9 months on, is the fittest happiest bionic half metal legged dog in existence I recon. I will call the vet tomorrow morning as the 2 Bramahs Saffy and Eddi have taken a plunge in health today....................their eyes are seeping, they're coughing dreadfully and one is off its food but still up and interested in searching in the garden .....................but i don't know if they will make it through the night or not!!! I'm tempted to bring them into the conservatory? Is it also best to leave the inner coop door open for air to circulate or is there more chance they will feel the draft and pop their clogs that way? Just want to do the right thing for them tonight! Thansk for your time in reading this and any replies you are able to send. Many big hugs from Newton Abbot in Devon UK. xxx

[joyfull]

Please close the coup up as draughts are bad for chickens (they need ventilation but above their heads). The one that I had that had myco also got well again (although I never bred from her and unfortunatly she had an arguement with a lorry and came off worse  ) and none of my other girls caught it, however you do need to treat them all. Take one to the vets tomorrow and tell them how many hens you have and that they all need treating. If you have no intention of breeding from them then treatment is one way to go, but you may have to repeat this treatment several times a year. Sorry some have taken a turn for the worse but I hope they make it through until you can get help from the vets.

[karlooben]

hi there so sorry to hear about your girls being so ill , i would seriously suggest you ask for tylan only this is a very strong antiboitoic an it should knock this on the head pretty fast , i have used baytril in the past and it hasnt really done much i have been told by a very trusted friend to always now ask for tylan for when my girls have any signs of illness . i hope you can get some an they pick up 

[Aunt Sally]

Tylan is not a "strong" antibiotic Looby   

It's just a very good antibiotic for respiratory infections.

[karlooben]

i had more luck with tylan then with baytril when my girls needed antiboitics ,i thought it was stronger even before my friend told me about it .oh well u learn something new everyday 

[Aunt Sally]

Stronger is not a term applied to antibiotics looby as perhaps your friend knows.

Some are more efficacious for certain things than others.  Some have more organisms that have built up resistance to them.  Doctors and vets have to be careful when prescribing antibiotics that the don't use the most efficacious one too frequently as they will then have more organisms build up resistance to them.

It's the same as MRSA in humans.  If doctors over prescribe Methicillin and Vancomycin too much they will have nothing left with sufficient efficacy to treat the most serious of diseases so they always start with the more usual antibiotics first.  Perhaps you should pass that information on to your friend.

[tamnwill]

Rang one of my vets and she said as I had treated them with everything that all she could offer was for her to come out and euthanase my sickest Brahama  Rang my other vet and he said he would leave a dose of Baytrail ? to treat all the hens................but that it was probably best to cull them all !!!!!!!!!!!!! My poor Polish hasn't even had a sniffle and she lays!!! (not that I'm eating them) but apparently she could now be a carrier? I think I shall play it by ear...............see how thing develop and unfold as it were..................what a nightmare!!! x