Chickens with colds

[tormeymark]

Hi guys just wanting know DO CHICKENS GET COLDS???? Have 4 hybrid chickens two seem to have snotty noses and my cock has a sore throat. ~HE seems better but now one my other hens has a runny nose too. Just wormed them two weeks ago would this have done this and also egg production is down by half. hens are 24-27 weeks old. should they be giving an egg a day. Feed layers and have gritt and also give cold liver oil every now and then mixed in with feed. Any advice or information i can use. Thanks guys this site always has the answers.

[MARIA]

Have you brought in new hens lately? The rooster here sometimes gets a sore throat but i think its from all the crowing. Keep an eye on the hens thought. We had a hen that was sneezing, brought her to the vet and she had url. Got antibiotics and all is ok now. If it goes on more then a day i would move the sick hens away from the flock and speak to a vet. It could be something simple but its better to be safe. Im no expert on poultry so maybe someone else here with more experience will know more.

[cath]

i'd say your chicks have the respitory infectin.. affects the eyes, sinus and chest so theyll have a fierce rattle when they breath..this is highly contagious and needs good course of antibiotics to cure..either at vets or good animal pharmacy.. all the animals will need to be dosed.. this is a common thing..

[tormeymark]

this sounds like them the one that started with it seems fine now and one theothers also is better but my other two that were fine seem to be a bit chesty now also. Any idea wat the anti biotic is called so i can get it to dose them them all

[ammcg]

The usual antibiotics given for chickens are Baytril, Aureomycin or Tylosin (Tylan). Tylan or Aureomycin are the ones usually given for respiratory infections. If you put your ear to the hen's back you might hear a sort of rasping, rattle when they breathe if they have a resp. infection. Sometimes they do get colds, which of course are viral infections, and so antibiotics won't help with those -but then they can develop secondary bacterial infections, and this is what the antibiotics treat. So, sometimes you find that the antibiotics clear up the rattley breathing, but they go on sniffling for a while after, and then that clears up by itself. Depending on what it is and how bad they are, they might need injections of tylan, so you might need to see a vet. Are their eyes ok? Any swelling (and take a good look at both eyes of all hens) of the eyelids? Any bubbles or foaming in the corners? Any discharge? If there are any symptoms like this in the eyes, then you should really consult a vet for Tylan injections to start them off, as it could be Mycoplasma. If not, then Tylan soluble, which you dilute in their water, andmake sure they don't have access to any other water. The dose for that is .5g (i.e. 1/2 gram per litre- that's about 1/8 of a teaspoon or a little less) in each litre of water. Change the water every 24 hours with a fresh solution.

Investing in one or two good books on poultry health and diseases is well worth while, and can save a lot of worry.

Good luck with your hens.
PS. You won't be able to use the eggs during or for 7 days after treatment with antibiotics. But if you hardboil them and chop them up, you could feed some of them back to the hens - they would be your friends forever!

[tormeymark]

Feeding the hens eggs???????? Well i didn't realise that you were able do that I heard about giving them egg shells but never feedind them eggs.

[cath]

hi i've recently started giving garlic and apple cider vinegar to help combat these cold and worms... also keeps them healthy,, stronger immune system..hs any one any ideas about gettin the germs out of the ground... rotation isn't an option..they on grass at the mo and some of the pens are stationary some are movable..

[ammcg]

You could use hydrated lime, but it needs to be watered in very very well, and I'm afraid I can't remember how much you need to spread per meter of ground - not that much I don't think. If you water it in really well, or of course if it rains heavily after you do it, if I remember right, the chickens can go back on the ground about 24 hours later. Can't be sure though - it's a while since I was listening to a discussion about it, and I have an enormous pen, so have never used it myself. Maybe somewhere like Old McDonald's in Carlow would be able to tell you, if you gave them a ring? http://www.oldmcdonald.ie/index.php They are a good resource for poultry supplies too.

PS. eggs are an excellent (egg-cellent! ha ha! ) source of protein. But be sure they are cooked so the hens don't recognise them, otherwise, you will give the hens ideas! When the hens are moulting they need a bit of a protein boost to help with re-feathering, and a couple of eggs a week will help with that - except of course, that when they are moulting, you won't have the eggs to give them, will you??!!!

[cath]

thanks for the lime idea.twould be great if it works.......