wheezing chicken

My Easter Egger is wheezing this morning.  Fine yesterday.  Wheezing today.  Advice?  She is chirping a lot too.

Kelly

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  • Henny is doing fine today. She is still wheezing a bit, but also acting normal. Eating, laying, clucking, scratching, pecking, etc. I will definitely check out that resource that you mentioned, Michelle. Thank you!
  • This happened to one of my chickens last month when I was out of town (of course) - luckily I was visiting my family in Minnesota and they directed me to this web site so I could tell my kids (and husband) how to help: http://www.brittonclouse.com/chickenrunrescue/. The pictures in the 'caring for sick chickens' section were very helpful in showing how to hydrate the chicken because she stopped drinking on her own. We did have to resort to antibiotics and she was quite weak for a while but is doing much better. Now we are working on getting her back to her friends - she has dropped to the bottom of the pecking order but hopefully it will all work out soon... Good luck!
    http://www.brittonclouse.com/chickenrunrescue/
    • Great resource Michelle. Thank you so much for posting it! I hope Kelly's hen is doing better :)
  • I don't know the problem but you can give her apple cider vinegar in her water and cayenne pepper in her food. These are both supposed to help with respiratory issues and definitely can't hurt.

    Use the "good" apple cider vinegar that's organic,unfiltered like they have at Trader Joe's. About 1 TBSP per gallon.
    Please let us know how it goes.
  • Here is a little video I took of her today. You will be able to hear her wheezing and her chirping.

    VID00020.AVI

    https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/5021512064?profile=original
    • Sounds like something is lodged in her throat. Anyone else have any input?
  • Hi Kelly,

    I have the "Chicken Health Handbook" by Gail Damerow. I can check the symptom chart for you. How old is she and are there any other symptoms? Also, my husband draws the line at chickens and the vet, so I understand if you are in the same situation. I have exchanged a lot of information from a gal named named Kimberly Theodore, she owns Shagbark Bantams in IL. She has WONDERFUL health pages on her website with info on types of antibiotics available at the feed store for certain infections. Her website is shagbarkbantams.com. Hope any of this helps :)
    • Please check your handbook for me! She is about a year and a half. She is eating and drinking. Walking around just fine. I just found her getting ready to get into a next box. So, I am guessing she is still laying. We will see in a bit. :) She chirps from time to time and is wheezing.

      Kelly
    • OK Kelly. This is a lot of info so here goes...
      MATURE (age)- (symptoms) gasping, coughing, difficulty breathing or nervous signs - (poss disease) aspergillosis(rare), Newcastle(very rare)

      ANY AGE - (symptoms) nasal discharge, gasping, rattling, wet eyes, sneezing, progressive swelling of head and wattles - (poss disease) chlamydiosis(rare), infectious bronchitis(common), influenza(rare), swollen head syndrome(rare).
      If she is just wheezing with no ther symptoms..might be she has something stuck in her throat? I'll look that up & post too. I know IB is viral, so any treatment with antibiotics would only control secondary issues. If you really think it could be viral isolate her immediately, if you think it seems more like something might be stuck in her throat, watch her.Take a look at shagbarkbantams.com health pages & see what KJ recommends for bronchitis.
    • Can't really find anything on throat/choking issues or aspiration, if you know of an avian vet(or call around), some will try to help all they can over the phone but understandably can only offer so much. I was a vet tech in college but unfortunately, we did not see birds :( Since I've had chickens, I have seen some pretty strange things that resolve themselves mysteriously, but fortunately I haven't lost a bird older than 2 weeks yet. Sorry I can't be of more help. We'll think "good thoughts" for your hen & if anything changes, post it. There seems to be a lot of knowledge in this group :)
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