HELP! IS THIS MAREK'S DISEASE??

[PsychoChickenLady]

https://www.instagram.com/p/CPI-nLlnWbV/?utm_medium=copy_link

Last night I noticed that Chickie, my hen who has had a slight limp for a couple of months, has one pinpoint pupil. It's her right eye.

I have no idea what to look for or how to tell if it's Marek's Disease.

If so, is there anything I can do?

Is there anything I SHOULD do (separate her, change her diet)?

I'm going through old photos to see if her pupil has always been so tiny.

She is not at the bottom of the flock, but she is the victim of the most aggressive of my bullies, (who is now in #FlockJail solitary confinement for two weeks).

Aside from the slight limp, she has no, and there haven't ever been any, visible injuries. No bleeding, no ripped combs, nor any singled-out feather-plucking.

Any help, suggestions, advice is, as always, greatly appreciated!!

(I tried to upload a little :16 second video clip but it wasn't supported).

 

[Wyorp Rock]

For video, upload to youtube or similar platform, then provide a link.

Is she eating/drinking and moving around o.k. - seems to be able to see?

There's no way to know for sure if that's Marek's or not. It could be something like Colobama? or some other eye disorder.
It would be good to take photos of her eye regularly to see if it changes more.

Check out her legs and feet (bottom of feet) just to make sure the limping isn't due to injury, broken or too long toenail, bumblefoot/infection, etc.

Hopefully someone like @Eggcessive will chime in with their thoughts too.

 

[PsychoChickenLady]

For video, upload to youtube or similar platform, then provide a link.

Is she eating/drinking and moving around o.k. - seems to be able to see?

There's no way to know for sure if that's Marek's or not. It could be something like Colobama? or some other eye disorder.
It would be good to take photos of her eye regularly to see if it changes more.

Check out her legs and feet (bottom of feet) just to make sure the limping isn't due to injury, broken or too long toenail, bumblefoot/infection, etc.

Hopefully someone like @Eggcessive will chime in with their thoughts too.

Thank you for your quick reply.

Everything else, aside from the slight limp, that arbitrarily gets better and/or worse, she seems perfectly fine. She is maintaining her position, mid-flock, she's eating, laying, pooping, and playing normally.

I keep checking for some sign of ANYTHING, but there's nothing. At this point I'm almost hoping to find something! She's had the limp for at least 2-5 months, and there's been no sign of anything. No bumblefoot, no breaks or sprains or obvious injury, no excessive pecking or attention to either leg ~ although I think it's her left.

I've given her an Epsom salts bath, and check regularly for any signs of parasites.

They all seem(ed) to have a feather issue (depluming mites?) so about a month ago, I treated them with ivermectin, twice, and cleaned out and DE fire-bombed their coop.

I'm at a complete loss. A relative thinks the feather issue is just molting. I can see where there are signs of some molting and broodiness (bare chests, patches missing), but their butts are fire-engine red sometimes, and they are all missing feathers, to a varying degree of severity.

So many questions and so many problems!!

1. What's wrong with their butts??
2. Why is Chickie is limping?
3. Why is Karen such a bully to Chickie, they are both in the middle of the flock?
4. Why is Chickie's pupil so tiny?

Alas, we deal with what we can, when we can. So now I have moved Chickie's eye issue to the top of my priority list.

I really appreciate all of your insight. I'll secluded her in the darkened coop to check her eyesight and dilation and I'll take pics regularly to monitor change.

(I wish I could give her saline drops or something! It's so hard to stand back and let them be, well, chickens. It's REALLY hard to not be able to tangibly do something).

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Do you have photos of the hens so we can see the feather condition? Molting or mites?

Missing bum feathers is often due to a flock mate plucking them out - usually when roosting.
LOL Well. Chickens are bullies. That's the way of the chicken.

 

[PsychoChickenLady]

Do you have photos of the hens so we can see the feather condition? Molting or mites?

Missing bum feathers is often due to a flock mate plucking them out - usually when roosting.
LOL Well. Chickens are bullies. That's the way of the chicken.

I'm not sure if they are still in my phone, I did post here, so maybe I can find them under my username? Oh! I'll grab some from IG.

 

[PsychoChickenLady]

I'm not sure if they are still in my phone, I did post here, so maybe I can find them under my username? Oh! I'll grab some from IG.

Found some, from a couple of weeks ago. This is Honey. She seems to be the most adversely affected, going back to early Fall (we got them, "ready to lay" in July 2020, so I'm assuming they were born around January).

I've given her LOTS of Epsom salts baths, ointment ~ learned the hard way not to use Polysporin for Kids on a chicken. I guarantee my guilt hurt worse than her butt.

With no other signs, it's so hard to tell.

(Honey is on the left in the third pic. Other hens have similar problems, the worst offender, that I saw, wore Pinless Peepers for two weeks with no discernable difference).

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Go out at night and wipe your roosts (all the way around them) and see if you get any bugs.
What dose of Ivermectin did you use?

Feathers are plucked, broken and nipped off - even on the back of the head, so they are picking at one another. How much space do you have in the coop and run?

I would be inclined to dust them with permethrin and treat the coop as well (permethrin spray). Sadly, DE is not and effective treatment against and infestation.

