[Sarah Mitchell]

Hi All

I have been having a running battle trying to get my wee flock free from colds (sneezing, runny noses, occasional foamy eyes etc etc)... I have done the following:

>Where poss feeders and drinkers are inside their houses to stop the crows getting at them and spreading nasty germs
>where i can't put the feeders in I've recently netted over their runs with fruit cage netting
>I have treated with antibiotics
>I have disinfected water-ers and clean them regularly
>I'm using citricidal, acv and vitamins
>Very poorly chooks are brought inside to sick bay for special treatment
>my Polands are under cover to stop them getting wet and miserable in the rain as I'm sure that can't help and they do seem most prone to colds

And they are still getting colds... what else can I do please?  Any suggestions?

I wish I could vaccinate them against mycoplasma... I visited the Devonshire Traditional Breeds Centre recently and they said they vaccinated for this but then they raise over 30k chickens a year!  I only have 10 large runs and about 65 chickens in total!

I am 'Exasperated of Berkshire'!

[Rubellite]

Oh dear. I would be exasperated too 

[chech221]

hi sarah i have the same problem i tend to keep my hens in if its rainin or cold but they still get colds this time of year, i tend to change nesting material from wood shavings to dust free hay,sometimes helps but im sure somebody with more knowledge well help you out over the last year ive had 5 hens die on me due to old age but did have a cold at the time i have 18 chickens 4 cockerals which il be culling shortly as they are what ive bred myself this year but only wanted hens to recoop the stock of hens,that ive lost this year just waiting for my pullits to start laying 22weeks old and still waiting for an egg.i could do with a bit of advice on how to stop my chickens from getting cold or is there something i could use to prevent cold ive had some of the old guys on my allotment saying to use cider vinegar which helps apparently ive tried it to no avail help somone before i loose more due to colds.

[Roughlee Handled]

Mycoplasma.
What I understand once a chicken has had it. It can come back when the bird is stressed. There is nothing you can do unfortunately. I would suggest that you do not handle other birds with out a good scrub or your hands.
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/94/mycoplasma-gallisepticum-infection-mg-chronic-respiratory-disease-chickens

chech221 have your chickens been diagnosed with Mycoplasma? You must have heard of the expression "Cooped Up" It is a negative term.  Chickens do sneeze it is normal. Foaming eyes are not.  They would much prefer to be out in the rain than inside or out when it is cold(they have natural duvets).  They are chickens and want to be roaming around not cooped up even if it is cold or raining. 

............i tend to keep my hens in if its rainin or cold but they still get colds this time of year,..........

.....to dust free hay.................

Sorry I have never heard of "dust free hay" you can get dust extracted wood shavings.
Hay will react to bird poo and attract mould (break down) allot quicker than shavings. With that and keeping your chickens cooped up in damp weather you are going to be causing respiratory problems. 

chech221 what size coop do you have and how many chickens do you keep in it?

[ehs284]

You need a logical approach. Are they able to shelter from wind and rain if outside? If not make them a shelter. There is a lot of ammonia produced from poo and this will affect their eyes and burn skin so is the ventilation adequate? They really don't need material on the floor if they can get out. A hard surface under the perches allows easy daily cleaning (your description suggests that they get out into a run of some sort so do not need to be in the coop). Only the box for laying needs to be soft (shavings). The ammonia and pH also link to the growth of moulds. Some are known to be dangerous, others are unclear. Given the limited information, I'd suggest they need to be out more and the coop needs more ventilation combined with daily poo cleaning. HTH

[kitkat]

I've had problems with respitoratory illnesses in 3 birds i bought, the vet didn't diagnose Mycoplasma but they had all the symptoms. Every bit of stress, coming into lay, moulting etc made them ill again. I treated with antibiotics but sadly lost them all.
      I let them out in all weathers, chickens are chickens if they are healthy they cope, some wander around getting soaked others take shelter. Good luck

[chech221]

hi stu i have 14 hens in a 18ft by 6ft shed with windows,with plenty of perches 3 sets of nest boxes, outside there are little shelters for them to get out of the wind and rain,but at the moment 9 hens are molting and only 1 ov them has foamy eyes which ive put into another little shed and shes very active but foaming at the eyes,am i wise to keep her away from the rest as 5 are pullits and not far of from laying?also my shed is kept clean daily i have half of the floor sectioned with wood shavings and the other half bare floor which i have the feed and water in. every 2 weeks i scrub the shed out and ive been told im doing ok i think the hens were 4 years old when i got them last boxing day they wernt diagnosed with microplasma but had a few other people say that as they get older they are more likely to get colds and they may have had it already when i got them,im worried about my pullits getting whatever she has.

[Roughlee Handled]

I would suggest you get your chicken to the vet for some anti biotics. ASAP.

[chech221]

got her in the morning hopefully i can sort it before it wipes my flock out
thanks for the info stu.

[too many girls]

sometimes mycoplasma can be misdiagnosed, i took Mary-Kate to the vet almost convinced it was myco crusty eyes covered with white foam, he couldn't see, he felt very light, the vet said he had the classic signs of myco, but he had no temperature and no rattly chest, diagnosis with Mary-Kate was simply his hair was too long and was irritating his eyes causing them to become infected, treatment was a 10 day course of antibiotics, Mary-Kate is on the road to recovery now (my dad say's he's malingering because he likes living in my bedroom ) it is always worth taking them to a vet and getting the proper diagnosis, Mary-Kate's bill was £13 and worth every penny.