Baby button found sick this morning - huge swollen eye and nodding.

[smallbluejellybean]

I went to check on my chicks in the brooder this morning as I do every morning. I looked and saw the yukkiest thing. One of my chicks head on one side was swollen to the size of its head (like two heads). It was fine yesterday? Well I took it out and put it in a make shift mini brooder of its own and cleaned thoroughly the brooder out and put the other chicks back in.
I have been watching him for a while. He can't open his eye because of the swelling. He is nodding all the time, I don't think he is going to make it.
Anyways I had some antibiotic ointment the vet gave me for one of my adult quails, as it injured its eye two weeks ago (all better now). I put it on it. I also had some antibiotic powder I used on it too and I put some in its water.
Its eating and drinking a bit.
Is there anything else I can do for it. It looks so yukkie, but I feel like squeezing it, but I know that would be more harmful.
YUK!

 

[JJMR794]

HOWDY

Can you post a pic of the affected baby showing its problem? I may have the answer but I need to see the lil fella...

 

[smallbluejellybean]

Hi JJ,
Sorry the photos aren't very good, but maybe you can see enough. One side is fine the other is yuk and like a balloon.

Thanks for your help. This little guy is so tame, as he was the one that thought I was his mother when he hatched. He had to wait a few days for his buddies to hatch and he adopted me. He has food stuck on him, as he has antibiotic eye ointment on him and everything sticks to him.

Came back and retried with new photos as the others were awful.

 

[JJMR794]

Wow hard to tell on these lil guys.... My 1st opinion is what i was affraid of. IMO it looks like a mycoplasm infection. There are a few types but most are labeled "Coryza" here in the bird keeping world. You have other birds of different speces and ages.... This is an infectious illness thats spread from bird to bird and does have silent carriers. While the mycoplasma doesnt respond to rx therapy if you pet him on antibiotics orally it will prevent the 2ndary infections that will cause death in many/ most cases. I hope I'm wrong on this..... But if I am not THIS WILL SPREAD LIKE WILDFIRE TO ANY SPECES SUSCEPTIBLE TO IT--- NAMELY YOUR GAMEBIRDS! Please 1st thing---- GO INTO STRICT BIOLOGICAL ISSOLATION--- NO ONE GETS ANY CONTACT WITH ANYBODY FROM ANY OTHER PENS/ AVIARIES/ CAGES OR THEIR UTINSELS---FOOD WATER DISHES, STERILIZE EVERYTHING WITH BLEACH WATER, WASH YOURSELF WITH A GOOD ANTIMICROBIAL SOAP AND USE STRICT HANDWASHING BETWEEN ANY PENS AT ALL TIMES UNTIL THIS IS OVER. I WOULD START ANTIBIOTIC TREATMENT ON ANY BIRDS HE HAS BEEN IN CONTACT WITH IRREGUARDLESS OF WETHER OR NOT THEY SHOW ANY ILLNESS FOR 14 DAYS. TAKE THE LIL GUY TO A VET ASAP FOR PROPER DIAGNOSIS JUST TO BE SURE. IF IT IS A MYCOPLASM INFECTION AND HE SURVIVES HE WILL BE A CARRIER AND WILL CONTINUE TO INFECT OTHER BIRDS.

SANTIZE EVERYTHING--- ESPECIALLY ANY COMMON USE INSTRUMENTS LIKE FEED SCOOPS, WATER AND FOOD DISHES, ETC... WITH BLEACH WATER IMMEDIATELY

USE STRICT BIO ISSOLATION TECHNIQUES

I WOULDNT HANDLE HIM WITHOUT LATEX GLOVES--- WHILE HE IS NOT INFECTIOUS TO YOU, YOU CARE FOR EVEYBODY ELSE THERE AND MAY BECOME THE MODE OF TRANSMISSION--- WEAR LATEX GLOVES TO CARE FOR HIM AND THEN DISPOSE OF THEM IMMEDIATELY AND WASH YOUR HANDS WITH HOT SAOPY WATER THOUROUGHLY


THIS IS SPREAD BY CONTACT--- NOT AIRBORNE.





