2 sick Buff Orpingtons 1+ yr old

[sjeastling83]

I have 2 girls, bff’s Rory & Phoebe, that have clear nasal drainage, cloudy/bubbly eyes and one of them has nasty yellow eye drainage in one eye.
I noticed the Rory’s eye about a week ago, but she only had 1 eye that looked a little swollen and she was keeping it closed. I assumed there was something in it or it was injured somehow. Now I know it’s some contagious infection since she is worse and now Phoebe is showing the same symptoms. I‘ve quarantined the two of them from the other 20 hens, but what do I do for them? I’ve never seen this before and there’s no chicken vet around here.

Rory: now has 2 eyes affected

Phoebe: one eye swollen & closed and the other one cloudy

 

[Eggcessive]

They may be suffering from a respiratory disease such as mycoplasma or MG, which causes eye bubbles, crusty drainage, and swelling around an eye. I would take a warm wet compress to the eye to soak off the crust. You can flush out the eyes with saline. Terramycin eye ointment (just a dot) can be applied to the eye twice a day. You can find that at most feed stores (ask a clerk for it.) Tylan 50 injectable can also be used orally—0.25 ml (1/4 ml) per pound given by mouth by removing the needle 3 times a day for 5 days. Have you seen any sneezing, lethargy, or labored breathing?

The blurry eye is interesting. That does not look normal and could be a sign of an injury or occular Mareks disease. I would keep an eye on it, to see if it turns grey.

 

[MomJones]

Excellent pics--they show a lot of detail. I'm going with Mareks or one of the infectious Itis diseases (which are treatable) that are similar to bronchitis or laryngotracheitis. Eggcessive is right on. I'll be following your progress and hoping for a full recovery.

 

[sjeastling83]

I haven’t noticed labored breathing, but Rory (started with the symptoms first) was hanging in the nesting boxes more than normal. I’m not certain if it’s fatigue or that she just couldn’t see to get down.
Phoebe was out and about—eating, drinking, etc—until she was quarantined with Rory, of course.
I’m going into town to the Tractor Supply tomorrow. I’ll see what my options are and let you know what regimen I’m going to follow and how it goes.

 

[MomJones]

How are Rory and Phoebe doing today?

 

[sjeastling83]

I’m leaning towards the respiratory infection. No more yellow eye drainage with the terramycin, but both girls are still a bit swollen around the eyes and they’re still bubbly. I haven’t noticed sneezing or labored breathing, but probably a little lethargic and they’re not eating much.
I’ve tried to get Tylan from two different feed stores in my area to no avail. I’m headed to a third now. They have a powder Tylan online if I can’t find the injection today.
The directions for the powder say to add to water and for it to be the only water source for 5 days. I have two 5 gallon bucket nipple waterers, so that’s not a problem. I have them secluded from the rest of my flock, and nobody else is showing symptoms right now, but should I treat them all if it’s truly a respiratory infection?

 

[sjeastling83]

Ugghhh...I’m so frustrated! So everywhere I’ve gone is out of Tylan and they aren’t able to order it either...The only place that says it’s in stock is online at Chewy.com but I have to have a prescription for it. Problem is that there are no poultry vets here. Any ideas????

 

[MomJones]

So this is free advice and worth what you paid for it, but if I were in your situation and seeking an antibiotic, I'd use Echinacea/Goldenseal (available at any Walmart). You can break the capsules open and sprinkle the stuff into a little treat dish of yogurt with honey or whatever else they prefer.
I've used Echinacea/Goldenseal for many years on humans, dogs, cats, chickens--it's a natural antibiotic/antiparasitic that doesn't harm their insides the way pharmaceutical antibiotics do. Plus it's cheap. There are several pages on here that discuss herbal remedies, you might find them helpful.
I do hope your girls get better soon!

 

[Eggcessive]

This place has oral Tylan powder in stock and dosage is 1 tsp per gallon, and I would only treat the birds with symptoms:
https://www.jedds.com/shop/tylan-soluble-100-g/