I didn't know it was a tick!!

peeboo

Crowing
15 Years
Apr 9, 2008
298
3
256
fort bragg nc
my favorite hen Rosie had a blue lump behind her ear for a few days. now i thought it was some kind of benign growth, she was fine last night and this morning the whole side of her cheek is swollen near the ear where the growth was. i found out today by doing some research that what is on her is for sure a tick! i am at work so there is ntohing i can do at this time until i get home, the tick is attached to the swelling on her cheek. would a tick be the cause or is there somthing else? would it be an infection or somthing since the tick has been on her with no symptoms for a few days up until today??? it looks VERY uncomfortable for her.
 
Last edited:
I'm a bit unsure from your description, but it's possible that the swelling you are seeing is the tick itself. Different tick species come in different sizes, but any type, once it has been feeding for a while, can grow to an alarming size - I've seen them the size of big blueberries.
Ticks can certainly cause infections, especially if the head remains under the skin. It's possible your chicken tried to get rid of the tick herself by scratching it or rubbing her face on something, and she popped the body off and the head is still there. If that is the case, you have some work ahead of you.
 
it is the common poultry tick or blue tick, it is large but the swelling is actually that of what looks to be her thyroid, her cheek and that area on one side where the tick is. it is supposed to be a carrier of some ailments, i'm worried a bit.
 
I just read up on poultry ticks myself and learned some new stuff. Mercifully we don't have too many ticks of any kind around my house, so my only experience is picking the stray one off my dog once a summer or so.
It looks like the larva of poultry ticks can be a bigger problem than the nymphs or adults. Since it is your favorite hen, you might want to put in a call to your vet to see what they recommend.
 
lol went to the vet, they took it out and they gave rosie some anitibiotics. her ear looks like a giant grape ready to blow. i'll add pics if i can download them. bigger issue, i got home and noticed another hen with the same thing on her ear. dern it!!! so i am thinking about guinea fowl! yay for me and my dh would allow it to get rid of these things. one thing, i live in a neighborhood and not on a farm of any kind so i hope to goodness the neighbors dont mind or kill them. i think i will go door to door and ask them. i also want to add pics of the tics themselves so everyone knows what to look out for!
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom