SICK CHICKEN: Eye closed

[2greenboyz]

Hi Happima, first I want to thank you for keeping us informed on how your hen is doing. Sometimes it seems like no one is watching b/c you don't get replies. Maybe that's because no one has a good answer - you are right- this disease stuff is the hardest part and you've had more than your share of bad luck here. And yes, vets are expensive. That's why we try our best to help each other, but sometimes you just need to get a diagnosis.

I do want to mention on treating all of them - this is what I would do. Of course its just my opinion based on my experience someone else may say different. I've had undiagnosed respiratory disease in my flock. I had no idea what it was. I treated with same stuff you are using and treated one by one and ended up just chasing it in circles with some birds getting it more than once. Eventually, I had to treat all of them at the same time to get rid of it. So since you have the obviously ill bird separated, I'd keep her separated through the course of treatment. I would not treat the other birds unless one of them comes down with it and the reasoning there is the bug can build resistance to the medication if you indescrimately treat. But if any one of them comes down with it, then I would go ahead and treat all, since they all would have been exposed. You should know before long how to proceed - just a matter of days if they show symptoms or not. Please keep posting on how you're doing. We all learn that way.

One more thing - right after you finish the treatment, be sure to give them the probiotics to help their internal good bacteria build back up.

 

[happima]

I do want to mention on treating all of them - this is what I would do. Of course its just my opinion based on my experience someone else may say different. I've had undiagnosed respiratory disease in my flock. I had no idea what it was. I treated with same stuff you are using and treated one by one and ended up just chasing it in circles with some birds getting it more than once. Eventually, I had to treat all of them at the same time to get rid of it. So since you have the obviously ill bird separated, I'd keep her separated through the course of treatment. I would not treat the other birds unless one of them comes down with it and the reasoning there is the bug can build resistance to the medication if you indescrimately treat. But if any one of them comes down with it, then I would go ahead and treat all, since they all would have been exposed. You should know before long how to proceed - just a matter of days if they show symptoms or not. Please keep posting on how you're doing. We all learn that way.

One more thing - right after you finish the treatment, be sure to give them the probiotics to help their internal good bacteria build back up.

Thanks 2greenboyz.

Rosie the Welsummer is stuffy this morning, but want to hold off evaluating until she's had her antibiotics in the eggs and rice. She was worse yesterday morning, as well, but perked up when she got the tetracycline.

My concern now is the other chickens. Isabella, my 8 month Ameraucana, has stopped eating. Noticed yesterday she didn't want scratch and today she is pecking around her favorite spinach but not actually consuming anything. Not usual for her at all.

So do I proceed forth and put the antibiotics in the drinking water? Should I isolate Isabella in a pen in the yard today so I see what she's eating?

BTW, feel so bad for isolating Rosie. She stays right at the mirror in the bathroom to keep herself company. Chickens don't like to be alone.

So I'm thinking the chicks are the cause behind this. Put them in the coop with the large girls one week ago today. Either they brought respiratory disease (they came from a farm with lots of other chickens) or the stress of having new chicks in the coop triggered what the hens already had. Thing is, I want to raise chickens, not just the three hens I had, so eventually I have to go through these stages. Plus, these ladies free range during the day and blue birds are constantly in their yard and food. So there's no keeping this area "pristine." Again, I don't sell eggs, hatch eggs, go to shows or see other chickens. Just got to hope the antibiodies kick in for all my little ladies. Feels like when my kids were in preschool and coming home with a new bug every week. Except my boys were considered "contagious" for a specific period of time. Now I'm dealing with"carriers for life." Ugh.

 

[2greenboyz]

I'd say if the tetracycline is working, just continue that. It may not be a bad idea to isolate Isabella just to keep an eye on her if you have room to do that. As far as treating the rest, you really need the results from the vet to find out what you are dealing with. You don't want to start them on one medicine and find out it isn't the right stuff (or isn't needed at all). Nobody else is showing symptoms I hope. When mine all got sick, I expected the "carriers for life" thing, but I think that all depends on what it is. Once mine all recovered, they never got it again even when stressed. And when I got a couple of new ones - pullets - nobody got sick even then. So - "ain't necessarily so"...... I'm no expert on respiratory, not even close, but if it's MG - that is bad and I understand it is a "reportable" disease - one that a vet is supposed to tell animal health dept about. My understanding anyway - I'll be corrected if its wrong I'm sure.

I hear you on the wild birds and free ranging. You need to figure out how to keep the wild birds out of the food and esp water. You could be exposing them to other diseases, like canker (trich). I know how hard that is to do. I used to have geese, and used a feeder that had a narrow, necked down top. I'd come home from work and find pigeons had gone after their food and got stuck in there, head first! There would be 3 or 4 pigeons and nobody could get their head out (and they say chickens are dumb). I grabbed them by the tail and pulled them out but when I did that, they lost all their tail feathers and I was left holding the tail as the pigeon flew away.

