EE pullet, swollen face, tiny slits for eyes ??? pics

[snowydiamonds]

Went to feed the birds last night and found my pullet so swollen in the face she can hardly see, what would cause this and what should I do for her? So far no one else in the coop/pen have any signs of trouble. I just got a new order of pellets, crumbles and duck/goose feed in, none of the others are having trouble.

I do have many neighbors and their children come by every day so someone may have fed the birds something, such as last night my nephew who is 3 yrs old and lives two houses down was outside feeding a bag of cereal to the birds (I don't think his mother knew, either). I know he did not feed this particular pen of birds because this coop is nearest our door and people tend to forget that coop since the other coops/pens/birds are on the opposite side of the house and property.

I'll download a pic, will take one right now...poor girl!

 

[The Wolf Queen]

BUMP

 

[AngelzFyre]

Could she have been bitten by a snake or stung?
If none of the others are affected, it doesn't seem like it's the new feed.
Cereal won't hurt them, we give ours shredded wheat cereal and cheerios when we've got some leftovers and they love it.

Make sure she can eat and drink and see if any puncture wounds show up draining. I'd keep it clean with a dilute betadine solution and if the wounds get infected she'll definitely need some antibiotics and antibiotic topical to put on.


You may want to separate her and hand feed some scrambled egg and you can also try some plain yogurt with active cultures mixed in with cooked oatmeal to encourage her to eat and give her some extra protein for healing.

Some Vet RX Poultry Remedy would be good to put on her head and around eyes.
It's got directions on the label about how to apply and also you can add some to water and give directly.

Hope this helps.

 

[rebbetzin]

Maybe a bee sting, if she is allergic to them. I had an Afgan Hound that was allergic to bee stings. Her face looked like a basket ball!!

Benedryl might help... but I have no idea on the correct dosage for a chicken.

 

[highcountrychickens]

Poor Baby!

Looks like an allergic reaction - maybe a bee maybe a spider? ... ask your Vet if you can give her a little antihistamine... Benadryl or something similar... not sure if it's okay for poultry. Would be no question with a dog.

Keep us posted.

 

[CMV]

A while ago there was a posting regarding Benadryl use in chickens. It is OK to use and works. I will try to find the dosage. Be right back.
Here's the thread-https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=185520&p=1

 

[CMV]

I just cut and pasted this from that thread-

And as far as the benadryl goes... yep, I guess a new treatment. She was so close to suffocating I had to do something, I couldn't watch her die because she couldn't breathe without at least trying something. I gave her 2.5mg (one ml) children's liquid. Her breathing got better within 15 minutes and then she passed out - from the venom, exhaustion/shock or the benadryl? - about 45 minutes later.

I'm not sure on her weight, under 2kg. The recommended dose is 5mg/kg and I guess I gave her about half that.

I hope it helps. Good luck.

 

[caralouise1974]

Actually, with swollen sinuses like this, I would be more tempted to think it was a respiratory disease such as mycoplasma.

She does seem to have a bloody spot on her comb though - when did that appear and do you think it is related to the swollen face in some way? (I'd imagine she may have been picked on by the others and had a little peck on the comb since she's been weak and poorly actually.)

Is she sniffling, got foam in the corner of the eyes, discharge from nostrils, rattly breathing, an unpleasant smell from her beak? Any or all of these would suggest respiratory infection.

My BO got mycoplasma about three months ago, and her face swelled up like this as the first symptom there was something wrong... then she got the foam in her eyes, then she started to sneeze and finally had snot running from her nostrils which she wiped onto the base of her neck, leaving the classic telltale 'mycoplasma tidemark' on her feathers. She had five days of soluble Tylan antibiotics and by day 6 was fully recovered.

Just my take on it for you.

 

[Chickenaddict]

It appears that she has had some sort of trauma to her head/comb area which would probably cause her eyes to swell. Try putting a cold pack on her head and see if that brings the swelling down. I have a hen who was attacked by the flock, they ripped her comb off. Her eyes swelled just like that. I kept the area clean and isolated her for about a week and she healed up just fine. That poor girl of yours I sure hope she gets better soon

 

[speckledhen]

Does she smell bad? Could be Coryza. Could be wet pox, which sometimes presents that way. Hard to say, really.