# Chick is wheezing and sneezing



## expertnewbie

I just bought two 6 week old jubilee orpington chicks. Both are just standing around. Have not touched good or water yet. One is sneezing a wheezing and has a red, irritated looking eye. What could be the problem here? And how can I treat it?


Keeper of Bantam Buff Brahmas, Buff orpingtons, Rhode Island Reds, Blue Silkies, and a Silver laced cochin.


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## robin416

This does not sound good. And I hope you've kept them away from your other birds and practice bio security when being around them. Chicks should not have health issues of this sort, it sounds respiratory. I recommend returning the chicks to where you got them from. 

You can try treating them but I just don't think its the way to go when the rest of your flock is more than likely going to be put at risk.


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## expertnewbie

I have not let them near my flock. But I would hate to have to return them because I drove an hour away to get them. The person I bought them from says his are sneezing too and he thinks it's because of the rain. Is there anything I can do to cure them?


Keeper of Bantam Buff Brahmas, Buff orpingtons, Rhode Island Reds, Blue Silkies, and a Silver laced cochin.


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## expertnewbie

Could this possibly be MG or CRD?


Keeper of Bantam Buff Brahmas, Buff orpingtons, Rhode Island Reds, Blue Silkies, and a Silver laced cochin.


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## littlelimabean

I have experienced MG before. Is there a foamy discharge from the eye? That is usually present with MG. I am not very familiar with the symptoms of CRD. Now MG is treatable, but if I am not mistaken they become carriers for life. I had MG symptoms in one of my birds years ago and I treated the whole flock and my girl with the symptoms got better and none of the rest of my flock showed symptoms. Here is a link that I think is helpful if you do not have access to an avian vet. https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/medicine-chart It lists the disease and the type of antibiotic that it will respond to. I hope you can make your babies well! Let us know.


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## expertnewbie

I don't believe so but I can take a look when I get home today


Keeper of Bantam Buff Brahmas, Buff orpingtons, Rhode Island Reds, Blue Silkies, and a Silver laced cochin.


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## expertnewbie

I went and bought probiotics, electrolytes and tetracycline today. I put electrolytes and probiotics in their water but don't have a way to measure milligrams for tetracycline. I have checked on birds and they now both have 1 swollen eye. What do I do?


Keeper of Bantam Buff Brahmas, Buff orpingtons, Rhode Island Reds, Blue Silkies, and a Silver laced cochin.


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## expertnewbie

There is also an odor coming from them. Heeeelllp! I'm freaking! What is the problem and should I put these chicks down?


Keeper of Bantam Buff Brahmas, Buff orpingtons, Rhode Island Reds, Blue Silkies, and a Silver laced cochin.


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## expertnewbie

Could this be Coryza or CRD? Help would be greatly appreciated


Keeper of Bantam Buff Brahmas, Buff orpingtons, Rhode Island Reds, Blue Silkies, and a Silver laced cochin.


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## robin416

Yes, to your last question. Whoever you got them from has it in their flock. 

You'll have to put them on something like auromycin. The drug reported to cure it is Denagard. Is it? I don't know for sure since I've never had to use it.


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## expertnewbie

robin416 said:


> Yes, to your last question. Whoever you got them from has it in their flock.
> 
> You'll have to put them on something like auromycin. The drug reported to cure it is Denagard. Is it? I don't know for sure since I've never had to use it.


Are you saying this is CRD or Coryza? I talked to the previous owner and he thinks it's because they were rained on a lot one day and he thinks it's given them a respiratory infection of some sort. He claims he's had no problem with disease in his flock and had offered me full grown birds just for my trouble of these chicks.

Keeper of Bantam Buff Brahmas, Buff orpingtons, Rhode Island Reds, Blue Silkies, and a Silver laced cochin.


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## robin416

Doesn't matter if the rain did it or fairy dust did it, he has a chronic respiratory disease in his flock. It happens. Problem is, you now have it there.

There is no true difference between the two, one has a higher mortality rate, different bacteria involvement. 

Now you have a decision to make. If you are never going to rehome birds or sell birds then close your flock. Don't grow it. And keep others away from them, especially anyone else that has chickens. That is the only way to prevent sending it to someone else. If your birds are never stressed you may never see it again. Stress is what brings it out most times.

If you want to see if you can cure it then try the Dengard. Expensive? Yes. Effective, from what I read, yes.


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## expertnewbie

Think I may just return these birds to the owner if their not dead anytime soon and get jubilees elsewhere. Thank you for your replies Robin


Keeper of Bantam Buff Brahmas, Buff orpingtons, Rhode Island Reds, Blue Silkies, and a Silver laced cochin.


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## robin416

The one thing you can always look back on is that you did the right thing right from the get go. Kept them away from your existing flock. 

In the years I've been doing this I can not remember how many people didn't do that and infected their perfectly healthy flocks. Even people within a few miles of where I lived did it. I can consider myself fortunate that I've never had to deal with it because it is pretty prevalent out there. There is another board member who got young birds from a known breeder in another state. Three of them displayed the disease almost from day one. The flock owner was unaware that it was in his flock. Luckily she quarantined the birds. She ended up having them all put down.


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## littlelimabean

Have you looked for a vet in your area? I have only experienced my birds having an odor from not bathing, sick birds tend not to take care of themselves. According to the medicine chart that I sent tetracycline is a med you can use for CRD. I need to know the strength of the medicine to be able to convert it. On the bottle it should say, for instance 30 mg/ml it should tell you the amount of medicine per milliliter(ml) if it is a liquid. Now if it is a powder it should come with instructions like teaspoons or tablespoons and how much water to add. I want to help you. I am one of those people who get very upset if something is wrong with one of my chickens so I understand your alarm. Give us some detailed info off the bottle please.


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## expertnewbie

One has died. How should I properly dispose of it so that the disease cannot spread to any chickens or wild birds?


Keeper of Bantam Buff Brahmas, Buff orpingtons, Rhode Island Reds, Blue Silkies, and a Silver laced cochin.


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## robin416

You could burn it or if you have trash pick up double bag it and put it in the trash. Make sure you thoroughly clean everything they've been on contact with so it doesn't linger on surfaces.


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## littlelimabean

Im sorry that you lost your little chick. I have always buried mine. Last year, I ran out of space and began bringing them to a pet cremation service. Some may think that is strange, but that is what gives me solace. My mom in law does what Robin says and bags and put them in the trash.


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## robin416

The concern here, Mary, is the disease the chick harbored. Its best that it is totally removed from the premises so that there is no chance it can linger. 

Most of us are country dwellers, burying may not be the optimal choice. Hard rocky ground, four legged predators that dig. Our dogs and cats are cremated for that reason.


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## nj2wv

When i would process chickens I disposed of them on our property it seemed to attract predators. I throw them out in the trash now. Seems to work.


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