possible eye infection

[DaWookie]

howdy yall, starting yesterday i noticed a little bit of drainage around my white leghorns eye. This morning i noticed the pullet (almost 4 months) was very lethargic and the eye was closed tight, with lots of drainage down the chickens feathers. I washed the eye out (gently) with lukewarm water and the chicken now opens it a little but the eye is very red and irritated. Ive noticed that she is getting bullied this morning, haven't seen it before. I dont know if the bulling caused/help cause this, or if the bulling is a result of the chicken now appearing weak. She eats and drinks a little bit, and she still stays with the flock, isn't actively hiding.

I assembled a chicken hospital in case this is a infectious eye condition of some kind, thoughts?

 

[DaWookie]

i actually moved her inside, when i went out to check she was hiding from the group. chicken hospital is a go

 

[coach723]

She may have been pecked in the eye, or gotten debris in there. I would use some sterile saline or veterycin eye wash and flush the eye really well. See if there is any pus inside, spread the eye open as well as you can to see under the lids, if you find any pus do your best to remove it all. It will be firm and white or pale yellow, kind of cheesy. Then use either terramycin eye ointment (available at most feed stores/tractor supply) or plain neosporin in the eye twice a day. Since the other eye looks OK, that's my guess. Having her confined will let you watch her also to see if there is something else going on health wise that may be causing her to be picked on, or if she's just very low in the pecking order. Give her a good all over exam to check for anything else that may be going on, check what droppings look like, crop function, look for lice/mites, any other injuries, make sure she's eating and drinking well and weight is good.

 

[DaWookie]

thanks coach will do

 

[Grits&Eggs]

Mine had a similar eye issue, was half closed. I took a warm wash cloth, and with her under a towel in my lap, I pressed it several times against the bad eye. I was able to get some puss out looks better today, but will have to do another round before bed tonight. Hope yours is a simple solution as well.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Can you take a look inside her beak?

 

[DaWookie]

after a small struggle i looked inside and everything looks normal, i think those are wounds associated with being bullied

eating and drinking is normal, the eye still appears to be watering, but less so

 

[DaWookie]

slightly better photo

 

[Wyorp Rock]

It does look a bit less swollen.

The lethargy is concerning though. Do what you can to keep her drinking, if she doesn't perk up in another day or so, then you need to investigate this further.
Is her poop normal looking?

 

[MotherOfPeepPeeps]

In my experience Terramycin Ophthalmic works much better than veterycin for eye issues. It is safe for chickens, but don't ever use it on waterfowl.