Swollen eye and lid

[karenls50]

What is wrong with this chick’s eye??? We think he is a cockerel about 2 months old. His comb just started to turn red.

A couple weeks ago his eye seemed to be sunken and it was red around it. We treated with about three days if tylan50 and terramyacin. It seems to clear up.

Now yesterday it started like this. The whole circle around the eye is bright red. There is
A little white stuff in the front corner. It’s in both eyes. Her/his head around the eyes seem hot and swollen too.

He has NO other symptoms. No sneezung, coughing, shaking head. He eats great and is active. He seems normal otherwise.

He constantly rubs his eye on his back. Kind of like it itches.

No mites are visible. His flock mates are fine.

Please help. Should it just do the Tylan50 again for five days this time? How about the terrimyacin.

I have to decide what to do. I can’t keep him separate forever. We don’t have an exotic animal vet close.

 

[casportpony]

You could try the Tylan again. If I were going to use Tylan 50 I would give no less than 0.2 ml per pound every 6-8 hours.

 

[karenls50]

You could try the Tylan again. If I were going to use Tylan 50 I would give no less than 0.2 ml per pound every 6-8 hours.

Ok thanks. I’ll do that. What do you think is causing it? I haven’t seen anything like it before.

 

[karenls50]

Ok thanks. I’ll do that. What do you think is causing it? I haven’t seen anything like it before.

 

[anna-newhampshire]

Seems like conjunctivitis (pink eye). He probably has a predisposition to it, a weakness in his immune system. That's why it came back.

An old but very trustworthy book about chicken keeping recommends giving chopped onions for their general health but particularly if they have eye problems. Another book says boiled onions. Some lists have onions as a no-no, they're wrong. I personally saw chickens eating raw onion scraps + I feed my quails raw or cooked onions occasionally with no ill effects. If you boil the onion, use just a couple spoonfuls of water, you don't want the 'medication" to leech into the water and be sent down the drain.

Don't forget to give plain yogurt regularly, but particularly after you finish the antibiotics.

 

[karenls50]

Seems like conjunctivitis (pink eye). He probably has a predisposition to it, a weakness in his immune system. That's why it came back.

An old but very trustworthy book about chicken keeping recommends giving chopped onions for their general health but particularly if they have eye problems. Another book says boiled onions. Some lists have onions as a no-no, they're wrong. I personally saw chickens eating raw onion scraps + I feed my quails raw or cooked onions occasionally with no ill effects. If you boil the onion, use just a couple spoonfuls of water, you don't want the 'medication" to leech into the water and be sent down the drain.

Don't forget to give plain yogurt regularly, but particularly after you finish the antibiotics.

Thanks. The only problem is the whole side of his head is redish too and it feels hot.
Whenever I give antibiotics I moisten their food with my home made kefir. It seems to do the trick.

I’ll read up on onions. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[Eggcessive]

It sounds like he may have mycoplasma gallisepticum. It is a chronic respiratory disease, and it causes foam in the eye, and sometimes a sunken eye. There can be other symptoms if it is a worse strain, or complicated by secondary infection. Tylan (tylosin) and Terramycin ointment can treat symptoms, but it can come back again. MG is spread by a carrier bird, wild birds, and can pass from parent to chick through hatching eggs. You could get some testing (a PCR test) for MG by vet or local NPIP tester. Here is a link about MG:
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/disea...tion-mg-chronic-respiratory-disease-chickens/

 

[karenls50]

It sounds like he may have mycoplasma gallisepticum. It is a chronic respiratory disease, and it causes foam in the eye, and sometimes a sunken eye. There can be other symptoms if it is a worse strain, or complicated by secondary infection. Tylan (tylosin) and Terramycin ointment can treat symptoms, but it can come back again. MG is spread by a carrier bird, wild birds, and can pass from parent to chick through hatching eggs. You could get some testing (a PCR test) for MG by vet or local NPIP tester. Here is a link about MG:
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/disea...tion-mg-chronic-respiratory-disease-chickens/

Thanks. I’ve been researching it. I’m taking him to my vet this afternoon. He’s not a chicken vet but he knows enough to give me advice. I’ve been concerned about mg too even though he shows no or he signs if respiratory infection yet.
I just don’t want to pass something nasty to the rest of my flock. Fortunately we’ve had him quarintined since we’ve got him. He has been with his other two hatch mates and they’re showing no signs. I will watch them for any signs.
We’ll see what my vet says. Hope he can test for mg.
Thanks for your input it is confirmation of my fears. I’m hoping it’s not mg but at least I cull if it is before it’s transmitted to my other chickens.

 

[Eggcessive]

As I said before, something like infectious bronchitis is mild, short-lived, and chickens only are carriers for 5 mo up to a year depending on which source your read. I would not cull birds for that. But I would not add new birds or hatch until the end of that year. MG is very common in backyard flocks and wild birds, ducks, turkeys, etc.

The PCR test is the best one to get for MG, MS and other types of mycoplasma. Here is a good link from Georgia about testing for the different types of mycoplasma that affect poultry:
https://poultryhealthtoday.com/avian-mycoplasma-diagnostics/

Here is a good link for reading about diseases and symptoms:
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps044

 

[karenls50]

It sounds like he may have mycoplasma gallisepticum. It is a chronic respiratory disease, and it causes foam in the eye, and sometimes a sunken eye. There can be other symptoms if it is a worse strain, or complicated by secondary infection. Tylan (tylosin) and Terramycin ointment can treat symptoms, but it can come back again. MG is spread by a carrier bird, wild birds, and can pass from parent to chick through hatching eggs. You could get some testing (a PCR test) for MG by vet or local NPIP tester. Here is a link about MG:
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/disea...tion-mg-chronic-respiratory-disease-chickens/

Thanks. I’ve been researching it. I’m taking him to my vet this afternoon. He’s not a chicken vet but he knows enough to give me advice. I’ve been concerned about mg too even though he shows no or he signs if respiratory infection yet.
I just don’t want to pass something nasty to the rest of my flock. Fortunately we’ve had him quarintined since we’ve got him. He has been with his other two hatch mates and they’re showing no signs. I will watch them for any signs.
We’ll see what my vet says. Hope he can test for mg.
Thanks for your input it is confirmation of my fears. I’m hoping it’s not mg but at least I cull if it is before it’s transmitted to my other chickens.