What I eventually did was use a feeder I guess really made for dogs where they had to push on the door to get the food. Doubt that would work for chickens, but I've found if you can keep it from view of wild birds that's most of the battle. I watch wild birds sit on my neighbor's fence and swoop down to eat out of their dogs' bowl all the time.

Hang in there and let us know what the vet concludes.

 

[happima]

Hi 2greenboyz,

Was just ready to give all girls tetracycline, but after reading your message I'll wait. Isabella is definitely off, but she is not yet showing any signs of eye foaming or gurgling, so I really dont know what I'm dealing with here. Wish I didn't have to wait a whole week for test results.

Rosie is still sick.

 

[2greenboyz]

So sorry you have to go thru this. It is difficult I know. Your only other option is to cull, and I know you don't want to do that. I wouldn't want to either to tell you the truth. You are taking the right precautions now so all you can do is wait it out. Might try calling the vet on Tuesday and updating them on what's happening so they stay on top of the testing and let you know asap. Got my fingers crossed for you.

 

[happima]

Update for tonight: Rosie is having a good evening. For the first time in two nights, she was drinking her tetracycline water, and a lot of it. Seemed like she was able to breath a little bit through her nostrils (are those nostrils on the beak) which surprised her and she just kept on drinking and drinking. She's getting irritated about being in the bathroom and tried to get out a couple times, which is a sign she's got a little more energy in her. The anti inflamatory I gave her at 3pm seemed to perk her up as well.

Isabella went to the coop early for bed. She still is off, but haven't seen any foaming in the eyes of heard any gurgling, so I'm holding off with any kind of treatment.

Feeling a little better this evening. Having Rosie peck at me and try to get out of the darned bathroom made me feel like things are getting a bit back to normal.

Hope things continue to look up tomorrow. Mornings are always bad (as they are for me when I have respiratory issues), but hopefully we'll continue to have overall improvement for Rosie. While this has kind of ruined my vacation, glad I can be home to care for her during the day.

 

[trac]

I sure do appreciate that you wrote about your problem with your chickens. I am at my wits end. I'll never bring home any more chickens from a flea market unless I have quarantined them longer than what I did. After about a week, I decided to let my newbies loose n shortly after that one of them started sneezing. Didn't think it was a problem, until I had one, then two, now about four or five die on me. It is going through my flock!!! Noticed that my mama Phoenix this morning has a ring around her eye n didn't seem to know where she was going. Looking at her better, her eye is crusted shut. I just don't know what to do!! I have show chickens that I am trying to keep from getting this, and new babies. The show chickens are in the barn, not the coop and it seems that what i have is in the coop. I'll try to take some pics to see if this is what you had. Live in a small town, and vet doesn't help with the chickens. Tells me that they need to go to Purdue. I just can't afford that. Where do I get the meds to help my babies?

 

[HenFriend]

Once bought chickens at a show and fewdays later they were all wheezing and had runny noses. Vet not sure what it was but most likely mycoplasma, spread though flock very quickly so I medicated the water. Gave them Baytril (antiboitic), took long time to recover but I didn,t lose any. Have read that Tylan soluble is best thing to use. Following the antibiotics a couple were still a bit wheezy so I gave them some vitamin tonic and they really improved. Good luck, I went through a bad time with my birds, nearly put me off keeping them but I'm glad I didn't give up. Will not buy birds from a show again.

 

[HenFriend]

Forgot to say try bathing the eye with salt water. Vet told me you need to get eye problems sorted quickly. Long course of antibiotics was expensive but worth it as I love my chicks.

 

[happima]

Morning update: Rosie is mad! Broke out of the bathroom window to have her share of spinach when my son fed the other hens in the chicken yard. She wants no more of being cooped up in that bathroom. Her eyes looked clear, she'd eaten her food (and clearly her tetracycline, juding by the diarrhea all over the bathroom) and I think there was a little gurgling, but nothing compared her cackling/growling to let her out of the room. When I gave her some spinach, she gobbled it right up. And just two days ago, she was so sick she was letting us hold her on her back to get blood drawn from both wings. Rosie's back!

So, if she continues to improve, how long do I have to keep her isolated? Can I bring her back into the chicken yard if I keep her in a pen? Though judging by how fiesty she was this morning, she might bust out

Isabella, my Ameraucana, doesn't seem worse this morning. Her puffy cheeks have a little crust on them, so I'm thinking of treating her eyes with some triple antibiotic ointment cream. Can't hurt, I figure.