If the age is correct, then likely they will molt this fall.

What do you feed including treats?
The one of the abdomen, does it feel like fluid or is it hard? Does she lay eggs (I may have missed that)?

 

[PsychoChickenLady]

Go out at night and wipe your roosts (all the way around them) and see if you get any bugs.
What dose of Ivermectin did you use?

Feathers are plucked, broken and nipped off - even on the back of the head, so they are picking at one another. How much space do you have in the coop and run?

I would be inclined to dust them with permethrin and treat the coop as well (permethrin spray). Sadly, DE is not and effective treatment against and infestation.

If the age is correct, then likely they will molt this fall.

What do you feed including treats?
The one of the abdomen, does it feel like fluid or is it hard? Does she lay eggs (I may have missed that)?

I have gone over the roosts and nesting boxes at night with a damp paper towel and it's just dusty, no sign of bugs at all.

The ivermectin was 5% pour-on, and I put 5 drops on the back of the neck of each hen, twice, at two weeks intervals.

I haven't lately, but I used to stay in the coop while they settled at night (my little roosting order experiment, to see if there was any rhyme or reason to where and which way they roost ~ there's not). Are they getting up to peck and pluck each other AFTER I have watched them settle and leave??

I read that the neck feathers, front, of the top 2-3 hens, and back, the bottom 3-4 hens, being plucked is a dominance, pecking-order thing. That the higher-up allow it to maintain their position and the lower ones don't have any choice.

They ALL have feather issues of some sort, mostly thin, sparce, broken, and a few have sore-looking, raw, red butts, to varying degrees.

Oh, and of the 10 hens, the last time we got 10 eggs in the same day was January 31. Since then (our winter), we've gotten mostly 8-9 eggs a day.

I haven't yet determined which hen isn't laying. All along I've assumed it was Honey, with the most affected butt, but just this week I watched her in a nesting box, looking like she was trying to lay an egg, until she was ousted from the box, so I still don't know if she is laying.

I just read about a way to check for layers by feeling the space between their pelvic bones, so I'll try that.

I truly hope that this thread will garner some information or knowledge, or even comfort to anyone else going through something similar.

It's so hard to know what to do when they are otherwise acting normal in every other way.

I truly can't thank you enough for taking the time to respond. Even just knowing somebody is listening and willing to bounce ideas around is such a great comfort.

THANK YOU.

(I haven't had a chance to check Chickie's eye(s) with a flashlight at night. Honestly I'm a whole lot trepidatious about it).

[Butt pic is the head bully, currently in the doghouse, same missing feathers, selfie is top hen, bare neck].

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Are they getting up to peck and pluck each other AFTER I have watched them settle and leave??

They ALL have feather issues of some sort, mostly thin, sparce, broken, and a few have sore-looking, raw, red butts, to varying degrees.

Could be plucking is happening after you leave or before you let them out in the morning.
Not sure how much 5 drops is in Ivermectin Pour On - dosing is .09ml per pound of weight applied to the base of the neck - must make contact with skin. Repeat in 10 days.

Broken feathers would indicate they are doing it to one another - hens can't reach the back of their own head either. Possibly some dominance going on there, but I would still re-check for mites.

 

[PsychoChickenLady]

Could be plucking is happening after you leave or before you let them out in the morning.
Not sure how much 5 drops is in Ivermectin Pour On - dosing is .09ml per pound of weight applied to the base of the neck - must make contact with skin. Repeat in 10 days.

Broken feathers would indicate they are doing it to one another - hens can't reach the back of their own head either. Possibly some dominance going on there, but I would still re-check for mites.

Oh thank you! That's the first time I've seen an actual measurement for the ivermectin.

We have a luggage scale and for the breed, size, weight of my RSL we erred on the side of caution and went with the least about over the most days, which amounted to 5 drops per bird, two weeks apart. We were careful to get it directly on the skin and not soak into the feathers first.

Also, yesterday the bully in the doghouse had to be let out with the other girls and after two full days of solitary confinement, she immediately went to attack her favorite victim.

Clearly the issue isn't just with bully-Karen, she herself is missing feathers.

They have lots of room. There are 3 nesting boxes, the coop is about 8'Lx7.5'Wx8'H and the run is 12'Lx7.5'Wx7'H.

IF they are bored, they are the most ungrateful little raptors on the planet. They have toys and swings and perches and boredom busters of all sorts ~ treat dispersers, tether balls).

I wonder if it's a protein deficiency? Oh, and you had asked about treats, they get, "compostable" scraps. eg: Apple cores - 2-3 week, grapes, however many are too ripe to go in lunches, maybe 5-7 total per week, the odd banana, lettuce, sometimes leftover pasta, maybe about 1 cup, less than once a week. I also regularly crush up their eggshells with sunflower seeds and oatmeal. They will get the equivalent of 1Tbps of "treat-treats" per week, maybe, like raisins, dried cranberries, cheese, blueberries etc. I have given them chick peas and dog food, but not recently and not as a source of protein, I just read that they were a favourite treat ~ they definitely are.

ARGHHHH ~ don't they know I can only handle one "coop-astrophy" at a time??

Do you think an anti-pecking spray would help? I have an anti-chew spray for dogs, would that work?

Any good DIY recipes?