Hen with sticky saliva and swelling around the eye, lethargic and not eating

[finnleywren]

My hen Banjo has been sick for a few weeks. I've posted about her previously when she first became ill. She was lethargic, underweight, isolating. I took her in and she has been with Keri, another chicken ill with the same symptoms who is now doing great. I've kept Keri with her for company. After 5 days of enrofloxacin Banjo perked up and was eating, drinking and gaining weight. A few days later she became ill again. Not eating (still drinking), lethargic etc. Her new symptoms are sticky saliva (which seems to be part of her not eating. it seems difficult for her.) and the red area surrounding her eye is very swollen. I took her to the vet who suggested another round of antibiotics but wanted me to use Clavamox. She told me it is also a broad spectrum antibiotic and just as good as the enrofloxacin. (Not sure this is right?). She did a fecal float and gave her some ivermectin at my request. The float results will come in next week. I've never treated them for worms and I'm thinking it could be Gape Worm? Her poop looks normal. She is negative for Marek's. I've started feeding her baby food through a syringe and putting gatorade in her water. She is 4 lbs. Thanks so much for the help I get here. I sometimes feel it is more beneficial than taking them to the vet.

UPDATE: I forgot to mention she is pecking around treats or making contact and not picking them up. How can I test her eyesight?
No nasal or eye discharge. Crop empty. No odor. No open mouth breathing or gasping. Occasional but rare cough/sneeze?

UPDATE 2: I just returned home and the tips of her comb are blue.

 

[Debbie292d]

Hi!

Sorry about your hen being ill.

Comb turning blue is a sign of a respiratory problem. The Clavamox hopefully is taking care of that.

Gapeworm is very rare. You said she had no open mouth, no gasping, no other symptoms other than swollen/red eyes. It might be part of her respiratory infection, if she has one, or a sinus infection. Both could also be something the Clavamox will help. I'm not sure what the Ivermectin was for, but I wouldn't give her a wormer right now while she's on these.

Be sure to finish the Clavamox prescription, then give her probiotics for a couple of weeks. That can be powdered that's put in water, or small amts of sugar free yogurt, or fermented feed/grains if you happen to be doing that.

As for finding out if she's blind, maybe wait until she's off these drugs your vet has her on before evaluating further for if she's got vision problems.

Hopefully, what the vet put her on will show improvements in her very soon! Keep us updated on her progress.

 

[finnleywren]

Hi!

Sorry about your hen being ill.

Comb turning blue is a sign of a respiratory problem. The Clavamox hopefully is taking care of that.

Gapeworm is very rare. You said she had no open mouth, no gasping, no other symptoms other than swollen/red eyes. It might be part of her respiratory infection, if she has one, or a sinus infection. Both could also be something the Clavamox will help. I'm not sure what the Ivermectin was for, but I wouldn't give her a wormer right now while she's on these.

Be sure to finish the Clavamox prescription, then give her probiotics for a couple of weeks. That can be powdered that's put in water, or small amts of sugar free yogurt, or fermented feed/grains if you happen to be doing that.

As for finding out if she's blind, maybe wait until she's off these drugs your vet has her on before evaluating further for if she's got vision problems.

Hopefully, what the vet put her on will show improvements in her very soon! Keep us updated on her progress.

Thank you for the info. With her swollen eye along with other symptoms I'm now wondering if it might be Mycoplasma, in which case the Clavamox wouldn't work. She's been on the Clavamox two days and it's a five day treatment so it does make sense to follow through. Do you know anything about using these different antibiotics so close together? She just did a round of Enrofloxacin two weeks ago. My thinking is if the Clavamox doesn't work I could try Tylan? On the other hand loading her up like this doesn't seem great. Thank you again.

 

[Debbie292d]

View attachment 4091929

Thank you for the info. With her swollen eye along with other symptoms I'm now wondering if it might be Mycoplasma, in which case the Clavamox wouldn't work. She's been on the Clavamox two days and it's a five day treatment so it does make sense to follow through. Do you know anything about using these different antibiotics so close together? She just did a round of Enrofloxacin two weeks ago. My thinking is if the Clavamox doesn't work I could try Tylan? On the other hand loading her up like this doesn't seem great. Thank you again.

I do not, but let me tag @Eggcessive who may know. She can also help you diagnose further.

 

[finnleywren]

I do not, but let me tag @Eggcessive who may know. She can also help you diagnose further.

Thank you Debbie. This is the third posts for these hens and she has been a big help.

 

[Eggcessive]

How much enrofloxacin were you using, how many times a day, and for how long? Dosgae is usually 10 mg per kilogram (each 2.2 pounds) given orally every 12 hours for 5 days. Enrolfloxacin would be very food at treating MG, even better than Tylosin, if the dosage was right. There is at home testing available through vetdna.com and Zoologix.com for respiratory panel. If you lose a birds, the best testing would be with a necropsy through your state vet lab where they look at the body, lungs, and air sacs, and take cultures.

 

[finnleywren]

How much enrofloxacin were you using, how many times a day, and for how long? Dosgae is usually 10 mg per kilogram (each 2.2 pounds) given orally every 12 hours for 5 days. Enrolfloxacin would be very food at treating MG, even better than Tylosin, if the dosage was right. There is at home testing available through vetdna.com and Zoologix.com for respiratory panel. If you lose a birds, the best testing would be with a necropsy through your state vet lab where they look at the body, lungs, and air sacs, and take cultures.

Hi. the dosage for enrofloxacin was 2.6 ml orally twice a day for 3-5 days. I did 5 days. I got the dosage from @casportpony. I'm at a loss. There is no discharge from the eyes or nares. No odor. She does have watery stool, probably because she is not eating and drinking a lot. I'm halfway through the Clavamox and have enrofloxacin on hand. I've read several articles that say it's ok to combine antibiotics so I'm thinking of starting her on the enro today. What do you think? I'm also planning on sending specimens to RAL today. Oh, and she laid an egg yesterday.

 

[Eggcessive]

I have no idea if treating with antibiotics before getting cultures done, affects the results. Do you already have the material to send cultures? Had they sent those to you? It is up to you whether to give another round of antibiotics. I would give her some probiotics daily, since her gut flora is probably very affected already.

 

[finnleywren]

I have no idea if treating with antibiotics before getting cultures done, affects the results. Do you already have the material to send cultures? Had they sent those to you? It is up to you whether to give another round of antibiotics. I would give her some probiotics daily, since her gut flora is probably very affected already.

Your first sentence hadn’t occurred to me. I tend to doubt it. I have all the materials and picked up the probiotics today. I’m going to start with the enrofloxacin and go from there. Thanks everyone. I always appreciate the advice.