Hen with ear infection

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crj

crj

Songster
10 Years
Dec 17, 2009
1,596
38
173
Rocky Point, NC
I have a hen with an ear infection. At least that's what I think it is. I've been cleaning it out with hot water, peroxide and some baby oil. It takes a bit to soften up. I eventually use q-tips and tweezers to pull the gunk out. I also squirt hot water in her ear to get as much as I can out. Last but not least I put some oil in her ear and let her back out.

It's getting much better but it keeps coming back. It's taking a long time to clear this up. I'm not using any medications. So far so good. I'm hoping this last cleaning out will be the end of it.

This is what it looked like the last time I cleaned her ear. It's not as stinky as it first was either. I'm guessing that is a big plus. Her ear was the size of a dime when I first found out she had an infection. It's like pulling out scambled eggs from her ears. She didn't seem to mind at all either. Now it's quite small.

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I wish I had some advice to give you
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I've done some searches but can't find anything that looks similar. I'll keep searching and if I find something useful I'll let you know. Hopefully someone will come along soon that knows what this is and how best to treat it. Good luck to you and your hen!
 
you might want to stop with the peroxide because it can irritate the skin. maybe try squirting some neosporin down in the ear to help kill any bacteria thats in there. Hope she keeps improving, sounds like your a good nurse...
 
I had to clean it out again this morning. It is getting better but it sure is taking it's time. I've put baby oil in her ear which seems to be helping. I will try neosporin. I think I have some. When I first noticed it, man, did she have a lot of gunk in there. Thankfully it's not nearly as bad or smelly as it's been. I've been doing this for about a month now. I'm hoping it will clear up soon. Thanks for the help.
 
you hardly know they have ears till something like that happens..

I know. Feathers cover the ear opening. When I saw that big patch of yellow gunk I knew something was up. At one point I could get a q-tip inside her ear. Now, not so much so it's definitely getting better. I also cut the feathers way from the opening so I could see what was going on in there. I could move the earlobe around and try to get more of the gunk to come out. It really helped having tweezers and a steady hand. Hot water is the trick to softening the stuff. I just don't know how long it will take to stop.​
 
you just might need something a little stronger than just the oil. maybe try putting some neosporin on a qtip and putting it inside her ear canal not to far but maybe that will finish off any bacteria still in there...
 
Oh, my you poor thing and your poor hen!! The neosporin sounds like a very good idea. And I would stop with the hot water. For one thing it has got to hurt and for another it can damage the skin where this infected feather is. If you are compelled to clean the site, I would use a 4-to-1 dilution of vinegar to water. Vinegar is very good at killing bacteria and it dries very quickly, which will help dry up the infection. Once it's quite dry top with neosporin.

Good luck to you both,
Jenny
 
And I would stop with the hot water. For one thing it has got to hurt and for another it can damage the skin where this infected feather is.

Actually, she really likes the hot water. It's not super hot just warmer then warm water. The hen seems soothed when I use it. Then I can massage around her ear to get more of the gunk out. She will tell me where it hurts. I will definitely try some vinegar added to the water, thanks. I do try to dry out as much of the water as possible. She doesn't even run from me anymore. So I must be doing something right. Luckily it is getting better it's just taking a long time.​
 

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