Eye Getting Worse

[sweetchix]

Chicken (17 month old) started out with keeping her eye shut a week ago. Her eye now looks like this. We started treating with boric acid thinking she had conjunctivitis with no improvement. I moved on to Vetericyn Opthalmic gel and no improvement. I read in a different article I could use colloidal silver in her eye but am afraid to do anything else until I have a better idea of what is going on. She has been segregated from the flock and she just sits on her perch and sleeps. She does some foraging when I let her out but she is not as active. The eyelid is not swollen and I cannot see any worms. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Eggcessive]

Mareks disease can cause a change in the eye. Did she have a Mareks vaccine, and is the other eye sensitive or affected at all? Here is a good link on eye problems and another showing Mareks disease: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps031
http://partnersah.vet.cornell.edu/avian-atlas/search/lesion/464

 

[sweetchix]

She did not have the vaccine. The other eye is open and completely normal.

 

[Eggcessive]

I will check with a couple of others familiar with Mareks, and have them take a look at this thread.

 

[sweetchix]

Thank you

 

[schnebbles]

wow. I just had to put down my pullet and I have known mareks. This case was not typical though. My pullet (vaccinated and she was probably at least 20 weeks old or more when I got her 2 months ago) started squinting her eyes a lot. I didn't think too much of it until it got really bad. Her one eye was getting cloudy similar to your pic. It was hard for me to see b/c i could never get her to open it very well. Eggcessive had me treat with neosporin and then I even got some actual eye neosporin from the vet but nothing helped. She deteriorated very quick. Within a week and her last 3 days were miserable but I can't cull a chicken and I had to wait until Monday to get her in. I think it was Mareks b/c she started getting the paralysis in her legs. I felt so bad for her and I couldn't even get her put down. She was either having spasms or else trying to move and just couldn't - it was awful

she slept all the time, quit eating and drinking. I have tube fed birds before with mareks but they always die and for me, I probably just kind of give up and put them out of their misery. You can always try to keep her drinking and eating. Some people have success.

My only recommendation if you think it might be mareks (it's hard to say) is load them up on extra vitamin B. I always put extra b vitamins in their water but before when I first had issues someone here said to put a superB in the water (I used 1/gallon crushed up). It won't hurt and if it helps then good.

If she dies, you should have her sent for necropsy to find out what it was especially if mareks is suspected. It's a horrible thing to have and has almost made me give up on chickens.

There are several others here who should have some good advice. So strange to see this since I had my pullet squinting eyes and then a grey eye in the last week-2. I didn't have a necropsy, I probably should have but I know I have mareks. Other people are suggesting I may have some other stuff going on as well. I need to do more reading when I have time. Good luck, I hope it's not mareks.

 

[sweetchix]

If it is Mareks what does that mean for my other chickens? I have 6 total and only one sick.

 

[schnebbles]

Gosh, I hope it's not. I think the grey eye is strange for mareks though - so it makes me wonder, even on mine. But mine got the leg paralysis and all so I think it was. I'm quick to blame it on mareks. I've lost lots of my birds and it's sickening.

If you do have mareks (which is why a necropsy would be good) you must be so careful. Your birds are now carriers for life and they could get it and spread it.

There is a huge thread in this forum somewhere (emergency section I think) called mareks in the flock - maybe go to that section and search it. It's huge and so much to read.

Lets hope it's not. I started out with just a few too and have gotten a couple more and I'm down to 2. One is vaccinated and I got her as a 9 month old. The other one is a year or so and he was original and he's not vaccinated. he could get it any time he would get stressed or something to weaken his system. My vaccinated one should be good, I hope. Vaccination isn't 100%, just a much better chance.

 

[sweetchix]

She runs around. Just not as active as before. I keep thinking she doesn't feel well.

 

[Eggcessive]

Sweetchix, don't panic just yet about it being possibly Mareks. Many people have chickens with odd eyes, and some are due to infections or injuries. Here are a couple of links to read--one is about a chicken with a gray eye that turned out to be an injury, and another about eyes and diseases:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/835444/eye-infection-injury-eye-has-gone-blind-and-gray-pics
http://www.joneshamiltonag.com/jh/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/PLT_Poultry-Eye-Disorders.pdf