NOW WE'VE COVERED WORST CASE SCENARIO---START AND CONTINUE STEPS UNTIL SOMETHING ELSE IS PROVED ON THIS. IF HE IS IN COMMUNITY THERES ALWAYS A CHANCE IT CLD BE A PECK INJURY(THO IT DOESNT LOOK LIKE IT) IF YOU TREAT HIM FOR CORYZA IT WILL COVER THIS

NOT CORYZA BUT SOME OTHER MORE TRIVIAL SINUS INFECTION--- THIS WILL COVER IT



I hope I'm wrong, but I dont think I am.... Get the lil guy to a vet for proper diagnosis and treatment and by all means use the biologic issolation as described above. Pm me with any specific questions I can answer for you. Good luck with him, we'll be wishing good thoughts for you.

 

[peewee]

smallbluejellybean, I have my fingers crossed for you. I hope that everything works out for the little guy.

Hey JJ, I was wondering about what type of antibiotic you would use for the other birds as a precaution? Would you use an all around antibiotic such as Terrimycin (sp?)? Just curious.

 

[smallbluejellybean]

Thanks JJ.
I had him in isolation since I found him that way. I cleaned everything out including the brooder with bleach and hot water. The other two little guys still show no sign of infection. He is eating pretty good this morning and it has gone down a little. Maybe its the antibiotics I gave him kicking in.
I took the little guy into the vet that I am doing my internship with and she thought it was respitory infection as he does have a little mucus comming from his nose and the head bobbing indicates that. She told me to keep going with what I was already doing and that he will either recover or die, but because he is still eating and drinking (water with antibiotics), he should pull through.
She suspects that it was a yolk sac infection, as this little guy hatched without absorbing all his yolk till he was out for about 3 hours. She recommended I watch the other two guys he was in contact with for any signs and start antibiotics if they look in anyway ill.
She also took a liquid sample from the area and when she collected it she said it was clear/yellow fluid, which is a good sign, because it isn't pus, but probably a build up of sinus fluid from the infection.
He was never in contact with any of my adult birds - no where near them ever, except when his egg was layed - so no fear of cross infection there.
Just keeping my fingers crossed and hoping he will pull through.
Thanks for your help and will keep you updated.
Cheers Martha

 

[Overeasyplz]

poor lil fella hope he turns out ok!

 

[JJMR794]

Martha good luck with him.

 

[smallbluejellybean]

I am affraid he has taken a turn for the worse. His eye has gone down about half way. It is oozing out that clear yellow fluid, but I think the little guy is having trouble breathing. The test results came back as the vet suspected a bacterial infection and not Coryza. She said it is very common in chicks that have hatching problems. I always felt the little guy came out too soon. The other eggs that hatched 3 days later were put in the incubator at the same time as he was. That would explain their resistance to the infection, because they hatched at the right time. The vet couldn't believe he had survived this long and she told me it was ok to put him back with his buddies as this infection is threw the yolk and nothing else. Also the fact they were already exposed for about 5 days. She also told me to give them all antibiotics in the water just in case. So I put him back with them and they finally stopped calling for him. They just sit there watching him - maybe birds do understand alot more than we give them credit for.
Its so sad. I wish there was more I could do for him. I wish I had the guts to put him down, but no mater how hard I try I can't. He was my baby - he thought I was his mother.
Isnt it silly, I am getting all teary over the little guy.

 

[JJMR794]

Erin as requested....

treatment for coryza type mycoplasm infections in gamebirds

"Enrofloxacin ( Baytril) - 50mg/Liter drinking water for 7-10 days or
5mg/kg by mouth each day for 7-10 days ( if you send me their weights, I can
figure it for you. I'm sure the vets at the LA clinic can too. It's ok to mix
the baytril into something sweet ( apple juice ) before giving it my mouth. Just
pull into syringe and squirt into the back of the mouth avoiding the glottis.


Liquamycin LA - 200 ( oxytet) 2500mg /Liter drinking water + 2500mg
/kg feed You'll have to give both food and water to get blood levels up to
therapeutic dosing." ==== Per Avian veterinarian.

While oxytet is available in almost every feed store, the baytril is vet only!

Another alternative is lincomycin and solumet combo which works with many

Last choice oxytet + solumet combo

Basically 2 broad spectrum antibiotics in combination but working in different ways, both need to be systemic
For game birds sulfa antibiotics (solumet) works well and lincomycin works better that oxytet in the mycin family when used on gamebirds.