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Advice from our poultry experts Marissa Ames and Carla Tilghman on lash eggs, infectious bronchitis, chalazae, pokeweed, incubator doors, and more. December23/January 23 issue of Backyard Poultry magazine.
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Lash Egg
Hi, we found this weird thing in our chicken egg after we had boiled it. It was curled around the yolk of the egg (like a baby chicken).
Regards, David
David,
Thank you for your email question and especially for the photo.
I’m very glad you boiled the egg before handling it, as this is a “lash” egg. They’re caused by a salpingitis infection (bacterial or viral) that causes inflammation of the hen’s oviduct. When infected, their immune system tries to eliminate the infection by walling the infection off with a waxy, cheese-like pus sac. You’re seeing different layers of infection deposited in the oviduct that the bird is trying to get rid of.
First of all, isolate that hen from the rest of the flock as the bacterial or viral versions are both contagious. Wear gloves when you handle her or her eggs. Clean her vent with clean water and a little apple cider vinegar (the kind with a “mother,” meaning it’s cloudy and still contains beneficial bacteria). Make sure that her bedding is clean and dry and that her living area has good ventilation but is well away from the other birds.
While you can try giving her antibiotics, if she has the viral version, they won’t help. She’ll either shed the virus naturally, or she won’t and will decline. You may notice a decrease in egg production (do NOT eat her eggs), soft-shelled eggs, excessive thirst, lethargy, abdominal swelling, and weight loss.
Salpingitis isn’t fun. Your hen may recover. But usually, her egg production won’t be the same, as the oviduct has been scarred.
Carla
Respiratory issues
I had a turkey who was breathing with its mouth open. So, I removed it from the flock thinking it was overheated as they are outside on pasture. I put it in with my grandson’s 10 broilers under the fan. It died three days later. Now, one of my grandson’s 4-H broilers is doing the same thing: open-beak breathing. Please help. The fair is almost here, and these are very healthy birds.
Jan Beitzel
Hello Jan,
There are several reasons why turkeys do open-beaked breathing and heat stress is one of them. Make sure your birds have access to deep shade and plenty of fresh, cool water. They’ll also be holding their wings away from their bodies in an effort to cool themselves off.
Aspergillosis — This is a non-contagious fungal infection that shows up as a respiratory illness in birds. The best way to prevent transmission of the fungal spores is to make sure that the birds have good ventilation, that damp bedding is replaced with dry, and also remove any food that’s gotten moldy.
You’ll see open-beaked breathing, tail bobbing, gasping, and increased respiratory rate. Treating aspergillosis is often a long process as fungal spores are persistent. Antifungals (such as itraconazole) along with supportive care and improving ventilation may help. Be sure to consult your local vet.
Gapeworm (Syngamus trachea) is contagious and infected birds should be isolated. Turkeys can pick them up from infected birds (coughing them up or shedding them in feces). They can also get gapeworms by eating intermediate hosts such as earthworms, slugs, snails, or flies. The parasitic nematodes like to live in the turkey’s tracheal mucosa layer where they can feed off the turkey’s blood. Their attachment points can lead to nodules and inflammation, and if the infection is severe enough, can cause the bird to suffocate.
Infected birds will extend their necks and gasp for air. If you examine the throat, you might be able to see the nodules or the worms.
Gapeworm can be treated with certain dewormers in the ivermectin and benzimidazole families. Again, be sure to consult your local vet about the best treatment course.
Carla
Infectious Bronchitis?
I have a wheezing and coughing chicken. It’s been around 3 days and it’s gotten worse. I started using VetRX yesterday. The chicken isn’t eating as much, but still walking around and trying to eat. I’m working on getting in contact with a vet, but was wondering about treatment and care recommendations in the meantime.
