r/BackYardChickens • u/HappyEquine84 • 8h ago
Sneezing in chickens? Heath Question
Okay so every list I see of symptoms in chickens when their health is failing has sneezing in it. Does that mean ANY sneezing is bad? Do they sneeze occasionally when healthy too, and it's just excessive sneezing that's bad? If so, what's excessive? I hear sneezes occasionally from our small flock, but it seems very occasional and not usually the same bird. Everything else seems great, they're hungry, alert, curious and still laying eggs. All are from the same batch of chicks and are less than 1, I think they were born in late spring. I try and spend at least 20 minutes every morning just chilling with them to see how they are, and in that time period I might hear one or two sneezes from different chickens. I don't always hear one, although there does seem to be a bit more recently, I assumed because of the cold weather.
Pic of said flock, cause they're cute 🙂
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u/ElderberryOk469 7h ago
My chickens sneeze sometimes. It’s not chronic or anything but sometimes they just randomly sneeze. The hay in the nesting boxes is dry and sometimes I think they’re just clearing out hay dusties or whatever when they sneeze.
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u/HappyEquine84 7h ago
That's kind of what I was thinking. Do chickens get allergies? 😂
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u/ElderberryOk469 7h ago
Haha 😆probably not allergies but since they’re prone to respiratory issues sometimes I think sneezing is just the body cleaning itself. Defense system lol
Now if they’re constantly sneezing with the addition of other symptoms then I’d start worrying lol
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u/lopsiness 2h ago
We have a hen with like allergies or something. She loves scratching around in the straw and sand, but then she's panting through her mouth and sneezing bc it irritates her. She had a bad respiratory infection a year or ago we think, and not she's just sensitive to it.
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u/oldfarmjoy 8h ago
Watch and wait, sadly. Reduce your exposure, just in case. Fingers crossed!!
If it's avian flu, you will know within a couple of days (death).
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u/HappyEquine84 8h ago
Yeah that's like the only silver lining I see with this whole thing. If they get it they're all dead quickly, so less suffering and like no guessing on my part. They're being kept in their coop and run which are actually pretty well enclosed (we used to free range them a bit). Songbirds have gotten in occasionally but nothing bigger than a finch, and there's a tarp on half the run. Fingers crossed everyone stays healthy, here and at your place!
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u/oldfarmjoy 8h ago
Yes! Same that songbirds get it. Folks are saying they're not usually carriers. Fingers crossed for all of us! ♥️
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u/KlassySassMomma 6h ago
My girls sneeze once in a while too. One time my head lady sneezed twice in a row and sounded like a goose honk; I got so paranoid and worried I ended up sitting out there all afternoon watching them… Never heard it again 🙄 That’s the day I learned that occasional sneezing is completely normal in the little dinos and that it’s usually because they’ve gotten some dust or dirt in their nose that they’re trying to clear out. If they’re perfectly normal otherwise, I wouldn’t be too concerned 😊
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u/AdComplex4494 5h ago
If it becomes more regular, I recommend buying vetRX for respiratory illnesses. I had two birds that started coughing and sneezing frequently. I bought vetRX at tractor supply and it cured them within a week. I continued the treatment though for awhile after they stopped showing symptoms. They have been healthy ever since! I’m going to add a photo of it down below
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u/HappyEquine84 1h ago
Oh nice! Thank you! We haven't had to do anything yet beyond medicated food when they were chicks and I've wondered what kind of "vet" care we'll end up doing. Most (if not all) will be done by me. I don't know that we'd do a chicken vet, our horse vet only does horses, cats, and dogs, and I don't know that we'll be spending that kind of money on chickens...but I definitely want to do everything I can and have no problem doing medical stuff (if I know it's safe!).
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u/AdComplex4494 54m ago
You’re welcome! I am the same way. My goats have their vet but I do all the chickens myself. It’s just so expensive to have vet work done😫Thankfully chickens are pretty easy to care for!
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u/BellaJen 1h ago
My 3 little bantams love to sneeze on me. It's just something mine do. When they fly up and hang out on my arm I swear they are doing it to me on purpose lol.
The monsters, (left to right) Butterscotch, Marshmallow, and Caramel. I love these 3 derps so stinking much lol.
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u/LeahBia 8h ago
I have one girl that sneezes every morning at least once. She's been doing it since a baby and she's 4 this year.