Eye infection?

[Azlyna]

One of my 7 month old chickens started keeping her eye closed. I've been flushing the eye with salt water. She's having trouble eating from the regular feeder (depth perception problems) so I've been feeding her lentils and oats because she'll actually eat that. I'm making sure she's eating and drinking. She's much more sleepy than usual and stopped laying a few days ago but her posture is getting better. Anything else I can do for her or am I just keeping her comfortable before she dies?

 

[Lillith37]

The eye looks puffy but it’s not crusty or oozing anything. Is her other eye the same or okay? What about the rest of your flock? Have you added any new birds recently?

I think terramycin is an antibiotic you can get in America to treat eye infections.

Can you check inside her beak for any wounds or lesions? Is her breathing okay, no gurgles or wheezing?

Is her comb usually that floppy?

What are her poops like and is her crop empty in the morning?

How frequently does she usually lay eggs?

 

[Azlyna]

The other eye looks totally normal. The other two chickens seem unaffected and aren't picking on her. They were raised together s since we got them.

I don't know about terramycin but I can call the feed store in the morning and ask.

No wounds in the mouth. She had gross sneezing the first two days but she sounds normal now

Her comb is u as usually floppy but I'm not sure it's usually THAT floppy.

That's her before the eye thing.

The poop is mostly normal chicken poop but she has an occasional green but not watery poop. Her crop is empty in the morning.

She usually lays 6 of 7 days but hasn't laid in the last 5 days.

 

[Lillith37]

Sounds like she’s had a respiratory issue with the sneezing and pufffy eye.

From what I understand there are many bacteria/viruses that can cause respiratory illness in chickens and a lot of chickens can be carriers without symptoms, but in times of stress or lowered immunity they can show symptoms.

Maybe she had an allergic reaction to something or got something caught in her throat or nose.

Has there been any particular change recently? Predator attack, weather spike, different food, etc?

How is the ventilation in your coop? Proper ventilation and no draughtiness is important for chickens respiratory health.

The extra floppy comb could be from dehydration. Green poop can be from lots of things — eating lots of grass/greens, malnutrition, infection or heavy metal toxicity.

Hopefully she has just stopped laying because she’s been unwell or because of the season. You can feel around her abdomen (between keel bone and vent) for any changes. Feel your other birds for comparison. Layering birds should be soft and squishy without too much distension.

 

[Azlyna]

We had some awful swamp fire fog when she was sneezing. I couldn't go outside without coughing. Maybe that brought on the sneezing?

That triangle thing in the background is their coop. It's a triangular prism of hardware cloth with white roof sheets to keep the rain off.

Any tricks to keep her hydrated. The weather's been flip flopping from cool (70/50s) to hot (90/70s) so I could see dehydration for the comb.

I'll check her belly in the morning.

 

[Lillith37]

I’m sure the fire fog aggravated their lungs if it made you cough. It may have aggravated her eye as well, a bit of ash particle or something may have gotten in there. Flushing the eye with saline is a good approach.

It’s a little hard to see the coop in its entirety but it looks like it may be a little draughty. Ideally ventilation is designed so air flows above the chickens’ heads when they are roosting, and draughts are prevented from below. That way they stay warm inside their little feathery puffer jackets and the winds don’t get in between their feathers and cause a chill. It’s much more important in cold weather.

It’s hard to see what nesting boxes you’ve got in the coop too but it looks like you’ve got lots of shrubs and things in your garden so it may also be possible that she’s laying eggs elsewhere.

For hydration make sure their water stays cool in warmer weather (chickens won’t drink warm water). You can offer high water treats like watermelon and cucumber. Electrolytes in their water when the heat spikes can also help.

 

[Azlyna]

Her belly feels squishy to me.

I've gooped her eye. Her comb's reddening back up and standing taller today with some cucumbers and watermelon to munch on.

Hopefully the swap to 60s from the 90s earlier this week won't bother her too much.

 

[Lillith37]

Sounds like she’s doing well

 

[Azlyna]

My hen got better. I flushed and gooped her eye with Neosporin for two weeks. She fully recovered but took a month to restart laying. Figured I'd update in case anyone had this same problem later.