Maddy
Hello Maddy,
It could be many different things; hopefully, it’s just infectious bronchitis, which I suspect since it’s so virulent and the chicken is still trying to walk and eat. You’d need to see a vet in order to get a diagnosis for Mycoplasma and the appropriate antibiotics. Both IB and Mycoplasma spread so readily that you should assume your other chickens will also get sick. In the meantime, you should keep the chicken in a clean environment and away from any wild birds, to avoid secondary infections. You can add vitamins and electrolytes to the water, to boost the chicken’s nutrition as she heals. You need to mitigate any stress, including weather stress, so if there’s a storm coming, a cold snap, or if it’s really hot weather, you need to make the most comfortable situation possible for the chicken without taking her from her family, which will stress her out more.
If the vet diagnoses Mycoplasma or another bacterial disease, you need to follow the vet’s recommendations regarding the right antibiotic and prognosis. If it’s just IB, be aware that it has to run its course but is highly survivable if you can mitigate any secondary infections.
Marissa
Zip Wing Bands
What are zip wing bands?
Bob
Hi Bob,
Zip wing bands are metal tabs put on a chicken’s upper wing, near the body. Before attaching the band, you can punch numbers or letters into the metal to identify the bird. Typically, they’re used to keep track of individual birds for farm records and wildlife tracking, especially for breeding purposes.
Carla
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Chalazae
My two 7-year-old Barnevelders have lately been laying eggs with very viscous, cloudy whites. In the picture of this egg laid 12 days ago, the white suddenly looks normal but for the worm-like object. Could you advise, please? Thank you so much for your informative website.
Kind regards,
Jessica Miller
Jessica,
Thank you for your question, and especially for the photo.
The white, squiggly thing is called the “chalazae” (plural) or “chalaza” (singular). They’re cords of egg white (albumen) that anchor the yolk to the interior membrane, inside the shell. These cords (sometimes there are a couple, sometimes only one) keep the yolk from bouncing around too much as the egg moves. They keep the yolk from breaking inside the shell.
Very rarely, a parasite (worm) can make its way to the oviduct and get scooped into a forming egg. You can tell the difference because worms aren’t attached to the yolk at all, and they look thicker and more solid than the chalaza.
Carla
Pokeweed Poisoning
Can you confirm that chickens can’t eat pokeberries? Wild birds can consume the heck out of pokeberries without adverse effects. And they do on my property, which keeps them fed with berries that we can’t/don’t eat. Why are chickens different? Please advise and provide studies. Thanks.
Jeremiah Woolsey
Jeremy,
Yes, pokeweed contains phytolaccatoxin and phytolaccigenin, both of which are harmful to poultry. The highest amounts are contained in the roots, stems, and leaves, with only small amounts in the berries. This is why you may see birds (including poultry) eating some of the berries without apparent ill effects.
How many berries are the chickens eating and why? Typically, if your poultry free-range around your property, they’ll have enough interesting options that if they do eat a few of the berries, the toxin load will be small enough that the birds won’t be harmed. However, if the birds don’t have a broad selection of plants, they may be consuming too many of the berries, which can harm them.
Below are some links to articles with more information about animals and pokeweed toxicity. The specific effects of pokeberries on poultry haven’t been extensively studied.
Carla
https://chickendvm.com/poisonous/pokeweed
https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/AG254
Chickens Stop Laying: Reality and Myths
Why are all the chickens not laying eggs? Mine stopped in January of 2023 despite having PERFECT living circumstances in all respects. Thank you so much for any light you can shed on this most dire matter.
Paula Hall
Hi Paula,
We’re receiving a number of email queries about chickens that stopped laying in December and January. There are normal reasons for this. And there are a couple of myths to be busted.
It’s normal for poultry to stop laying eggs in the cooler months. It takes calorie energy to create eggs. It takes calories to keep warm. And it takes calorie energy to grow new feathers after a molt. Chickens are genetically predisposed to make internal choices about where to spend those calories. During cooler months, or after a molt, chickens will often stop laying eggs so that all their energy can go to keeping warm or growing new feathers. Totally normal and happens almost every year.
Also, chickens need 14 hours of daylight each day in order to lay eggs. In Nebraska (chosen because it’s in the center of the U.S., and thus receives an “average” amount of winter light), days are only 9 hours long at the end of December. Healthy hens, with perfect living situations, will still stop laying until they receive 14 hours a day again.
