- Sep 26, 2012
- 7
- 0
- 7
Up until last week, I had a flock of 18 hens and 1 rooster. Most of them were half Americauno and Cochin but from a Rhode Island Red rooster. A few were pure Americauno. This has been a horrible Summer any way. I lost Daddy Rooster to overheating during the great black out of the Summer. We were without power for a week at my home and without water for several days. I lost my favorite Leghorn Rooster to raccoons. Someone stole my Cochin hen during the black out and I lost another hen and rooster to other unknown things.
I free range my flock every other day. They get DE and garlic in their food. I dust the chicken yard, which is 16x16 with DE, as well as their coop. They get fresh veggies and herbs, laying mash and occasional meal worms and scratch for treats.
Last Thursday, I noticed that one of them looked like her eyes were a little puffy, or I should say the skin around her eyes. By Friday, a bunch of them looked like that. I thought it was eye worm, because one of them looked as though she had discharge. With the mild Winter that we had, I have been battling mites on chickens and fleas on cats and dogs all Summer. I finally broke down and used sevin in the coop because there were about a hundred spiders in there. I enlisted some help from my family, to go in and treat everyone whose eyes looked funny with VetRX. The next morning one of my hens was dead and the others eyes were getting worse. I did more research and it looks like it must be face mites. I used ivermetcin 1% solution, 4cc per gallon in their water for 48 hours. Every morning they would get up and look even worse. Most of them have eyes completely shut and all they want to do is sleep. I applied vaseline in hopes that it would smother the mites and they could open their eyes. I have swaddled each and hand fed them vitamin E and eggs. I have put a booster of omega 3 in their food. I have given them water from a syringe to make sure they are hydrated. I have recleaned the coop, sprayed it down with sevin, changed out all the cedar chips and they are still getting worse. I have now lost 6 hens since Friday. The hens faces don't really look crusty. They skin is raised and looks more like they have developed weird wrinkles. I have kept hens for 5 years now and the only problem I had was raccoons and once a nasty rooster that killed my favorite hen. My Roo and 4 of my hens look like they are alright and a couple others can still see, but the skin around their eyes is affected. I am at a loss! I love my girls and I don't want to loose any more. Am I doing something wrong? Has anyone else had this problem? Any advice would be wonderful. I am a healer and it is just making me sick that I can't seem to make them better.
I free range my flock every other day. They get DE and garlic in their food. I dust the chicken yard, which is 16x16 with DE, as well as their coop. They get fresh veggies and herbs, laying mash and occasional meal worms and scratch for treats.
Last Thursday, I noticed that one of them looked like her eyes were a little puffy, or I should say the skin around her eyes. By Friday, a bunch of them looked like that. I thought it was eye worm, because one of them looked as though she had discharge. With the mild Winter that we had, I have been battling mites on chickens and fleas on cats and dogs all Summer. I finally broke down and used sevin in the coop because there were about a hundred spiders in there. I enlisted some help from my family, to go in and treat everyone whose eyes looked funny with VetRX. The next morning one of my hens was dead and the others eyes were getting worse. I did more research and it looks like it must be face mites. I used ivermetcin 1% solution, 4cc per gallon in their water for 48 hours. Every morning they would get up and look even worse. Most of them have eyes completely shut and all they want to do is sleep. I applied vaseline in hopes that it would smother the mites and they could open their eyes. I have swaddled each and hand fed them vitamin E and eggs. I have put a booster of omega 3 in their food. I have given them water from a syringe to make sure they are hydrated. I have recleaned the coop, sprayed it down with sevin, changed out all the cedar chips and they are still getting worse. I have now lost 6 hens since Friday. The hens faces don't really look crusty. They skin is raised and looks more like they have developed weird wrinkles. I have kept hens for 5 years now and the only problem I had was raccoons and once a nasty rooster that killed my favorite hen. My Roo and 4 of my hens look like they are alright and a couple others can still see, but the skin around their eyes is affected. I am at a loss! I love my girls and I don't want to loose any more. Am I doing something wrong? Has anyone else had this problem? Any advice would be wonderful. I am a healer and it is just making me sick that I can't seem to make them better.
