Hen with a swollen eye

i believe it is the Northern Fowl Mites. Been out to the coop at night to check for Red Mites and no signs on the wood or cracks.
I agree on the MG/CRD. I am going to treat a couple more days. Everything is really looking better again. Thank goodness! I will post a picture of today's progress. Her eye is actually open today. No pus or drainage but still swollen. She is blind in that eye. I am debating having a vet remove it if they will. We will see how her healing progresses for a week or so and base the decision on that progress. And no more DE for me either I think.

Poor little girl. She has been through it, but it does look a lot better. The antibiotics must be helping...which means I'm back to MG/CRD too.

That can be bothersome stuff. Some birds get a one time mild infection, then seem to thwart it off for the rest of their lives, although they are still lifetime carriers. Some seem to flare with every change in the weather or new stress. Keeping life stress free and their immune systems built up can do a lot, but industry has resorted to feed additive antibiotics as MG can be so bothersome and the NPIP program is stressing MG free breeding flocks and layers to help control. There are also vaccines available, with varying protections.

From my research, Tylan (Tylosin) and chlortetracyline (Duramycin-10) or oxytetracyline (like Terramycin or Tetroxy, which has been recently approved as a feed additive) help control CRD. MG can be something you will need to treat and re-treat periodically for a susceptible bird. And you have to be aware that all new birds will be exposed, and of course you'd have to keep a closed flock (which it sounds like you don't sell or show anyway).

If you were selling eggs or meat birds, you would need to consider FDA approval for antibiotics, which is very restricted for laying hens. Since MG passes through the hen to the embryo, any hatching eggs could be infected. If you were to show birds, you would have problems as your birds would have been exposed and could be considered carriers. If showing is something you want to do, it would be necessary to have a vet formally diagnose this since until then, you are only guessing at what it could be from the symptoms.

But it doesn't sound like you are selling eggs or meat birds or showing, so you then don't have to worry about FDA approval or exposing other birds to your birds since you purchase and keep them as your hobby...use what is safe and works using rule of thumb for pull times for eggs of generally 10 to 14 days after last dose.

LofMc

Links for antibiotics that help MG
http://articles.extension.org/pages...ed-for-use-in-conventional-poultry-production (scan for Mycoplasma)

To have this diagnosed, would I need to take a hen to the vet or what would I do?

I have recurring respiratory problems with my flock - one of the first three birds I ever bought came with the problem, and before I really understood what I was dealing with I had expanded the flock, and couldn't bear to put all my birds down and start from scratch. I am therefore dealing with issues as they crop up - not too frequently now, as I try to keep my birds as healthy as possible - and I keep a closed flock (not showing or selling my birds).

The last time I had a young bird with wheezing, runny nose etc. the vet gave me antibiotics, and told me that if I wanted to be certain if it was MG or something else, I could bring an adult bird for a blood test. (She also said that should I have an unexpected death I should bring the bird for necropsy).

Well, all clear. No MG or anything. Still a few mites I am fighting. Appears that the DE probably caused some of the problems I was having. Have to keep an eye on the one eyed hen. If she has anymore problems, we can remove it and close the lid. Other than that, everyone is doing good. Thank goodness!