Sad Day Questions

Questions
Did I do something wrong? Not in your response and  treatment but probably I wouldn't have wormed while they were ill as there's no point in increasing their stress and I would have given both birds the antibiotics.  You should think how these birds came to be infected and try to avoid this source in future.

Could I have done anything else? See above.  CRD is known as stress disease so it's very likely that your birds are carriers of mycoplasmosis which can breakout recurrently under stress.  You could identify what caused the stress and try to avoid it in the future.  Heat is often a cause and so is the onset of laying both factors you can't control but maybe there was another cause which you maybe able to avoid

Do I need to do anything else? Keep stress down as above. DON'T use ANY dusts or powders in the house which can irritate a chx respiratory system and be a key vector for infection.  If you use Diatom paint it on as a slurry don't dust with it.  Throw away any Barrier dusting powders.  Ensure there's plenty of ventillation above head height and preferably baffled to cut down drafts.  Keep ammonia smells down to prevent irritation to the respiratory tract.  Change litter in the house at least every two weeks and don't allow chx access to under perch areas if possible.  If this isn't possible poo pick the house regularly.  Avoid mixing very young birds with old birds, don't breed from these birds or move them to another keeper.  Practise good biosecurity to reduce the risk of of introducing or exporting problems.  Clean up and burn any feathers and droppings.  If your vet made a specific diagnosis of the organism which caused the problem this is worth knowing if you intent to vaccinate in the future.  Most respiratory diseases do not last long off a bird and a good clean up plus a couple of days in the sun will eliminate the infection in the environment but check the specific infection if known. Regularly listen to your birds breathing and treat any with rales (rattley breathing) with a/bs and consider culling any which don't respond.  Control all blood sucking parasites such as Red Mite


Also I intend to get a few more hens when I am sure the remaining hens are in good health. How long should I wait before being confident they are OK?  Probably 3 weeks will be enough to know that they aren't going to go down with the latest outbreak but consider that if they have been in contact with the sick ones they may well be potential carriers too so could develop it in the future under stress

Is it OK to mix Pure Breeds with Hybrids or am I better sticking with just Hybrids. Given the fact that your birds are potential carriers it would be best to ensure new introductions are vaccinated against  Mycoplasmosis, Infectious Coryza, Infectious Bronchitus (IB), Infectious Laryngotracheitis, Newcastles and Mareks disease.  Larger breeders should have done this but small enthusiasts won't have done.  Provided that the vaccination is done you can introduce either but it might be easier to find vaccinated hybrids

Whatever I buy I will keep them separate for 3 weeks or so to make sure I don’t import more problems.Don't use the same source for your new birds if that's where you believe the infection came from.  Minimise the number of sources you use for your birds and the number of introduction batches as disturbing the pecking order is a source of stress.  Many respiratory infections can be dormant so apparently healthy stock can suddenly get sick after the stress of a move so certainly isolate new arrivals and check them daily for signs of respiratory problems such as wheezing, rattley breathing, runny noses etc.  Treat all new outbreaks immediately with Tylan or Baytril but note this won't cure carriers just the current infection

Thanks in advance.

 If it was caused by mycoplasmosis will this infect any new birds I get in the future? Unfortunately if you have a carrier it is likely which is why if possible vaccinated stock is to be prefered

Interesting comment from Silkysmooth that flubenvet causes immunosuppresion so I assume this should only be used when the hens are in a good healthy condition unless worms are known to be the cause of the illness. This was a new one on me .  If Silkysmooth is listening perhaps she could elaborarte on where she heard this.  The reason I suggested not worming on spec when you really suspect MG is that any medication which is taken will have some impact on a chx metabolism which is itself a form of stress.  Maybe that's what Silky was refering to not that Flubenvet specifically affects the immune system but that it puts another load on it.  I wouldn't worm generally unless you think the chx are in reasonable health.  One of the biggest mistakes I see when treating sick birds is that people stuff them with alsorts of tonics pick me ups, treats and general changes in their nutrition.  It's a well established fact that changing nutrition can cause stress and disturb their eating and cause diarrhoeria which itself is debillitating and causes dehydration.  By all means use good nutrition but don't introduce lots of treat type feeds and supplements at this time. Use tonics and supplements in moderation and as part of a recouperation regime.  Simple layers nutrition with a handful of corn on an evening is best and maybe the odd treat feed to stimulate eating (scrambled egg is fine but leave out the cat food)