Sicky Silkie????????

[tricketts]

So I bought two new silkies this weekend and once I got home I found out that I didn't inspect them very good. Partly because I bought my other chickens at this same place and they were fine. Not the case this time. Both the chicks are silkies and they are about 2 weeks old.

The first one has some crust around her eye. After some researching and asking I think it has a respiratory infection. Other than the look of the eye she seems to be eating and drinking okay and is active. I cleaned the eye with wash and distilled water but it is still lightly crusting. I called the feed store but they basically told me I was out of luck and then tried to sell me an antibotic for chickens but didn't know what it was for. After they gave me the name I didn't some research. It is called duramycin-10. I am concerned though because it says not for layers. Does anyone have any other info on this and if I should try this or let the chick be and see if it goes away. Can you never eat the eggs of a chick you give it Duramycin-10? Here is a picture of this one.

My other chick seemed fine and it is separate from the chick with the crusty eye but being freaked out now from the one sick chick I started to inspect this one and I found right by its shoulder by its wing a bubble of skin. It is not hard and I don't think it has liquid in it but it is freaky. It is dark black and smooth and there are no feathers growning on it at all. I don't know if it is a deformity or something else. I am attaching two pictures but I know it is kind of hard to see. If anyone has any info on this that would be great. I wonder if these items with these two chicks will effect their laying ability or the quaility of the eggs?

Any help would be really appreciated. I love the silkies and I feel really bad and I would really like to make sure they are okay and going to be happy chicks, but I also hope they will be productive as well.

Teresa

 

[Smoky73]

Just keep washing the ones eye out. When we had kittnes when I was a kid and they got that bad eye, we would take peroxide and water and a cotton ball and go over the eye a few times and it would clear up. Your antibiotics are not for layers because the meds can get passed into the eggs if you are giving it to ADULT birds who ARE laying, not chicks. You would want to not eat eggs for at least 2 weeks after meds have been stopped. By the time these start laying (IF they do- they could be boys) you are plenty clear of meds.

Are you sure the bubble is not the crop?

 

[tricketts]

isn't crop on there chest in there gullet? This is on her back like where a shoulder would be and it is soft not hard like something is impacted or like it would be a cyst. Almost like extra skin but just weird cause there is no hair on it and it is shiny black skin not wrinkly and grayish like the rest of the bird.

I will try that with the eye and if it doesn't get better by this weekend then i will try the anitbotic.

 

[tricketts]

No other suggestions from anyone?

 

[crystalchik]

What kind of antiobiotics is the Duramycin-10? I use Duramycin 72-200 injectable and it works well, but is yours injectable, or should it be given undiluted orally or diluted in water?

Your second chick may have a ruptured air sac. Because birds have such a high metabolic system, they have air sacs as a way to "store air" in a sense. There are 3 main locations for these air sacs, and one is the cervical air sac, which is located right around the base of the wing. The air sacs have very thin walls, and if it is ruptured, it basically looks like a little balloon and is filled with air, no fluid. There is nothing really that you can do, and a lot of the times it will heal and the air will be reabsorbed, but there is always the possibility that chick may die depending on how severe it is. I would say just keep and eye on her and make sure that nothing can puncture that or injure her. Good luck!