Nursing sick chicken back to health, now what?

[Drainuchick]

At the beginning of July, I found one of my hens in the mud, getting mated by the rooster. She wasn’t able to get up afterwards. I’m pretty sure she was sick and not having this issue because of the rooster. Her comb was very swollen and there was a large black scab on it. I took her out of the pen right away, tried to get her to stand, but she tipped over. She felt very skinny. I thought maybe she had an egg stuck inside, put on some gloves and checked her. Nothing. Her vent was pulsing as if she was trying to push something out, but nothing came. I did an epson bath and gave her some love, figuring she would pass over night, but to my surprise, she was still alive the next morning but her eye was now swollen. She refused food and water.

Over the next couple of weeks, she still wouldn’t eat and had to be forced water. During this time, I told her that if she didn’t show me she wanted to live, I was going to have to put her down. I wasn’t doing this to be mean! Honestly, I was rocking this chicken and singing to it while crying, lol. Next thing I know, the scab fell off her comb and the swelling went down. Suddenly, she began to eat and drink!

Every day, I have taken her out of the sick cage and put her in a safe pen outside away from the rest of the flock, but which allowed her sun and fresh air. She still couldn’t really walk at first. When she stood, it was in the upright, penguin posture. She has a big appetite for feed now, but it almost seems like her sight is limited and she won’t eat scraps. She has to get really close to the ground with her eyes to see the food. At night, she is returned to her “sick” cage. I again informed her she needed to show me she wanted to continue to live and the next day she was taking little steps.

This process of taking her out in the morning and back in at night has repeated over the last two months and she now walks around well, but still has limited sight. She is unable to scratch, but I see her laying stretched out in the sun. She has put on weight and has now begun to lay eggs in the last week (mind you it has been two months at least, without an egg).

I’m struggling, because she seems to have made so much progress and I have been dutiful in her rehabilitation, but I can’t put her in with the rest of the flock. If a hen approaches her and lunges, she just stands there. I’m not sure if it’s just her sight or if her brains got a bit scrambled with the illness. She is so sweet though and always interested in what I’m doing outside.

Cold months are coming and now I wonder what to do with her. Is she to be my house chicken? It’s very clear she wants to live and the egg laying seems like a very good sign to me. I’ve honestly gotten attached and have been celebrating every little victory with her. What to do? Will her sight ever fully return?

 

[Drainuchick]

Picture of her for reference. All her wing feathers had broken off from her constantly trying to steady herself and now they are growing back too. She seems stronger every day.

 

[coach723]

I don't really know what may have happened to her, but if she really can't see then it's unlikely that will get better. If you shine a light into her eyes do they react to the light (pupils dilate)? If you wave your hand or an object near her eyes (try both sides) does she react at all to the movement? Is it possible for you to make a small pen for her inside your chicken run for her, where she can be separate and safe, but can still hear and smell the others, and they can see her? I have two blind birds, older hens, and they live like this in a smaller pen in the corner of my predator proof run. They have a plastic dog crate they sleep in since they are unable to roost. Their food and water is always in the same spot so they can always find it, I have it raised up on concrete blocks at shoulder height for them, makes it easier for them to hit it. Open dishes may also work better for the same reason, easier for them to hit it. They've been living there for almost 2 years now. I used to take them outside, but they now get too stressed out as they don't know where they are or where to go, so I just leave them in their pen. They are safe from predators, flockmates, and weather. They can still hear the flock and join in when one of the others is singing an egg song, and sometimes lay next to flock mates who are on the other side of the wire.
If your hens vision did seem to improve with time, then keeping her this way would also make it easier to reintegrate her if that were to become possible, as she would still be known by the flock.

 

[Drainuchick]

Thank you for your reply! The outdoor cage(probably 3ft x 3ft) is in an area where the chickens from the run can see her. I have some free roaming chickens that I haven’t integrated yet with the flock that visit her (outside the cage) daily and seem fine with her. She does seem to have some sight, like she knows when I am going to pet her and knows when I put out scraps for everyone else.

When I toss scraps in with her, she is uninterested, but she gobbles feed down that I put in for her. I do notice that she lowers her head down to the ground and looks closely with her eye when I put the feed in, so I do think she can see a bit.

I might have to look into the “sick” cage being moved into the coop. I have it in the garage right now. I’m just worried she won’t be able to go out with the rest of the flock since she can’t protect herself and the roosters might hurt her since she won’t know they are coming.

It’s hard to say what happened, but she’s made so much progress and I am invested in her now. I believe she used to lay eggs, but stopped when the illness hit. I thought it may have been a broken egg inside her or cancer, but I’m not really sure. Then I thought maybe some type of mosquito illness? She is now improving and I have kind of ruled out cancer. None of the other chickens have displayed any signs of illness either.

 

[coach723]

I would definitely protect her from the roo's. I have 4 roo's and they are a big reason my blind hens are separate. That would be totally unfair, and miserable for them, and they'd be at risk of getting hurt. You will need to see what you can make work with the set up and space that you have available. I do use my hens pen for growing out chicks when I have them. Both my old hens enjoy their company and tidbit the chicks even though they can't see them. I always move the chicks out to the main flock before they are old enough to cause a problem for my old girls. But from 5 weeks, til they are big enough to move into the big coop, I've not had a problem with putting them with the blind birds.