4 days still not seeing right.

[DesertBrahma]

4 days ago I noticed 1 of my pullets wasn't eating right. She was pecking the air about 4 inches above the feed pan. I immediately quarantined her and started her on some oxiterracycline (sp?). I took her out this morning to see how she's doing. Yes I've been getting her out every day just haven't taken her outside. She immediately eliminated wateryclearish white. Then ttried to eat out of the pan and started pecking the air again. In her kennel she has food and water and doesn't have to move very far for it. I put her back into her bed after cleaning it out really well, and putting fresh bedding in. She's been extremely quiet inside but was calling up a storm while she was outside and could hear my other 2 girls. What else can I do to help her? Also what could have caused this?

 

[Eggcessive]

Can you look at her eyes and see if both black pupils and the colored irises are the same? Are the pupils round or irregular, or are they very tiny? Is there any cloudiness in the eyes, or have you noticed any eye drainage? There can be several causes of blindness in chickens ranging from cataracts, Mareks disease, avian encephalomyelitis (AE,) vitamin A deficiency, to infections or injuries. Here are some articles to read about eye disorders:
https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps031
http://www.joneshamiltonag.com/jh/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/PLT_Poultry-Eye-Disorders.pdf

Mareks disease showing constricted pupil Mareks eye on left and right, normal eye in center

 

[DesertBrahma]

Her pupils are dilated normal shape and color. They look watery like she has allergies almost. No abnormal shape, color, or cloudiness. After i do a deep cleaning on my coop tomorrow I'm going to take her back out. I always put everything back in the same places so she'll already know where everything is. Yes I'm a little OCD about things like that. I like things running properly and in the correct places and little Ms. Everest has thrown me a little curve ball. I am also going to go ahead and worm all 3 of my girls. Will this hirt Everest after being on antibiotics? I want to make sure they're healthy enough to deal with winter here. If i need to because she can't roost properly i can put the quarantine kennel in the coop.

 

[Eggcessive]

Ammonia odors and dust can irritate the eyes. Since her eyes are watery, that can be a sign of irritation or possibly the beginning of a respiratory diseases. The tetracycline could help if it is a respiratory infection. Make sure that you have good overhead ventilation to provide fresh air without drafts.

 

[DesertBrahma]

I have a lot of ventilation in the coop. I have to go out today and try to cut some down so there isn't a cold draft on them. Plus I clean the coop out of bedding every week. So there shouldn't be any ammonia build up. I am going to do a deep cleaning today. This is the day I usually do the cleaning because my hubby is home to watch our boys. I just recently added some 6 mil heavy duty plastic and a tarp to the roof of the coop, but the main door stays open so any wind can still blow through. I also have ventilation at the base of the coop. It gets hot here and I want to keep them cooler in the summer. I also just started adding some straw to the aspen shavings. Could that have anything to do with her having eye problems? Also she seems to like the brighter light compared to the dimmer light of indoors. She opens her eyes wider and tries to look around. I'm going to try and flush her eyes with artificial tears and a cotton ball see if that might help. I usually close the coop door for a couple hours after cleaning so it has a chance to dry and air out before I let them back in. They have a sun cloth covered run with an over hang from the coop roof for protection. I think until this is resolved all 3 will be stuck in the coop and run. I don't want her to be attacked by a hawk. Oh I just thought of something. Could a cat give her an eye infection? One of my show up kitties likes to sleep in the coop. She's also keeping rodents out. She's never attacked any of the chickens but that could be because they're bigger thanshe . Im wondering if that might be it.

 

[Eggcessive]

Well, that is very good. I was just pointing out that it can be a possible cause of eye irritation and blindness. In addition to the tetracycline in the water, you might want to use some Terramycin eye ointment in the eyes for a week or so. Good luck.

 

[DesertBrahma]

Okay coop has been scrubbed, and sanitized. Took me 4 hours to get it completely done, and everything back in where it's supposed to be. As soon as I got out the door here comes the girls with Everest in the rear talking as I swear oohing and aahing lol. Both of the other 2 girls have been staying close to Everest in case she needs guidance on where to go. They loved that I opened the compost heap for them to check out, and all the fresh straw on the floor. I scrubbed the boards, and the concrete floor, then scrubbed the egg boxes, feeder, and waterer that stays in the coop. Then I stepped into the run and finished scrubbing the rest of the concrete. I raked, and cleaned the run and scrubbed the waterer I keep in there. While all of that dried I scrubbed, and filled the waterer in the backyard, and the feed pan Everest likes on the porch. I went ahead and added some antibiotics to all the waterers so she will get a bit more. She is much happier being with her sisters in the yard than in quarantine in the house. Her pupils are still huge but normal shape, and color. Hopefully using different bedding and scrubbing the coop really well will help her. If I see her roosting tonight then there's real hope for her.

ok I had to take her and shivy the other 2 into the coop tonight lol. I set her onto her usual roost and I swear she started purring like a cat lol. She had a nicely bulging crop, and looked a little better for getting a good meal into her. I'm going to keep a good eye on all of them for a while. Isn't it a wonderful thing. I go ahead and process my cockerels because they really injured one of my girls and things settle down with the 3 girls getting along only to have this happen. Hopefully this is the last bad thing that happens for a long time. I'm not going to get Dark Brahmas again. They're too fragile for my nerves. It's like having 3 extra toddlers in my home lol. Oh well. I'm not going to get rid of them. They're here until the day they go into my soup pot.

ok day 2 of Everest being back outside with the girls. She is much happier, eating, and is starting to see a little better. I'm still watching her closely. Tomorrow I'm going to go ahead and worm them, then do a couple days of probiotics. Hopefully she keeps improving and gets completely better. Wish me luck.