What to do when a hen catches a cold?

One of the most common diseases in chickens is the flu, especially in those geographical areas with low temperatures. Do you want to know what you can do if a chicken gets a cold? We'll tell you about it!

What to do when a chicken gets cold?

There are a lot of breeds of chickens, and some adapt better than others to cold climates. Thanks to the feathers they have a good insulation; in addition, if necessary they can sponge the feathers to create a warmer coat, or put the feet or the beak between fluffy feathers, which will facilitate them to have those hot parts. On colder nights it is common for them to group together to share their body heat. They can also reduce their internal metabolism to withstand colder waves.

However, veterinary care for a hen is challenging because it is very complex to know when they are sick. And, although they do not cool as easily as a human being, they are very susceptible to respiratory viruses. These can cause avian infectious bronchitis or IBV and infectious laryngotracheitis or ILT.

What are the symptoms associated with these infections?

Although it may seem difficult to identify symptoms in birds at first, it should not be difficult to notice strange behaviors over time. Attention should be paid to the following.

• Discharge into your nostrils.
• Sneezing.
• cough.
• Harsh or gasping sound in your breathing.
• Neck stretched.
• Less egg laying.
• Irregular and small eggs, with soft shells.

How to act in these cases?

At the slightest symptom of a cold you should quarantine the bird. Then you should also inspect the rest of the chicken coop. This is a simple and effective way of controlling chicken diseases, since the most common spread is caused by contact between them.

After quarantining the animal, you should follow these steps.

1. Consult with an avian veterinarian. This will diagnose the disease suffered by the bird quickly. Some suffer from chronic respiratory diseases, but others are treated simply with antibiotics.
2. Well ventilated quarantine zone. Dust in the air can be responsible for sneezing if the area is not properly ventilated. Then, you will have to check if there are any more sick animals, and check whether or not it is something serious. Remember that by renewing the air of the chicken coop and using some folk remedies can treat certain mild respiratory diseases. However, serious diseases will require veterinary intervention.

By quarantining the birds you will collect valuable information. First, you will be able to determine if the animal is contagious. Second, you'll have a better chance of finding a drug that works, and eventually you'll know if a vaccine can control the problem.

Care of chickens

The key to the welfare and health of hens is to adopt biosecurity practices. This will prevent birds from being exposed to diseases such as Newcastle or avian   influenza. These diseases can be transmitted intentionally or accidentally by vehicles, equipment, animals or people.

What can you do to have good biosecurity practices and make birds healthy?

• Keep your distance. To do this, it isolates the sick birds from the others and also from the visitors.
• Have the space clean. Prevents the spread of germs in tools, equipment or footwear. Do the same for cages and vehicles.
• Don't share tools or equipment with your neighbors, so you'll prevent the spread of infections.
• Pay attention to the warning signs of the animals.
• Inform the veterinarian of the area of unexpected deaths or unusual signs of illness.

Equipment for raising hens

For an adequate breeding of free-range hens, whether they are free-range or organic, you need to have the best possible equipment. In Copele you can find drinking fountains, feeders, cages and other accessories designed under rigorous quality controls, with which to offer your birds unbeatable conditions of breeding and laying of eggs.

drinkers

Water is a vital element for the development of hens. It can never be missed. And, in addition, it must be kept at room temperature and always be clean. There are  automatic drinking fountains and  echo for all types of facilities, differentiated according to the stages of growth of the animal and that supply drinking water constantly.

Lay-outs

These spaces  must be closed, with only one opening for the bird to enter. However,  its interior should be spacious and covered with straw to create a comfortable bed. You must clean it continuously. To get the hens used to lay eggs here, it is advisable that you place a fake egg to indicate that it is the place where they should be.

Feeders

The quality of their feed will depend on the quality of the eggs they lay. It is important that they consume little protein, carbon dioxide and calcium. In this way the egg will be perfect for human consumption. In the  feeders and hoppers  you will find the best solution to guarantee the correct feeding of your birds, always depending on their growth stage.

cages

There are different types of cages for birds. Some are designed to improve the production and performance of broilers,and others are exposure. Whatever your needs, it is important for your hens that the cages you acquire have a great durability. All of them can be disassembled to be easily cleaned, and you can incorporate drinking fountains and feeders. That way your chickens will always be in perfect condition and will not have health problems.

accessories

In addition to the aforementioned elements, you may need other accessories  such as, for example, anti-punctage glasses made of plastic, so that the hens only see on the side and do not bite the eggs. Another element you may need are plastic rings  in different colors; with them you will identify your hens quickly, and they will not suffer any damage. It is a very interesting solution to easily know which one is sick or which one you should watch. On the other hand, we have the Avicope nest inside the park, which can also be very useful: it has a removable collection tray, which will undoubtedly facilitate its cleaning.

Installation of orchards and home farms

When designing your home farm, you can choose a large number of chicken coops and sheds suitable for raising chickens in a non-industrialized way. For this you will need to buy booths made with quality materials,which protect the safety of your animals. If you opt for models with park, in which the hens have access and contact with part of the land, they can eat bugs, larvae and worms that are not desirable for your garden, but for their food.

On the other hand, how have you thought about making the bed of chickens? You can use traces of dried grass or straw. Also, with its waste or chickens you will get the perfect fertilizer for your garden. As you can see, raising chickens and owning an orchard is fully compatible. To have them well fed remember to place a drinking fountain and a large and comfortable feeder; it is very important that they never lack water.

Backyard poultry farming

Backyard poultry farming is a way to take advantage of large yards for animal husbandry. This activity is usually supportive of the family economy, and is sometimes used as a model for the development of new organic poultry production techniques.

If you want to locate the birds in your backyard, it is recommended that you have a quality chicken coop that is escape-proof. First of all, you have to make sure they don't go to the garden next door; this way you will not break the law and protect them from predators such as, for example, the dog or cat of any neighbor.

You'll have to make sure there's between 80 centimeters and 1.3 meters per hen, which is what they need. In fact, the more space they have the happier they will be. In addition, if a sick person will be more difficult to infect the rest of the animals, because they will not have such close contact. Depending on the space of the boxes, you can place 2, 3, 4, 5 or more chickens. However, you should know that they usually choose their favorite area and fight with the rest to maintain their space. Therefore, when chicken coops are well designed the birds have easy access to their nests.

Remember the importance of chickens being well hydrated and fed so they can lay quality eggs. Its maintenance is usually quite low, but constant. You will have to provide food and clean water on a daily basis.

It is very important that you observe their behavior: if you detect something strange, you notice that they do not eat or have mucus in the beak, you will have to apply veterinary care for chickens. You should also pay attention to changes of season, and make sure that the hens are dry, hot and protected from the water and wind. If you leave them outdoors, at night you should make sure they are safe from predators. For this you can place a security system that a child cannot open easily.

As you can see, if you take care of the environment in which your animals live and act quickly when a hen gets a cold, itis relatively easy to keep these animalssafe. To improve your living conditions, do not forget to enter our website. In it you will find all the accessories you need.