One with Cyst by eye and one with Crooked neck

[abgarner0303]

Hello All,

I received 26 chicks from Murray McMurray Hatchery on April 1. They are now 2 weeks old and up to this point i haven't had any big problems besides pasty butt, which I quickly cleared with yogurt. I have them in a 5ft diameter kiddie pool with pine shavings as the bedding. I have a 250 watt bulb that i have been raising each week. The temperature directly under the light is 85 degrees right now and of course less outside of the light.

Just this week i noticed one of my RIR hens has crooked neck. It has not enabled her to get around and eat or drink so i decided to just keep a close eye on her and see if the problem will fix itself.

This morning i noticed one of my Buff Orpington hens has what appears to be a cyst right on the edge of her right eye. I have attached a picture. Is it possible that this hen has gotten something in her eye which has irritated it? My horse once had a similar bump by his eye and we later found out he had gotten a piece of grass stuck in his eye.

I am concerned that there may be another underlying problem causing these issues. Is it possible that my chicks have some disease or that it is just coincidental that 2 of my chicks have separate issues?

Any suggestions are much appreciated. This is my first time with chicks. I have raised many animals in the past including ducks but never chickens.

 

[Eggcessive]

The chick does appear to have a cyst on it's eye, but it could also have been a peck wound. Some cysts may eventually fall off, but it could continue to grow. Hopefully it will go away, so that it doesn't affect it's vision. Wry neck or crook neck can be treated with vitamin E, vitamin B1 (thiamine,) and selenium, which is found in eggs. Put some poultry vitamins in the chicks' water, and they can be found at most feed stores.

 

[abgarner0303]

I will keep a close eye on my Buff with the cyst. I am hoping it will go away. I have purchased a vitamin pack to use. Hopefully it will be of some help for both babies!

 

[abgarner0303]

The cyst seems to be growing. Any suggestion of what I should do besides take her to the vet? Not sure if i have a poultry doc in the area...

 

[Eggcessive]

Does the cyst feel hard or is it soft? If you are up to it, you could try to lance it, and try to squeeze to see if you get any blood or pus out of it. If it is hard or firm, my guess is that it is a tumor, not an abscess. An abscess would be softer, although pus in chickens can harden into a kernel. I once had a rooster who had one of those cysts on his eyelid for the whole time he lived. It was hard, and never grew, and it was a cyst, not an abscess or a peck wound.

 

[abgarner0303]

It is soft. I was just going to let it take its course but it has gotten larger in the past few days. I may try lancing it tomorrow.

 

[Eggcessive]

Keep us posted on what you find. I hope it is just a little peck wound filled with pus.

 

[abgarner0303]

I realize I never posted back to this. We drained the cyst and cleaned it up but it came back. She has lived with it since and doesn't seem to have any issues so I've left it alone. Not sure what causes it!