Vicki
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 Posted: Thu Sep 25, 2003 4:10 am Post subject: Thank you, Krys! -- my poultry fowl pox treatment story. |
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Krys, I really would like to thank you. When I posted this Friday I
was in a panic -- I didn>t know where to start. Your prompt reply
(seemingly moments after I posted the original, despite our eight hour
time difference) gave me a place to start. And Friday is not the best
day for a chicken emergency, is it? And this was our favorite, a
bantam Frizzle hen named Frizzle. (Imaginative, huh?)
I looked on the Net for info on dry fowl pox, and browsed enough
sites to find out what I needed to know. They weren>t particularly
aimed towards the person who keeps their chickens more like pets, as
most suggested culling the whole flock as it was more economical than
treatment. I would rather not go that route. If they all stopped
laying eggs tomorrow, I would still keep them. This particular
Frizzle, while her color and plumage is spectacular, stopped laying
eggs back in 2000 anyway, and is of indeterminate age but great
personality.
I found a site with questions and answers by Glenda Heywood that
gave me a place to start. I went to the feedstore as it suggested
Tetracycline in the water for ten days, changed twice daily -- two
teaspoons per gallon. And wet mash mixed with two tablespoons
Tetracycline to a quart of dry mash, mixed with water to soak it...fed
once daily for three days. The article explains that the antibiotic
does not treat the virus, only "jump starts" the immune system. As
Grandma would say, "it can>t hurt." So I did all that.
The articles suggested directly applying iodine to the pox scabs
and bumps, but my feedstore was out of it and I hadn>t yet read the
posting that suggested Vaseline. The feedstore owner (Mary Regan of
Gordon>s Feeds in Phoenix, for Roz and DeLux) suggested VetRX, which I
had used six years ago for something or another and remembered being
satisfied with it. I read the insert which seemed to indicate that it
would help treat anything but a rainy day, and you could apply it to
wounds or drip it down the throat of the affected chicken. I bought a
new bottle and applied it to Frizzle>s poor face. Mary also suggested
we use chick starter for the mash as it is highest in protein. ALL of
the chickens LOVED it, including Frizzle.
We started Friday afternoon -- Frizzle could still see out of one
eye but the other had a "wart" and she seemed slightly depressed but
was still eating and drinking. By Sunday morning both eyes were shut
and I was the one who was depressed. We set the food and water where
she could find it, and she ate and drank but not with much gusto.
She>s a free range hen so we partitioned an area in the yard where she
likes to forage, anyway. The articles that I read indicated that the
dry version of the virus is rarely fatal, providing that the chickens
are still able to eat and drink.
By Tuesday one of her eyes was 1/3 open...she could see again.
Understandably, she was more active and ate better. We "cheated" and
gave her some bread, which she ate enthusiastically. This afternoon,
Wednesday, BOTH her eyes are open and she is just as active and happy
a chicken as we are accustomed to her being! There are still some
areas on her head that are obviously not healed, but I am absolutely
astonished with the speed of her improvement. After all, this is
Wednesday...we started treatment less than a week ago.
True, weather has been on our side -- high nineties during the
day, and I read that higher temperatures are hard on the virus. Mid
to higher seventies at night -- our humidity, BTW, is very low as we
are in a climatic desert (which you could not tell, with the ankle
high grass and tall, mature fruit trees.) I kept the cooling mister
off until late afternoon and only then ran it for a few hours.
I know that this is not over, but I am SO GRATEFUL for the help
and support. And I learned something else this weekend.
We had a lap chicken that developed the oral form of fowl pox
over a year ago. I didn>t realize what it was until I read the
information on wet fowl pox this weekend. Our veterinarian, who is
without peer and nationally known when it comes to rooster decrowing,
charged me well over (GULP!) $700 in tests and treatment and ten days
of boarding for poor Paisley, my beautiful Easter Egger who loved
people. We tube fed her for two months, three times a day, and tried
several antibiotics that the vet sold us in an effort to clear up her
"mouth infection." None of these worked, and we tearfully buried poor
Paisley the day Roz>s Franny Frizzle hatched. Dr. Babcock said it was
a mouth infection (I am NOT making this up) caused by us feeding our
chickens scratch for a treat once a day. He said the sharp edges on
the scratch wounded the inside of her mouth and it got infected. I
had trouble buying his explanation then,and I totally don>t buy it
now.
I know that this is just the beginning, the we will have to be
diligent and prepared for the pox to spread through all 30 or so
chickens that we have now. But the oldest and most important (to us)
chicken is close to beating it, and I am grateful to all who replied
but especially Krys.
A few years ago I wrote s short email to a friend about Frizzle
-- he liked it so much he saved it and sent it back to me when I told
him about her illness. I>ll post it so you can see how special she
is to us...it>s called "Adoptive Mommy." And, yes, Laurie, she>s the
one who hatched the Polish Frizzle eggs out on June 21. So she has
babies "of her own" right now. |
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