SICK SUSSEX

nic · **Posted:** Tue Nov 08, 2011 9:40 am

Hi all, Was just walking through my pen when i noticed one of my sussex girls looking a little poorly. She was standing with her tail down( for me thats a sure sign of discomfort)and shaking her head gently as though to shake off a fly, when i picked her up, i noticed sticky saliva on her beak, her breath smells horrendous, and her crop is empty but slightly spongy as though its full of goop, my first thought was that she had eaten a cane toad, but i can almost completely rule that out now, shes not coughing or sneezing, and seems fairly alert. I havnt seen her poo yet so cant say what thats like. Any ideas????

nic · **Posted:** Tue Nov 08, 2011 11:46 am

her poo is quite loose with thick white and a small amount of dark green, and not very big, and i have noticed that it sounds like she is trying to clear her throat on occasion, but sounds very gurgly and phlemmy?(spelling) shes fairly quiet, but not unsteady or falling over and has shown no interest in her food or water. I have had this chook for over 3 years now, and she has always been very robust, her comb is still lovely and red and her eyes quite bright and not droopy. every now and then she preens as though something is biting her, and on closer inspection i have found some lice, but not in huge numbers, and i dont think they would cause this type of reaction?? any help would be greatly appreciated.

purefeather · **Joined:** Wed Sep 29, 2010 6:36 pm **Posts:** 736

G,day nic, sounds like a respiratory infection ,get some Oxymav 100 and medicate her with this product. I usually give it to the infected birds directly using a syringe(normally the birds are dehydrated by this stage) down their throat.
Try a search in this section of the forum (ie. sneezing, wheezing, gasping etc.) You should find some detailed information on your chooks ailment.

nic · **Posted:** Wed Nov 09, 2011 10:31 am

for some reason thismorning, i decided to look closer at her throat as she still hasnt been showing any obvious signs of illness. and i have found a massive obstruction quite high up with 'cheddar cheese' growing around it. I have no idea what it could be, but its quite large and would have taken quite a bit to swallow. i cant hold her still enough on my own to try to remove it, so have booked her into the vets in the morning but am hoping i can get my other half to give me a hand soon so maybe i can get it out today, she is breathing normally around it, but cant eat or drink properly, hence the empty crop small poos, and salivation, and the stink! cant believe i didnt notice this sooner [smilie=a_doh.gif]

lightsussex · **Joined:** Tue Nov 08, 2011 9:54 pm **Posts:** 2

From what you describe I would also agree its an infection of the respiratory area and that includes the throat and it can infect other parts of the bird. Your vet can give you stronger drugs than oxymav as its quite weak in the std dose rate I actually double the dose but that in me and I have experience with this but follow your vets advice and all the best with her

nic · **Posted:** Thu Nov 10, 2011 3:10 pm

Thanks Lightsussex, the vet tried to clean some of the goop from her throat thismorning but with little success, so she gave her an antibiotic injection. she actually seemed much better thismorning even before the vets visit, so i can only hope this will do the job, she is now eating (soggy food) and getting a fair amount of water down, so im less worried about dehydration.
now shes at my feet whenever i open the door, trying to get back out to the yard! shes a tough little nut, so im hopefull that she will come good!

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