The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: monty on December 13, 2008, 09:28:08 pm
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theyve all got cold sneezing and coughing is this gonna stop em laying?
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I have never heard a chicken sneeze but this is the first time I have had any, poor little hens, maybe they should have some lemsip, hope they get better soon, seems like everyones got it, Sandy
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I just hope mine are OK in the morning - I was down in the Borders visiting a sick friend today and it was wet and dark when I got home. Found they had all except one got out of the run and were huddled against it, soaking wet, unable to find the way back in. I had to lift them individually, and put them inside, dried them off with a towel, laid down extra straw, fed and watered them, and hope they'll be fine.
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Jo when we looked after two sweet silky cockerels for a friend Roger our Brahma chucked them both into the river. The dog kindly rescued them, then had to take them indoors to dry off. They were soaked and frozen. Neither suffered any from their dunking, although they did avoid both Roger and the river for the rest of their stay. HM
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I lost my little Seabright Male on Friday. I am letting them out late anyway now, around lunch time in the hope that they keep warm in their numbers. The little Seabright got knocked into a huge puddle in the rush. I saw it happen, and he got up and ruffled his feathers and went on his way, but after about an hour, as I was tending the to the rabbits, I noticed him hunched on his own, just stook there, no one with him in the open. I picked him up and he went limp. Tucked him down inside my coat and made him a box in a cage in the trusted warm bathroom, but by the end of the day he had died. The cold just got to him, it was so sad.
The others seem to be coping ok, although the fancies, expecially the Polish ones worry me a bit because thier feathers on their heads are always wet. There is plenty of shelter around, but there are the few that want to walk around regardless.
Should I separate the fancies off and keep them in all of the time during the winter? My chooks don't have runs, they live in a large hen house together at night and are free range all day long, although as I said I have shortened their days out now.
Your input would be appreciated.
Kate :chook:
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My friends in Norway and Sweden keep their hens inside all over the winter. I don't think the cold on it own gets to them but if they get wet and can't fluff up their feathers to trap the air then the cold and wet gets to their skins. That's when they succumb.
Annie
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found this on google? Infectious Bronchitis: Symptoms: Drop in egg production and thin, rough and wrinkley egg shells. Sneezing and gaspy birds with a discharge from the nose.
airborne disease , The illness should only last for a couple of weeks. Egg production will improve again but will probably never be as good as before, with more occasional dodgy eggs. ...............neil
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Occasionally my chickens get the sneezes, which isn't surprising really considering the climate up here is generally damp and cold, but it's important to keep an eye on them because the sniffles can easily turn into mycoplasm, a nasty and infectious condition. I have started using Respite when colds start, as it can prevent them turning into anything nastier.
Depending on your climate, I would be very tempted to keep fancy breeds inside. I think hens can tolerate cold not so bad, but when it's combined with wet that really does make them miserable.
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I don't care about the flippin' birds - I've got a cold and it's making ME b----y miserable!
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Hope you recover soon Anne, I feel a bit ru down today but I think I will be OK. I keep checking my chickens and they eem t have plenty of shelter from the cold wet weather, in fact where their hutch is it is bone dry and dusty although they do wounder around and get very wet at times, fingers crossed. My daughter visitied her sister in aw yeserday and returned when it was dark and as her parner uualy shuts the hens and ducks in, he forgot and guess what? all gone, my daughtr has not found any dck remnats or feahers but has found lots of chiken bits and feathers is it usual for a fox to take ducks inparticular away, al four of them?
Hope we get a sunny summer, Sandy
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weve been wiped out in the past usually kill everything and take one or two,very unusual to have everything gone maybe adult fox and young?
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They get lots of Foxes in there garden and they have a new extension and haven't put a dog flap in the door as usualy the dogs chase off foxes. In the new year they will get some new stock as they have the sheds and the room, it made me shut up my hens as I have become complacent as we have a 7ft wall all around the garden so I worry more about daytime birds of prey swooping in, tonight my hutch is closed so they will have to waite for me to let them out in the morning, at least it is not so cold, just grim!! Sandy
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Foxes love ducks more than anything else, in my experience. :(