The myths going around — and they are absolutely just myths — are that feed companies suddenly started adding things (such as RNA chains) to feed to stop poultry from laying, in order to drive up the price of eggs. This is nonsense, bunk, hokum, hooey. And, of course, the myth started circulating on social media during the cooler months, when chickens often normally stop laying.
While your birds are either growing new feathers or dealing with shorter days and cooler temperatures, you can provide a bit of extra protein, such as a few mealworms, to let them consume more calories. But don’t go overboard because too much protein can cause gout.
Carla
Keep the Incubator Closed
After I pull chicks out of my incubator, the rest of the chicks won’t hatch because their shells dry out. Is there anything I can do to help with that?Freda Loudermilk
Freda,
An important part of hatching all the chicks is the lockdown phase. Typically, lockdowns start three days before eggs are scheduled to hatch. Mostly, this means keeping the incubator closed, no matter how tempted you are to open it to check on chicks or remove newly hatched chicks to the brooder. Opening the incubator while chicks are pipping dries out the egg membranes and makes it hard, or impossible, for the chicks to hatch. Newly hatched chicks can stay in the closed incubator for up to three days because they’re still absorbing and digesting the yolk sacs.
Also, check that the humidity for hatching is between 65% and 70%, at a minimum, for chickens. When pipping starts, look at the membranes. They should be translucent and floppy. If they’re white or stiff, immediately increase the humidity levels. And don’t open the incubator.
Carla
Conjunctivitis
My chicks’ eyes are irritated, with some swelling, and they seem itchy. For the bedding, I used pine shavings. In the beginning, it was a little bit dusty but now it’s okay. I use Koudjis feed.
Peter Tsawoe
Peter,
There are several possibilities for why your chicks’ eyes are troubling them.
Conjunctivitis, known as “pink eye,” is an inflammation of the conjunctiva, which is the membrane of the inner eyelid, and the inner corner of the eye. The eyes will look red and inflamed. This can come from a bacterial, viral, or fungal infection. Or irritants such as dust, sand, smoke, or fumes (such as ammonia from chicken poop).
Respiratory infections such as coryza, infectious laryngotracheitis (ILT), swollen head syndrome (SHS), or avian chlamydiosis can cause eye irritation and discharge as well as breathing difficulty. Aspergillosis is a fungal disease that comes in two forms. Acute aspergillosis, sometimes called “brooder pneumonia,” affects new chicks. It has a high mortality rate and doesn’t sound like what your chicks are experiencing.
Ammonia toxicity is a probable culprit if the chicks are confined to a small area without enough ventilation. The ammonia released from their poop will irritate their eyes.
If you have access to a vet, you can try giving the chicks antibiotics. If you can find an antibiotic such as Neomycin (ointment or drops) or Terramycin ophthalmic ointment, you can gently administer a little to the chicks’ eyes. You can also gently wipe the chicks’ eyes with clean water or a sterile saline solution. Change their wood chips frequently to clear out any poop. Make sure they have access to clean water. And keep the dust down.
Carla
Pale Combs
I have a Cream Legbar hen that’s 14 months old. This morning, I noticed that her comb was paler than the rest of the flock and flopped over. I’m not sure if I’ve just noticed that her comb is always paler, or if there’s something new wrong with her.
Susan
Hi Susan,
There are three reasons why her comb might be pale.
Anemia is a lack of iron due to blood loss. If you haven’t seen any injuries that cause her to bleed, then it could be an “invisible” cause — usually parasites. External parasites, such as lice and mites, feed on blood. Internal parasites, such as roundworms and coccidia, also do. Examine your hen for signs of these.
Lice often present as tiny, crawling bugs that like to hang out under wings and around vents. Their “nits,” or eggs, look like white plaque around the bases of feathers. Mites start as odd head-shaking, as the chicken tries to brush off these little bugs that are chewing on her. Then the mites affect her health and she will lose strength while her feathers get ragged. She may develop dry, flaky patches on her skin. In the case of scaly leg mites, the scales on her legs will raise as mites crawl underneath, and her feet may appear misshapen and crusty.
