Bubbly eye and lethargic

[ThomasShelby]

Noticed one of my hens was a little lethargic yesterday and had some bubbles in her eye. Wiped her eye with a cloth and by the evening time she looked almost back to normal and her eye was looking normal. Kept her separated from the flock overnight and this morning she's not looking too great again. Any ideas to what this might be and is it contagious?

 

[Aapomp831]

Possible MG or infectious coryza

 

[Eggcessive]

Bubbles in an eye are symptoms of MG. Both MG and coryza can cause sweeling of the face and sinus infection. Do you notice a foul odor coming from her beak when she breathes? Tylosin, doxycycline, and oxytetracycline are some of the antibiotics used to treat MG. I would clean the eye with saline eye wash and apply either Terramycin eye ointment or plain Neosporin or Triple Antibiotic Ointment twice a day.
Here is some reading:
https://extension.umd.edu/sites/ext... Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) Infecti....pdf

 

[ThomasShelby]

Bubbles in an eye are symptoms of MG. Both MG and coryza can cause sweeling of the face and sinus infection. Do you notice a foul odor coming from her beak when she breathes? Tylosin, doxycycline, and oxytetracycline are some of the antibiotics used to treat MG. I would clean the eye with saline eye wash and apply either Terramycin eye ointment or plain Neosporin or Triple Antibiotic Ointment twice a day.
Here is some reading:
https://extension.umd.edu/sites/extension.umd.edu/files/_docs/programs/poultry/FS-1008 Recognizing and Preventing Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) Infecti....pdf

Thanks for the information. I will check for odor when I get home this evening and provide an update and also look in to getting the antibiotics you mentioned. Seems like the hen will be a carrier even after she is recovered. Does that mean the whole flock will get it/already has it?

 

[Eggcessive]

Some others may get symptoms, while some may not. Most people close their flocks to birds going in or out of the flock once their is a respiratory disease. MG can be common in some backyard flocks. The disease can be passed to offspring in hatching eggs.

 

[ThomasShelby]

Some others may get symptoms, while some may not. Most people close their flocks to birds going in or out of the flock once their is a respiratory disease. MG can be common in some backyard flocks. The disease can be passed to offspring in hatching eggs.

I have cleaned the eye with saline solution and applied neosporin. I did not notice any abnormal odor. Would the odor be easily distinct?

I'm not planning on getting any more birds anyways so I am okay with closing the flock. I have 15 other hens, would those already be carriers at this point or would culling this one with symptoms prevent the others from getting it? Not an easy thing for me to do but I would consider culling one hen if it meant the others wouldn't get it.

 

[Eggcessive]

I have not seen coryza before but others say that it causes a rotten odor from the beak from secretions. It is hard to know if culling the one hen would prevent your others from getting it or becoming carriers. You will get all kinds of opinions here about that. Your hen was exposed to the disease (if she has MG or a respiratory disease,) and the others may have been exposed at the same time. It can be brought in by a new flock member, on your shoes or clothes from a feed store or a farm, or by wild birds. She may or may not have another outbreak, but sometimes symptoms can recur during periods of stress, such as a molt or severe cold weather. You could treat her, and she might be okay. Laying can be reduced in hens who have been sick. One thing that could be done if you do cull your chicken, is that you could get a necropsy and testing by your state vet to identify a disease. Think about it, and read all you can, then make a decision.