I have 6 Barred Rock hens, 1 Barred Rock rooster and 7 Buff Orp hens; all are currently 8 months old. ABout a month ago, I noticed that some of the birds were sneezing alot and now some more of them have begun to sneeze. They are eating fine, run around fine, are laying well and seem otherwise pretty symptom-free. I am currently giving them an antibiotic in their water but, after 3 days, they are still sneezing. Anyone know what to do about this?

-- Lisa (mountainlady@imbris.com), November 25, 2001

Answers

As long as they're not lethargic or showing any other illness symptoms, i wouldn't worry. this time of year is quite windy with the fronts blowing through, perhaps they're sneezing a bit more because of the dust that's blowing around.

Here's a good website on poultry symptoms/illnesses for you to check out.

Poultry ailments

-- Buk Buk (bukabuk@hotmail.com), November 25, 2001.

my chickens made sneezing sounds when they were eating a new feed we switched them to. I think it was too powdery and was irritating their noses. I switched back and all is fine.

-- Dan O'Neal (oneal@innernet.net), November 26, 2001.

I'm not too knowledgeable about sickness since I've never had a sick bird, but I'm a firm believer of less is more. I wouldn't give an antibiotic unless I knew if the sickness was viral or bacterial; an antibiotic will work on one, but not the other.

If the droppings and everything else is normal, one thing that several poultrymen suggest is VetRx, available in the feed store. Rub some under each wing, on top of the head, and a light coat across the nares (nostrils). You can also use Vicks. Best to put it on the birds at night. The problem should be gone in a day or two.

-- ~Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), November 27, 2001.