Raising a visually impaired (possibly blind) chick [Pic Heavy]

Thank you! We have named ours Helen. We haven't separated her yet because when we do try to she peeps SO LOUDLY until we put her back with the others. The other will give her a peck or two, but then all is well. Fingers crossed she pulls through!
 
Thank you! We have named ours Helen. We haven't separated her yet because when we do try to she peeps SO LOUDLY until we put her back with the others. The other will give her a peck or two, but then all is well. Fingers crossed she pulls through!

What do her eyes look like, GreenWillow?
 
Our chick (Ethel) did the same, not responding when something was right next to her eye. Poor baby! I was just wondering if it might be an infection, but since you said her eyes appear normal it probably isn't.

Keep us updated!
 
Just doing a little update to this thread. Miss Tillie has been doing GREAT!
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I could not be happier. She is growing like a little weed and is not much further behind her sisters. I started out with Tillie in a little box with a mama heating pad and a little friend, Peepers, to keep her company. Peepers was most helpful when it came to finding her food and water. If anyone is ever in a situation like this with a blind or visually impaired chick - FIND THEM A BUDDY! That buddy speaks their language, and will call them over to the food and water and help them find it. It was amazing to watch their bond form, and to watch how Peepers helped Tillie.

Tillie and Peepers' flock has grown, I added another golden comet sister of Tillie's to their little flock, named Annie. Annie got hung up in her pen and could not move and ants started eating her alive. At this point in time, I had moved Tillie and Peepers to the brooder where our other chicks had been when they graduated to a larger pen. They all stayed in the brooder for another few weeks until I moved them to a wire exercise pen. Tillie did very well adjusting to new new surroundings. At first she would stumble into things, but after a few days, she had it all mapped out and made her way around her enclosure nicely.

I think that we may have figured out what is wrong with Tillie's eyes. Aniridia. It is when the eye does not develop an iris, the colored part of the eye that expands and contracts your pupil. Her eyes are a beautiful blue color, and her pupil is slightly offset and mis-shapen. It is a little hard to tell in these pics, but when you look at her eyes in person, you can easily see it.


Here is Annie's eyes for comparison. She and all the other Golden Comet sisters have the exact same eye color


Then there is Tillie and her gorgeous blue eyes. You can see how the pupil sits closer to her face rather than in the middle, also her pupil does not dilate or contract.



It is very evident now that she is able to see, but she has extremely poor depth perception, and I do believe her sight is rather hindered. But it is still there.

Tillie little flock has grown to include 5 birds, counting herself. She gets along great with all of them, and they all seem to understand that she is a little special, as much as a chicken can. They are kind to her, no one picks on her, and they all seem happy and healthy being together. I recently moved their exercise pen out into the yard. They have been under the carport since they were brought home and had yet to step foot on grass or dirt. My what a day that was for Tillie! She just could not figure out this grass stuff and did a whole lot of head cocking and high stepping for a few days LOL. She finally figured out that grass was edible! She cannot really peck directly at any on blade of grass, but she just pecks until something winds up in her beak.

I have a little roost in their pen and everyone uses it except for Tillie. She knows it is there, and she eyeballs it all the time, like she is really thinking about jumping up there, but I dont think she has gotten up the courage to try yet, at least not that I have seen. I provided Tillie with a box filled with hay so that she did not have to sleep on the ground by herself, but the others usually pile up around her instead of using the roost at bedtime. So sweet!

But anywho - I just wanted to update this thread since it had been a while. Tillie is pretty low maintenance these days, but there for a while she needed 24/7 care. I am glad she pulled thru, and for anyone else going thru the same thing - YOU CAN DO IT! And even if your baby is totally blind, or just visually impaired, I think Tillie and and all the other blind babies mentioned in this thread are proof that a blind baby can grow up to have a decent life. After all, sight is only one of their senses... a pretty important one, but one that can definitely be lived without. Even if they cannot see they can still experience sunbathing and dust baths and scratching in the dirt and the grass beneath their feet! In addition to that they can lead a very spoiled and pampered life, which ain't too bad for a chicken I must say! There are surely worse ways to live life.... I am sure there are some chickens with perfect vision living a worse life than some blind ones!
 
It has been a few months since I updated this. I would like to report that Tillie is still doing fantastic! She can and will find the highest roost possible, no idea how, and even occasionally free ranges with the other girls when I am around to supervise. But she is usually stuck up my backside instead of out running around lol! I have seen her eat grass recently, which I have never seen her do before. She can only eat and drink out of pans of food and water. Otherwise she cannot find it. I have not been successful in teaching her to drink from a poultry nipple. I think it is just too small of a target for her. She does get to enjoy scraps finally, took us a while to grasp that you can eat something other than crumbles lol, so long as they are in a bowl she can find them, and she loves sitting on my shoulder.



Getting Tillie thru her first few weeks of life was rather taxing, I was so worried she was not going to make it. I had no idea what to do. No idea if she would make it. She was nothing but skin and bones for the longest time. But she made it and is one of the sweetest, funniest, and most loving birds I have ever had! I know a lot of people would have the opinion to cull, but I am glad I did not. We have really formed a bond. She always responds to my voice and her name and loves cuddles. Love her!
 

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