Chicken with vision problems

brayne

Hatching
Dec 30, 2017
5
0
9
Hi there, this is a medical issue, but not an emergency, so I apologize if this is posted in the wrong area.

It would appear that one of my pullets has a problem with her vision.

I am in Sydney, Australia, and I have owned backyard chickens for a few years. Back in July, I added three pullets to my flock. They are currently around 6 months old.

I started noticing that one of them seemed to have a bit of trouble finding its way out of the coop, as she was having trouble distinguishing the exit from the chicken wire. Since then I have noticed that she's definitely vision impaired. She may have always been this way, but I only noticed it a few weeks after buying them.

Her pupils are kind of white and milky (see attached image). She seems to be able to find the feeder and the water bowl, but sometimes when she bends over to feed, she misses the feeder entirely. She's a very robust bird, so I don't believe she's malnourished, but she doesn't even seem to attempt feeding from the ground when I throw out some seed. She spends a large portion of her day just sitting down in a corner with her eyes closed. None of the other pullets (or my other adult hens) have this issue.

She's a Sussex, around 6 months old, and she's a big bird. She doesn't seem to be thin or malnourished at all.

The chickens are kept in the coop at night, and free range all day.

The coops are kept clean and I use wood shavings as bedding.

They are fed a high quality feed, as well as some occasional corn/cucumber/tomato (whatever is left over).

Is this a common issue? Is it treatable? Is it likely to get worse?

I would appreciate any information anyone might have on this condition.

Thanks in advance.
Bruce


IMG_1768 (1).jpg
 
her vision might get better or it might get worse,the best thing is to provide her with an enviroment the doesn't change in a big way so that she can learn the layout,or or if you want you could bring her into your house.my rooster,clover,he became blind in one eye and half blind in the other.we provided him a stable enviroment and he eventully learned the lay out.(the only reason he didn't move in is because of my dad).
 
How does the other eye look? Her eye looks cloudy which can be from an infection, an injury, or a cataract. Keep an eye on it for any color change or irregular pupil shape. Ammonia fumes from poop or poor air circulation, vitamin A or E deficiency, a virus called avian encephalomyelitis which affects chicks under 3 weeks of age, and Mareks disease are additional causes of blindness in chickens. Mareks typically causes the colored iris to turn grey, and may cause the pupil to be irregular or pinpoint. Infections and peck injuries are very common in flocks. Usually with one blind eye, they may get around okay in a flock, but difficult for both eyes. A cataract or cloudiness may make it hard to see, but she may have some sight like looking through waxed paper.
 
How does the other eye look?
Both eyes are exactly the same. I bought this one (plus another two) aged about two - three months. After reviewing the photos of them soon after they arrived, I suspect she's been like this as long as we've had her. The other two pullets are fine.

She does appear to get by okay. She knows where to find the feeder and water, but it's a little sad watching her when she misses and pecks into open space.
 
Hopefully, she will get used to the coop and where things are kept to find food and water in familiar surroundsing. She may always need a bit of help, but she can live a good life.
 

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