Coccidia presents as blood in the stools; if your hen has red or “meaty” poops and she hasn’t eaten red berries lately, it’s best to suspect coccidiosis. You’ll need a stool sample to diagnosis roundworms; if they get bad enough, you will actually see worms in the poop and — in severe infestations — they’ll show up in her eggs. The treatments are different for each parasite; what kills coccidia won’t kill roundworms. After you identify the problem, choose a treatment appropriate for her needs. Keep in mind that routine treatment of something, when that something didn’t cause the problem, encourages medication-resistant parasites. So don’t feed a dewormer if worms aren’t the issue.
Considering that it’s August, she could be suffering from stress. When a bird is stressed and her health is compromised, the blood often pulls inward to protect her. You would think that it would flow into the comb so the heat can leave the body, and that’s usually true, but if she’s very sick, the opposite happens. If you see her panting or breathing rapidly, provide more shade, cool and clean water, and perhaps even a gentle fan.
And finally, there could be perfectly healthy reasons that her comb is pale. Has she gone broody or is she molting? Combs are reddest during the active lay cycle. Pullets that aren’t yet at point-of-lay, and hens that are older or taking a break from laying, will have paler combs. Redness usually returns when she’s ready to lay again. So, if your Legbar is losing feathers or wants to stay on a nest, rest assured that the paleness is natural and nothing to worry about.
Marissa
New Layers
We have 11 Barred Rocks, all with the same diet and all hatched the last week in February. But one of them is laying an egg with just the membrane. How can I fix this?
Pamela Wheelock
Pam,
It’s entirely normal for young birds to lay shell-less eggs. Young, productive layers are so productive that eggs move at a rapid pace through the oviduct. This is why you’ll get double yolk eggs from new layers, as well as the occasional shell-less eggs. Adding calcium won’t help this, though you should keep free-choice calcium available in addition to feeding a quality layer feed. If you’re seeing eggs that are either misshapen, or have a very thin shell, that’s a different issue. Those hens do have a nutritional deficiency. Calcium can help thin shells. Here’s a link that may help.
Carla
Ammonia
Hello, I had three hens die suddenly without any obvious symptoms other than they smelled strongly of ammonia within 12 hours of dying.
Kathie O’Keefe
Hi Kathie,
I’m so sorry to hear about your hens. There are many reasons that chickens die suddenly, and it usually has to do with internal problems such as heart disease or kidney damage. But when three die at the same time, and you can’t see any predator marks on them, it points to environmental problems — often poisoning, toxic fumes, or heat stress. Since it’s early August, and since the birds smelled of ammonia so soon, I’m going to guess it’s from the heat since those temperatures would speed up decomposition. It’s normal to go through a couple of heat waves without any casualties, then birds die during the next one because they’re still weakened from the previous heat wave. How hot is it in your area right now?
Poisoning is usually because the chickens got into something toxic, such as fertilizers or a new but deadly weed in the yard. However, probably the most common cause of digestive poisoning in poultry is mold. So many people believe spoiled/moldy food is okay for poultry, but it will kill them fast. Toxic air could be because the coop needs to be cleaned. Heat and moisture make the chicken manure decompose a lot faster than it ordinarily would. Mold spores can also create toxic conditions within the lungs.
To know for sure why your hens died, you’d need to take them in for a necropsy. If you can’t do that immediately, place them within freezer bags and freeze them until you can. Many people don’t want to undergo the cost of a necropsy, for various financial reasons. If this is the case, then it’s best to look at the different environmental factors that could have
contributed to stress that the chickens just couldn’t overcome.
Here’s a Backyard Poultry article about sudden death in chickens, in case this gives you any clues. But keep in mind that this was written for times when absolutely no other outward signs — including environmental
stressors — are present.
Marissa
https://backyardpoultry.iamcountryside.com/feed-health/sudden-death-inchickens/
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