strange eye on hen

[3goodeggs]

I have a hen with one pupil very small and constricted . It is puffy around her constricted eye
I have been watching this, and it has not changed for over a month.
At first, I thought that it was a hold over from the fowl pox.

My husband says that she just needs glasses. That would not explain the puffiness. It is not watery or red or any sign of infection or detritus in it. I am stumped.
do any of you have any ideas? Is this something that just 'is', or something I can help fix?

 

[dkosh]

Is the puffyness hard or soft? If it is hard maybe it's a fiberous or fatty growth. If it is soft maybe she has an infection around the eye. Not sure what to do about it though. Sorry.

 

[dawg53]

Terramycin eye ointment should help if there's an infection.

 

[3goodeggs]

I have not poked it to see if it has texture. That's the first thing Drs. do. I should have thought to do that. I just feel bad about doing it. 'salt in the wound' sort of thing.

I have some in the refrigerator, so I may as well use it. It can't hurt. She tries to squint when she looks at you. It is strange all around. You'd think she'd just turn the good eye at me.

 

[CMV]

Does the pupil react to light? If not, she may have damage to the vision in that eye. It sounds like she is not blind in it since she is trying to look at you through it, but I wonder how much she can actually see through it. (Maybe she is wondering the same thing and that's why she is attempting to see things through it.)

 

[3goodeggs]

That is an interesting thought. It never really occurred to me that she could be checking it out. Maybe animals are more like us than we want to accept.

The puffiness confuses me though. The other side is fine and I see no infection...do infections affect the iris? I do not know, but I am thinking that it might be her turn to be a house chicken for a while. Do chickens have tear ducts? maybe a clog or...?