Hen with swelling around eyes and 1 that's bubbling... pics added!!!

[SymanSaysFarms]

One of my 3.5 year old Buff Orpingtons has 2 swollen eyes... 1 of which has some bubbles coming out of it. I've read A LOT on here about bubbles in the eyes and none of it sounds good. But I want to share all her symptoms in hopes someone here can give me a better idea of what's going on with her.

She's eating and drinking normally. She's laying still. It does look like someone is beating her up a little bit. The feathers on the back of her neck have been picked out and this morning her neck was actually bleeding. I put blu-kote on her. I'm wondering if her eye(s) could be an injury or illness. The eyes look bright and clear. She's not sneezing or coughing. She does not seem lethargic in any way. It's just the swollen eye and a little bubbling. I was thinking of treating her with Tylan 50 to cover my bases for a respiratory infection. But what do you think? Does this sound like it could be a respiratory issue?

Any and all advice is welcomed! Thank you!!!

 

[Eggcessive]

I think the Tylan would be a good idea. Can you post a close-up picture of her eye? Are there any peck marks around it? They may be picking on her now because she is sick.

 

[SymanSaysFarms]

I haven't been able to get a picture of her up close yet. I just went to check on her again and the bubbles aren't there anymore

The swelling is still there, of course. No, she doesn't have any signs of pecking around her eyes. She seems her usual self. My husband will be picking up the Tylan on his way home from work. I'm so scared to think of what this might be. I've been working with her intensely over the last couple of months because she's had a bad case of mites/lice on her rear end. I just can't get it to clear up. No one else in the coop has the same "dirty" bottom she has. I can't imagine it's related to her eye issue... but it's worth mentioning

 

[BantamLover21]

I would start treating her with Tylan 50. Bubbly/swollen eyes are almost always a symptom of respiratory diseases, including Infectious Coryza. If you haven't already done so, isolate her away from your other chickens to try and prevent the spread of any disease. Keep her in a warm, clean place, and maybe give her some vitamins/electrolytes in her water. Try to minimize doing anything that will stress her out.

The Tylan 50 dosage is 1cc for large-fowl, .5ccs for bantams, injected into one side of the breast muscle once daily for 3-5 days. Alternate the side of the breast that you inject into, and use the smallest gauge needle possible, because Tylan can make the injection area painful. You should see improvement after 1-2 days of treatment. Do not give dairy products or probiotics during Tylan treatment.

The mite/lice treatment that I use for laying hens is Sevin dust. If there is a mite infestation, I dust once, and then again 7-10 days later. On my non-laying birds, I put some Frontline spray near their vent. That works well, but it shouldn't be used on hens whose eggs are intended for consumption because it isn't licensed for use on poultry.

 

[SymanSaysFarms]

Please excuse her neck. That's where I sprayed blu-kote this morning. Her swelling doesn't seem as bad now than it did this morning. I'm so confused. Still no more bubbling from what I saw this morning. I sat and just watched everyone interact with each other for an extended period of time and everyone seems to be acting normal. This one, whose name is Coco, btw was definitely keeping her own within the flock. Take a look at some pictures I was able to get. They aren't the greatest. I'll try for more at bedtime while she's roosting.

Thanks for the wonderful info Bantamlover! I have been using Sevin dust on her :-/ I flip her upside down and really get a good dusting all around her vent and fluff down there. I don't see any mites on her but the "dirt" on her feathers is still there.

 

[Eggcessive]

Just relax a bit--you may have caught it in time with the swollen eyes. The Tylan will probably help. The injectable can be given orally, but I prefer it in a shot to the breast muscle once a day, and vary the side each day for 3 days. If giving it orally, I would treat for 5 days. The oral powder in water can be given for 3-5 days. The 1 ml dose (oral or shot)would be correct for a 7 lb chicken. Give more or less as you see fit.

 

[SymanSaysFarms]

Thanks! That's great to hear and I REALLY hope so! I'm still worried she may have infected everyone else though. All the horror stories on here about people losing their whole flocks to respiratory infections scares me to pieces. I keep thinking how the heck she could've gotten this? We haven't added any new chickens since May and those we hatched out ourselves. And the other chicks we added in May were kept in the house for 5 weeks before going out to the baby coop (which is right next to the laying coop where Coco is). Just scratching my head on this one. I'll get her started on the antibiotics this evening and hope for the best! Meanwhile, I'll be taking deep breathes and

 

[BantamLover21]

Thanks! That's great to hear and I REALLY hope so! I'm still worried she may have infected everyone else though. All the horror stories on here about people losing their whole flocks to respiratory infections scares me to pieces. I keep thinking how the heck she could've gotten this? We haven't added any new chickens since May and those we hatched out ourselves. And the other chicks we added in May were kept in the house for 5 weeks before going out to the baby coop (which is right next to the laying coop where Coco is). Just scratching my head on this one. I'll get her started on the antibiotics this evening and hope for the best! Meanwhile, I'll be taking deep breathes and

Sometimes diseases just appear for no reason. I had that happen earlier this year. A perfectly healthy pullet developed a sinus infection caused (I assume) by a respiratory disease. I hadn't brought home any new birds or supplies, so I don't know what gave her the disease. Unfortunately, it took me a while to figure out what the right antibiotic was to treat her with ( tried Penicillin, thinking it was an ear infection and then Terramycin, because it was somewhat effective and inexpensive), and by the time I got the right one (Tylan), she was very weak. She didn't end up making it.

Anyway, I wish you luck with your hen! You've probably caught it in time.

 

[SymanSaysFarms]

Coco update:

She went into quarantine last night and got her first shot of Tylan 50. Took it like a champ! She seems most upset this morning about being alone :-/ But, the rest will be good for her. She has no new symptoms this morning. Eyes were still alittle watery but no more bubbles. The swelling could possibly be less but not by much. I took a couple more pictures last night after giving her her meds. I'll take more pictures each night to check her progression.

 

[BantamLover21]

Coco update:

She went into quarantine last night and got her first shot of Tylan 50. Took it like a champ! She seems most upset this morning about being alone :-/ But, the rest will be good for her. She has no new symptoms this morning. Eyes were still alittle watery but no more bubbles. The swelling could possibly be less but not by much. I took a couple more pictures last night after giving her her meds. I'll take more pictures each night to check her progression.

Coco definitely looks like she has a sinus infection. The Tylan 50 should help; if not, there are other antibiotic choices.