HELP! Listless Chickens With Closed Eyes

[Buckguy20]

I have tried to go back and read as much as I could find about my problem, but I am still not sure what to do.
I have about 40 or so, three to five month old juvie chickens and I am starting to see some with closed eyes and several acting listless.
On close examination, the eyes don't seem to have anything wrong, the chickens affected just have one eye closed. Some aren't eating as well as some of the others.
I have found three that have a little discharge from their nostrils. I have treated those with VetRX,
What can I give these, preferably in their water, to head this off? I haven't lost any yet and I hope I can stop this before it spreads.
Any and all suggestions and help are greatly appreciated.
Buckguy

 

[pwand]

Hi, I'm treating my hen for a cold. I am giving her OXY Tetra-A that I bought from the feed store. Its an antibiotic. It can be put in food or in water. I hope this is helpfully, good luck. Bring the ones that are not feeling good in a warm area to keep them warm while they are going through this. Put some vitamins in their water as well.

 

[mypicklebird]

It is probably bacterial or viral, other than that ? The symptoms are vague. Giving them a systemic antibiotic will help if it is bacterial, and if the bacteria is susceptible. Won't do anything for a virus, but may keep away opportunistic secondary bacterial infections. Mycoplasma & coryza are bacterial infections that can cause upper respiratory problems, ILT and IB are viral infections that can cause similar symptoms.

What is your goal for these 40 chickens? Meat for sale? Eggs for sale? That matters if you plan to give them any drug.

I personally would not medicate my chickens unless I KNOW what I am dealing with. Consider having one of the sicker ones tested, then you can plan and treat accordingly instead of guessing.

In the meantime, separate all sick ones from the healthy ones.

 

[Guinea Goonie]

I have ONE polish hen that is sittng with her eyes closed and very listless. I seem to lose a lot of polish. When I bring her mop back on her head she has the third eyelid closed. After some proding she seems to wake up and goes to the waterer and feeder. The next day she is doing the same thing. She finds a comfy place and sits there all day. I have checked her eyes, throat and mouth, her vent and have seen her poop, all normal. If I figure this out before I cull her I will let you know. The last polish that did this just wasted away and got some bizzare complications. When we culled the last one it was like she was almost dead. This one I know is fairly young, I think. I still have a white crested black polish roo, a nice silver hen and roo, a nice golden roo and the other hen and finally a really nice exotic polish roo. I just bought 8 buff polish that are very young. I have lost the white crested polish hen, a nice gray white head, a nice golden hen (other than the sick one), a nice silver roo and my favorite one the bantam white crested hen. All this in about 4 months time. These birds just do not seem to be very hardy. I just love them and i try so very hard to keep them. Between the silkies and the polish I feel like I have given homes to red headed step kids. The silkies are so gentle and innocent and I have only lost one of these; a little white hen. I have to say that I lost one silver to a predator and the rest to disease or age. The rest of the kids are pretty happy and healthy. I lost two leghorn hens and one exotic game bird (non red jungle fowl) to hawks. I lost these in a two week period. I promptly went out and got two white guinea fowl and 4 lavenders. I have 4 more purples ready to come out from the nursery. SInce this; the hawk problem has been taken care of. Now the crows hang around the barn and the guineas alert to ANY hawk above them.

 

[dlhunicorn]

Try basic support measures...
Separate to a warm temp stable draft free area with all nice and clean and not dusty (which dries out their muscous membranes which they need for their immune system )
Put electroytes in the water
Administer three drops of POLYVISOL Enfamil (a liquid childrens vitamin formulation) into beak once a day for a week then taper off the next.

 

[Buckguy20]

Thanks everyone for the help!

 

[mastiffsinky]

I have something like this here. My Cuckoo Polish Roo was perfectly fine yesterday (or so he appeared). This morning he was roosting on the water bowl with his tail drooping in the water and he is just not very lively. I brought him in, and when I lifted his crest, both of his eyes are closed and one nostril is crusted shut.

How can I clean this nostril to help him breathe more, and what do I need to give him to make sure he is ok. I have 1 Ameracuna that seems to have a runny nose so to speak, but our weather has been hot then cold, no in betweens just extremes.

Katie

 

[pwand]

You could use some warm soapy water and a que-tip and hold it to his nostril to soften it up.

 

[Buckguy20]

The VetRX has been helping with the nostril part but they still have
closed eyes and are not very lively.

 

[pwand]

Here is a link that talks about the use of Vetrx, it has some good information about different disorders. http://www.jefferslivestock.com/ssc/assets/label_info/16803.htm

It might take time for this to start working. Give them vitamins as well. They may need antibiotics, I don't know if Vetrx is an antibiotic. Try to entice them to eat something really tasty. Some of the members give there chickens scrambled eggs. This will help with there energy levels.