Favus???? Something else???? Fungal????

[Blingchix6]

I got this hen in April after her original owner posted on FB that she had a sick chicken and she didn’t know what to do. I went and picked her up and I immediately thought “this s funga!!! I can fix this!!” Her skin was thick and scaly, she had scabby feather patches on her back. I slathered her with Clotrimazole and Miconazole ointment and softened up the scabbed areas and removed the feathers. I also took a huge plug of wax out of her left ear. I continued to treat her with the anti fungal ointment and gave her a weekly bath in Micoseb shampoo. She lost more of her feathers. During this whole time, she ate, drank and pooped normally. I kept her isolated from my flock because I was concerned she was contagious, and also the other chickens would peck at her if given the chance. She is the sweetest chicken ever; she looks for me and loves spending time on the couch with me. I am concerned that I am not treating her properl due to a misdiagnosis. The photos of Favus that I have seen are never as severe as this chicken. Her skin is softer now and there are feathers growing. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

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[Blingchix6]

Oops forgot to add photos.

 

[Blingchix6]

#1 and #3 are the feathers and ear wax. The second photo is how she looked when I got her the last photo is how she looks now. #5 shows how her ear has gotten less swollen

 

[lotuscsp]

Oh my goodness that poor baby!!! I don't have any info or advice to offer, just came across this while looking into favus threads is she better now???

 

[dawg53]

You've done an excellent job with her recovery. I suspect she has depluming mites. Ivermectin Pour On should take care of them.

 

[Blingchix6]

You've done an excellent job with her recovery. I suspect she has depluming mites. Ivermectin Pour On should take care of them.

I have never heard of depluming mites. Her feathers have mostly grown back except for her head and neck. Her tail feathers broke off and she has not grown any new ones, so she's got a bunch of stubby tail feathers. I may try the Ivermectin....nothing else has worked. Thanks for the heads up!

 

[Blingchix6]

Well, finally took her to see the Chicken Vet. He could not say for sure what was wrong. He took skin scrapings, looked at them and said there were no depluming mites (nor any other types of mites)he took photos of her to share with his colleague, who is the Chairman of the Veterinary Department for the State of Ohio. He treated her with Revolution on her neck, so if he missed some tiny scattered mites, this will get them. H said if her feathering issue doesn't start to improve he wants to take some punch biopsies. We BOTH want to know what it is!!!!!!She is eating and happy and acting like a chicken (but she doesn't lay eggs;I think she's got too many other things going on). Waiting on a response!!!!

 

[dawg53]

Thank you for the follow up information. Please keep us informed.

 

[Blingchix6]

Took her back to the Chicken Vet today. She has grown some new feathers over the past 2 weeks and her skin is not as dry and crusty. She also doesn’t smell like Fritos anymore…at least not as much as before. She got another dose of Revolution and an injection of anti inflammatory medication. Dr still cannot say for sure but based on the symptoms and the feedback he received from other Chicken vets, he’s calling it a mite infestation that began as a fungal skin issue and became chronic because of her suppressed immune system. Moon is happy and healthy. Loves to ride in the car and she was a VERY good chicken at the Vet today. Hopefully she will continue to make progress.

 

[Blingchix6]

The Vet also said that sometimes mites can be present but not detected under microscopic exam. He said he tried the Revolution to see what (if any) results he had from the application. As it turns out, the Revolution was effective at treating whatever it was that was causing her dry crusty skin and lack of feathers.