Is this chicken blind or is something else going on?

[SelfSufficientMe]

Hi. I bought a rainbow variety of chicks from a hatchery. One chicken has always been a little standoffish and I’m just now realizing it may be blind.

I started letting them out of the run into my yard recently and that’s when I noticed she gets lost and mopes around slowly.

Do you think she’s definitely blind or do you suspect something else? A video link of her behavior is below. Thank you for your input!

Also, do you think she’s may be a black araucana or and Easter egger?

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

Do you have a picture of her eyes up close? She’s not an Araucana they’re rumpless and have tufts. She might be an Ameraucana. I had a blind black Ameraucana and her pupils were oddly shaped. She spun in circles a lot. Hopefully someone else has a better idea

 

[SunriseChickers]

Do you have a picture of her eyes up close? She’s not an Araucana they’re rumpless and have tufts. She might be an Ameraucana. I had a blind black Ameraucana and her pupils were oddly shaped. She spun in circles a lot. Hopefully someone else has a better idea

A x2 for the Ameraucauna, sometimes spelled Americana. It's a name/difference in spelling given by breeders to certain types of Easter Eggers to make people think of the coveted purebred Araucana.

ETA: Read the next post! I was half wrong.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

A x2 for the Ameraucauna, sometimes spelled Americana. It's a name/difference in spelling given by breeders to certain types of Easter Eggers to make people think of the coveted purebred Araucana.

Sort of true. Ameraucana is a recognized breed by the APA. Americana is not and is a tricky name for Easter Eggers. Araucanas are very easy to recognize once you see one and don’t look like either Ameraucanas or Easter Eggers. They have tufts instead of muffs (looks more like a handlebar mustache than a poof of feathers) and they are rumpless so they don’t have tails. But it is a pet peeve of mine being sold one in place of the other. I used to know a breeder so I had beautiful Ameraucanas and was baffled to find most people thought that’s what they were getting when they bought EEs. At least the last time I bought “Americanas” I knew what I was getting lol

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

That’s not a dig on people who buy them-it’s a dig on people who sell them.

 

[SunriseChickers]

Sort of true. Ameraucana is a recognized breed by the APA. Americana is not and is a tricky name for Easter Eggers. Araucanas are very easy to recognize once you see one and don’t look like either Ameraucanas or Easter Eggers. They have tufts instead of muffs (looks more like a handlebar mustache than a poof of feathers) and they are rumpless so they don’t have tails. But it is a pet peeve of mine being sold one in place of the other. I used to know a breeder so I had beautiful Ameraucanas and was baffled to find most people thought that’s what they were getting when they bought EEs. At least the last time I bought “Americanas” I knew what I was getting lol

Ah, yes, that's the difference I was thinking of, thank you! It's been a while since I researched about them - my family purchased Americanas a good while back, and when researching the breeds we were quite confused by the conflicting information until I discovered the "trick".

 

[FrizzledWyandotte7]

Hi. I bought a rainbow variety of chicks from a hatchery. One chicken has always been a little standoffish and I’m just now realizing it may be blind.

I started letting them out of the run into my yard recently and that’s when I noticed she gets lost and mopes around slowly.

Do you think she’s definitely blind or do you suspect something else? A video link of her behavior is below. Thank you for your input!

Also, do you think she’s may be a black araucana or and Easter egger?

Pick her up and gently move your finger back and forth in front of their eyelid. If she closes it, she is not blind. If she doesn’t flinch, move it faster and dramatically. If she still doesn’t flinch, that’s a good sign that she is blind. And blindness is not bad, either. Chickens have great senses and can hear you quite easily. It might take her longer to get used to a newer coop, but otherwise as long as she is part of a flock they will warn her about anything she cannot hear.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

when researching the breeds we were quite confused by the conflicting information until I discovered the "trick".

It really is confusing and it irks me that hatcheries take advantage of it although I can understand that Araucanas are hard to breed so it makes sense a hatchery wouldn’t want to lose money trying to breed them even to make Ameraucanas. Some of them are honest about it (Murray McMurray) but you have to look for the information.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

I’m not convinced this chicken is blind. The puffed up feathers point more toward an illness but definitely check her eyes as described above

 

[redinator]

Hi. I bought a rainbow variety of chicks from a hatchery. One chicken has always been a little standoffish and I’m just now realizing it may be blind.

I started letting them out of the run into my yard recently and that’s when I noticed she gets lost and mopes around slowly.

Do you think she’s definitely blind or do you suspect something else? A video link of her behavior is below. Thank you for your input!

Also, do you think she’s may be a black araucana or and Easter egger?

I don't think it's her eyes, or at least she isn't completely blind, otherwise she would've run right into the fence. She also seemed to look at the birds on the other side. I'd check her noise response as well, it could be her hearing.