Healthy chicken gone blind

[jaywin]

Any chance you're able to take her away from the flock on her own and feed her twice a day? Of course she'll need to drink too and she should be hydrated before she eats. That way you can make sure she's eating at least twice a day and hopefully in between from their flock feeders. This will give you both more time to figure out if things are going to work for her and you.

Hi
I did that for two weeks and she will eat a bit but not enough really, same with fluids. I also gave her antibiotics in water so she got some fluids and the nitro drops. She’s them had chloramphenicol eye drops - on going. It’s as if she is depressed because she can’t see which I know is daft but she must be scared poor thing.

 

[TJAnonymous]

Did you ever get a picture of the eye going blind?

I managed to catch my girl in the nesting box this morning. Here's a picture of her eye. I couldn't get her to turn her head without freaking her out so I can't show a comparison but Black Australorp eyes don't look like this. They are typically so dark black/brown that you can't distinguish the pupil from the iris. When I saw it a few days ago, I did wave my hand near her face on that side and she responded so I don't think she is blind (yet?). Maybe it's just some disease that affects the iris pigment?

 

[jaywin]

Did you ever get a picture of the eye going blind?

I managed to catch my girl in the nesting box this morning. Here's a picture of her eye. I couldn't get her to turn her head without freaking her out so I can't show a comparison but Black Australorp eyes don't look like this. They are typically so dark black/brown that you can't distinguish the pupil from the iris. When I saw it a few days ago, I did wave my hand near her face on that side and she responded so I don't think she is blind (yet?). Maybe it's just some disease that affects the iris pigment?

View attachment 2952407

Hi
Yes I have Australorps and they have beautiful almost black eyes so this is definitely not right. My CLB didn’t have any noticeable changes to the look of her eyes. Sadly she didn’t make it. Last few days she couldn’t even stand and I felt I had procrastinated long enough clinging to every little glimmer of positivity.

 

[TJAnonymous]

Hi
Yes I have Australorps and they have beautiful almost black eyes so this is definitely not right. My CLB didn’t have any noticeable changes to the look of her eyes. Sadly she didn’t make it. Last few days she couldn’t even stand and I felt I had procrastinated long enough clinging to every little glimmer of positivity.

I'm so sorry that you lost her....

 

[Eggcessive]

@TJAnonymous the picture of the eye looks possibly like photos of ocular Mareks disease.

@jaywin sorry for your loss.

 

[jaywin]

@TJAnonymous the picture of the eye looks possibly like photos of ocular Mareks disease.

@jaywin sorry for your loss.

Thank you both. It is sad to lose a young hen x

 

[TJAnonymous]

@TJAnonymous the picture of the eye looks possibly like photos of ocular Mareks disease.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'm not sure what to think. This hen is about 17 months old. She was a McMurray Hatchery order and vaccinated prior to arrival. I know that isn't foolproof but if she caught Mareks at a younger age, wouldn't it have become evident before now? She is eating and drinking just fine. No paralysis or lethargy that I've seen. For all intents and purposes, she seems normal except for a discolored and misshapen eye that seems to have shown up in the past week to 10 days.

I might have to forward this one to the University vet and get his opinion....

 

[HeatherKellyB]

Thanks for the suggestion. I'm not sure what to think. This hen is about 17 months old. She was a McMurray Hatchery order and vaccinated prior to arrival. I know that isn't foolproof but if she caught Mareks at a younger age, wouldn't it have become evident before now? She is eating and drinking just fine. No paralysis or lethargy that I've seen. For all intents and purposes, she seems normal except for a discolored and misshapen eye that seems to have shown up in the past week to 10 days.

I might have to forward this one to the University vet and get his opinion....

That's crazy because Freddie, my CLB hen is also 17 months old. With trying things here and there, it seems like dim light is the biggest problem for Freddie. She seems to see fairly well in the light. That doesn't explain her very odd behavior though. I feel like something is going on but for now, she's eating and drinking just fine and is the second head hen from the top in her flock. Any of my other hens do not act like her whenever she's picked up. It's always to the same side so I feel like it's her vision. If I didn't notice her eyes, I probably wouldn't have given much thought to it. I do worry since her eggs came from the far other side of the country (I'm in NC and purchased CLB hatching eggs not realizing they were coming from CA ~my mistake). I will try to get pictures of Freddie's eyes but it's like her eyes glow in the light and during the day, it's like there's a blood red ring along the outside of her iris. It's not a solid ring. It actually looks somewhat natural but seriously demonic. (She acts like satans spawn sometimes with her flock "underlings").

@jaywin i am so sorry for your loss. It really stinks to lose young hens, especially when you try everything you can to nurse them back to health. Please know that we're thinking about you. Your hen was lucky to have such a caring keeper. I wish you the best with the rest of your flock. I did find that my CLB does not have a vaulted skull. Did you ever notice if your hen did or not? They shouldn't but some breeders do things without much thought put into it.

 

[TheOddOneOut]

Did you ever get a picture of the eye going blind?

I managed to catch my girl in the nesting box this morning. Here's a picture of her eye. I couldn't get her to turn her head without freaking her out so I can't show a comparison but Black Australorp eyes don't look like this. They are typically so dark black/brown that you can't distinguish the pupil from the iris. When I saw it a few days ago, I did wave my hand near her face on that side and she responded so I don't think she is blind (yet?). Maybe it's just some disease that affects the iris pigment?

View attachment 2952407

That is likely Ocular Mareks.

 

[TJAnonymous]

That is likely Ocular Mareks.

But can ocular Mareks show up spontaneously in a 17 month old hen that was vaccinated and shows no other signs of Mareks (paralysis, lethargy, etc....)? From my understanding, that would be rare because it is primarily a virus that affects young chicks up to 20 weeks of age.