loved'uccles
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Hello everyone! I'm new here and live in the U.S. but I love this site and do a lot of reading here. I'm hoping someone can help me figure out this problem....! I have a small hobby flock of Silkies (16 birds) and my 13 year old sons each have a flock of bantams. One raises d'Uccles,(about 22 birds separated into 4 color groups) and the other raises Sebrights, (20) and also has 12 standard Polish cresteds.
About a week ago they noticed a d'Uccle pullet, 3 months old, that was reluctant to move much. Her comb is bluish. She eats and drinks, has nice feathers. She is a little under weight. They pulled her out for segregation. Then, a rooster of the same age became weak with heavy breathing. The next day, he was unable to stand. A pheasant hen and rooster in adjacent pen became fluffed up and lethargic. I put Sulmet in the water and the pheasant rooster was better the next day and the hen died. At this point, 5/22, I took the two little d'Uccles on an all day trip to an avian vet. His advice was to sacrifice the hen and send her for testing. He thought she would die that same day because of so much fluid in her chest and a strong heart murmur, thus explaining the blue comb. We decided not to take his advice, we may regret it later, but my son was very upset and it is awfully expensive. We decided to try to treat them. The vet gave us an injectable Baytril dose. On the way home, stopped at a horse vet friends house. Concurred that the hen's heart is terrible and gave her an injection of Lasix. It seemed to help her. Today is 5/26 and I have been giving those two birds Baytril injections twice a day. Huge improvement in the rooster the next day. He was walking around and crowing! They are in an indoor brooder with a lamp. The hen looks happy enough other than she does have fluid building up slowly. The horse vet thinks the hen may just have the bad luck of having a bad heart to begin with. So, meanwhile several other chickens, a few in almost every pen, have some symptoms.
Not wanting to and not having enough Baytril for everyone, I am just keeping fresh tetracycline in the drinkers.
I wish I could understand better what we are treating. Here are the symptoms; Head shaking, some open mouthed breathing, humped up, tails drooping, eyes closed acting sleepy. None have had any discharge from anywhere, poo looks normal, all are eating and drinking.
I hooked up a light over each sleeping area to try to help them stay warm. It is not cold right now but has been windy. Since there is such a sampling of chickens and pheasants throughout the property showing symptoms, I don't think I can put the sick ones all in one place. I think everyone is exposed. No chickens have died yet but the pheasants don't seem to do well with it. I am now giving one pheasant hen baytril as well. She was on a nest so may be stressed and thin already. She does not want to walk or open her eyes. So far, all the chickens showing signs have been under a year old, the worst being in the 3 month old category.
So sorry to write a book my first time here! Just hoping someone can shed more light on this. I've been reading all I can and most of what I read discusses respiratory distress along with discharge...
Thanks to anyone taking the time to plow through this!
About a week ago they noticed a d'Uccle pullet, 3 months old, that was reluctant to move much. Her comb is bluish. She eats and drinks, has nice feathers. She is a little under weight. They pulled her out for segregation. Then, a rooster of the same age became weak with heavy breathing. The next day, he was unable to stand. A pheasant hen and rooster in adjacent pen became fluffed up and lethargic. I put Sulmet in the water and the pheasant rooster was better the next day and the hen died. At this point, 5/22, I took the two little d'Uccles on an all day trip to an avian vet. His advice was to sacrifice the hen and send her for testing. He thought she would die that same day because of so much fluid in her chest and a strong heart murmur, thus explaining the blue comb. We decided not to take his advice, we may regret it later, but my son was very upset and it is awfully expensive. We decided to try to treat them. The vet gave us an injectable Baytril dose. On the way home, stopped at a horse vet friends house. Concurred that the hen's heart is terrible and gave her an injection of Lasix. It seemed to help her. Today is 5/26 and I have been giving those two birds Baytril injections twice a day. Huge improvement in the rooster the next day. He was walking around and crowing! They are in an indoor brooder with a lamp. The hen looks happy enough other than she does have fluid building up slowly. The horse vet thinks the hen may just have the bad luck of having a bad heart to begin with. So, meanwhile several other chickens, a few in almost every pen, have some symptoms.
Not wanting to and not having enough Baytril for everyone, I am just keeping fresh tetracycline in the drinkers.
I wish I could understand better what we are treating. Here are the symptoms; Head shaking, some open mouthed breathing, humped up, tails drooping, eyes closed acting sleepy. None have had any discharge from anywhere, poo looks normal, all are eating and drinking.
I hooked up a light over each sleeping area to try to help them stay warm. It is not cold right now but has been windy. Since there is such a sampling of chickens and pheasants throughout the property showing symptoms, I don't think I can put the sick ones all in one place. I think everyone is exposed. No chickens have died yet but the pheasants don't seem to do well with it. I am now giving one pheasant hen baytril as well. She was on a nest so may be stressed and thin already. She does not want to walk or open her eyes. So far, all the chickens showing signs have been under a year old, the worst being in the 3 month old category.
So sorry to write a book my first time here! Just hoping someone can shed more light on this. I've been reading all I can and most of what I read discusses respiratory distress along with discharge...
Thanks to anyone taking the time to plow through this!
