Foamy Oozing Eye discharge from my EE pullet

[TK Poultry]

she has a clear to white foamy eye discharge that is all over her muff but idk if something got in her eye or something else is going on and needs to be resolved!!! do you want pics??? could this be contageous??

 

[ivan3]

I'd probably isolate her from the others, just as a precaution. Yes, if there are NO other signs/symptoms it is possible this could be result of injury/insect or, (unlikely) something jammed up the nare on the affected side of face.

If you have nothing else handy rinse with sterile saline (eyedrops will do in pinch) and examine the area closely.

Yes, photos are always most helpful (one of the mavens might be able to ID problem with a glance).

One of our turks was injured while sparring with another tom and had white, foamy discharge from one eye for two months (sinus involvement? Got worse when he'd puff up and display). We treated with plain saline eyedrops (tried some terramycin ointment but it wasn't an infection) it resolved on its own.

Please post up a shot, and good luck!

 

[threehorses]

I agree with Ivan on isolating her. I would wash your hands really well and then look at all your other birds' conjunctiva (the little tear duct area and the third-eyelid that usually hides there). If you see the conjunctiva coming out, not tucked away out of sight, then you likely have something that is going around.

First, any time you have any ocular or suspected respiratory problem, always supplement with vitamin A. Sometimes these problems are caused by a slight vitamin A deficiency. Vitamin A is an oil vitamin and easily degrades in light and heat and dry. Unfortunately, those are all the conditions in which we sometimes store and provide the feed. So vitamin A is usually the first to go. Because it's an oil vitamin, it's best provided in moderation in association with food (not in the water). So your best bet would be to buy a small bottle of polyvisol baby vitamins (by Enfamil) and give 3 drops in the beak daily. Buy the non-iron formula. I found mine in the vitamin section of walmart. It also contains other vitamins (the oil vitamins, and some B) for over all balance and health. Do this for a week to enhance ocular healing, then taper off the following week if she improves.

Also any time you have an issue with the eyes or sinuses, you should always give PRObiotics - a non-medicinal product that contains living bacteria of the same sort that colonize the chicken's digestive tract. Those bacteria are essential to keeping your birds health. Unfortunately for the bacteria, the sinuses and eye drain into the digestive tract through an opening in the roof of the beak. When the "goop" drains into the digestive system, it upsets the balance of good bacteria, and the pH where the bacteria live. doing that sometimes kills off good bacteria. So we use probiotics to replace them.

It sounds scientific, but it's rather simple. Just feed plain yogurt, 1 teaspoon per small hen. It contains the living bacteria. The only exception is if you choose to medicate and you use something with -mycin or -cycline in it (read the active ingredient of your drug). Then you still must use a probiotic to replace the good bacteria that are unfortunately killed with the bad, but it can't be something with a lot of milk in it. So then use acidophilis capsules/tablets from the store (vitamin section), or Probios paste or powder from the feed store.

All three options are best mixed with a little water, only a bit, and that mixed into crumbles (let sit 10 minutes) as a first meal of the day.

In the mean time, consider buying a good antibiotic in case this ends up being a bacterial illness. I personally don't recommend Duramycin alone, nor other tetracyclines or most 'mycins. I would be more apt to recommend Tylan50 injectable (which you can also use as a sinus flush for more healing power, injections are only 3 days), or LS50 for the water (if you treat a whole flock). If you're going to fight it, you want to fight it with a very effective medicine once and then have it done, not the weaker meds and end up having to treat with Tylan in the end.

Just my opinion.

In the mean time, do clean out the eye with sterile saline solution. If you can dress with Terramycin ophthalmic ointment (or Chloramphenicol is another good one), then do that 10 minutes after cleansing the eye.

You could also try using VetRx as it's very effective at reducing inflammation. If the bird has an eye-worm (still possible) then this can help it. I dilute the VetRx with as many drops of very hot water, and stir. Then use q-tips and swab each nostril, swab the opening in the roof of the beak (remember - where everything drains - fumes also go UP and treat from the inside), and then put a drop in that effected eye if you're not using antibiotic ointment. For the other, swab the tear duct. I swab the tear ducts thereafter after the first drop in the eye. This helped me even this year when I had a rooster who started to have conjunctivitis (swollen tear duct) and a couple of sneezes. I used the rinse, vetrx once, then ointment daily.

OK, so a summary:


Until other symptoms appear (or if no others show symptoms):
Day one only:
Possibly one drop of dilute VetRx in effected eye after cleansing with saline.

Week one:
Isolate the hen
Polyvisol vitamins 3 drops in beak daily
Yogurt in a mash daily
Rinse eye daily with sterile saline rinse
Treat with ointment or swab underneath with VetRx daily
Watch for more symptoms

Week two
Isolate the hen
Polyvisol vitamins 3 drops in beak every other day
Yogurt every other day in a mash
Rinse eye daily with sterile saline rinse
Treat with ointment or swab underneath w/VetRx daily
Watch for more symptoms

If symptoms occur:
Treat with a *good* antibiotic like Tylan50 injectable, nasal flush with same, or treat water with LS50.

 

[TK Poultry]

symptoms have stoped thanks

 

[threehorses]

Quote:
Well good! Apparently she overcame whatever she was fighting. Phew!