Help! Foam coming from eye

Clementine2022

Songster
Nov 5, 2022
91
194
116
Mt Plymouth, FL
This is Cletus. (We thought she was a Cockrell at first) anyway, she has some dry fowl pox because of mosquitoes, but this white substance coming from her eye has me really worried. I just spotted it when I let the flock out to run this evening. It's like foam. What do I need to do? There are no vets in my area who will see Chickens. She's also molting.
 

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It looks like MG. It's spreadable, so I suggest separating your bird, though the others are probably already exposed. Unfortunately, you can't get rid of MG, and your bird will be a carrier for life. In the end, it'll probably be best to cull this bird and any birds that have it, though as long as you're not adding any new birds to your farm or breeding, it's probably fine to let it live until you're done with it. I've had a flock with MG before, and except for the foaming in their eyes, they were fine until their retirement.
 
This is Cletus. (We thought she was a Cockrell at first) anyway, she has some dry fowl pox because of mosquitoes, but this white substance coming from her eye has me really worried. I just spotted it when I let the flock out to run this evening. It's like foam. What do I need to do? There are no vets in my area who will see Chickens. She's also molting.
I suspect Cletus has an eye infection. Most likely she probably scratched a fowl pox lesion or scab near or very close to the eye causing foaming. I do not suspect Mycoplasma Gallisepticum (MG) at this time unless there are other respiratory disease symptoms that you didnt mention.
Flush her eye with saline solution once, then apply Terramycin eye ointment or Neosporin in the eye twice a day for 5-7 days and hopefully you'll see improvement. If not, an antibiotic might be needed.

Has there been any wheezing, sneezing, head shaking, coughing, nasal discharge? If so, those are some of the symptoms of MG.
 
I suspect Cletus has an eye infection. Most likely she probably scratched a fowl pox lesion or scab near or very close to the eye causing foaming. I do not suspect Mycoplasma Gallisepticum (MG) at this time unless there are other respiratory disease symptoms that you didnt mention.
Flush her eye with saline solution once, then apply Terramycin eye ointment or Neosporin in the eye twice a day for 5-7 days and hopefully you'll see improvement. If not, an antibiotic might be needed.

Has there been any wheezing, sneezing, head shaking, coughing, nasal discharge? If so, those are some of the symptoms of MG.
She was grooming and kind of snorted. It sounded like a duck. I just thought it was because she was all in her feathers. I will see if i can get this medicine locally.
 
It looks like MG. It's spreadable, so I suggest separating your bird, though the others are probably already exposed. Unfortunately, you can't get rid of MG, and your bird will be a carrier for life. In the end, it'll probably be best to cull this bird and any birds that have it, though as long as you're not adding any new birds to your farm or breeding, it's probably fine to let it live until you're done with it. I've had a flock with MG before, and except for the foaming in their eyes, they were fine until their retirement.
Thank you Lacy. I'm praying it's something treatable.
 
She was grooming and kind of snorted. It sounded like a duck. I just thought it was because she was all in her feathers. I will see if i can get this medicine locally.
Since you're in Florida like me, it's hot. Sometimes chickens snort or honk due to the heat.
 
I agree with @dawg53 that it's most likely secondary infection from the pox. Always go for the most obvious and simple explanation first as that's often the most easily treated. (Occam's Razor).

Eye infections are very uncomfortable for the chicken, but saline wash followed by antibiotic eye ointment quickly fixes it.
 

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