I think my girls have fowl pox????

Debstar1204

Chirping
6 Years
Mar 28, 2013
245
7
88
Sydney , Australia
5 days ago I noticed 2 of my 6 girls with swollen faces. 1 of them had already had 1 eye swollen shut and I couldn't tell where her eye should be. I first thought it was red mite and I cleaned out the coop, Ivemectin everyone and applied petroleum jelly to my girls face. I was hoping it would soften her skin enough for her to open her eye.
Then I noticed the other girl who's face was swollen but she had both eyes looking OK- a little swollen but ok. She looked as though she had lesions or scratches on her face which I thought again was because of mites.
I have applied petroleum jelly and pink eye powder everyday for the last 5 days. The girl with one eye now has puss coming out of a tiny slit in her eye and the good eye has gone bad ( nearly completely shut)
The other hen's face looks like cauliflower she is covered in lumps which look distorted- but I noticed today it's going down her neck :( and I noticed a yellow lump on her neck.

I now think it's fowl pox but I'm still not 100% sure.

I just want some advice as to whether there is anything else I can do?

Today I bathed both girls faces in warm water and honey. Then applied the pink eye powder. They are both still eating ( a soft wet mix I make- crumble, yogurt, honey, couscous, apple sauce and I added aspirin)
I haven't noticed any puss inside their beaks YET but it's only been 5 days. Will it still get worse?? Before it gets better??

I feel horrible for them and wish I could do more.
Also how likely is it that my others catch it? I only removed these girls from the coop yesterday so day 4.... I feel stupid but I honestly thought it was mites.

Any help or advice is appreciated-
 
Can you post a picture of the face of an affected chicken? Pox is a virus spread by mosquitoes, and can spread through hour flock by mosquitoes, flies, and from the chickens infecting each other by scratching at the scabs. The more serious wet or diphtheric pox can cause lesions in the throat and airway or esophagus. Look inside the throats with a light for those. Make sure the chickens are eating normally, keep the eyes clean by flushing with saline or applying an antibiotic ointment if they look infected. Otherwise, the virus will have to run it's course over 3-5 weeks.
 
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They have been unwell now for 11 days. They seem to be improving slightly and are both still eating and drinking. The partridge is limping and I'm wondering if fowl pox affects the muscles? I've started her on complex B tablets and bath their faces daily.
 
I can't say for sure if that is pox, but if it came on suddenly to several chickens, it probably is pox. The one chicken with the affected eye needs to have her eye cleaned twice a day with saline, and I would apply an antibiotic ointment or drop to the eye. Fowl pox should not affect the muscles, but it can make the chickens weak. Iodine applied to scabs (except near eyes,) may help dry up lesions. Check them for mite infection since mites infestation can look a bit like that. Here is some infor for you about pox:
http://partnersah.vet.cornell.edu/avian-atlas/#/disease/Avian_Pox
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/avian-pox-how-to-treat-your-chickens-for-avian-pox
http://www.hyline.com/aspx/redbook/redbook.aspx?s=5&p=35
http://animalscience.ucdavis.edu/Avian/Fowlpox.pdf
 
Thank you.
Yes it did come on suddenly, I was amazed at how fast they looked like this. One day they were fine next day one couldn't see :(
Then it slowly progressed.
I have been bathing their eyes ( faces) 3 times a day and applying pink eye powder after each time.
The scabs are now dark and crusty and are falling off. I'm cleaning their space daily incase the scabs contain the virus.
I've been feeding them a wet mash ( tuna, couscous, creamed corn, rice, broccoli etc)
Which they love. The partridge was very ill and was listless in the corner. She is more alert now but struggling to get around with her left leg ( she hobbles)
I will continue what I'm doing and hopefully once their faces clear up they will feel much better.
Thank you
 

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