Under one eye is red & puffy! Pictures, please advice.

[SistaChick]

I just noticed that one of my 18 week old Black Aussie pullets looks like her eye has been injured or something is going on. Do any of you know what this looks like. She looks fine in the left eye, it is clear. I am showing pics of both sides. What caught my attention was that her right eye looked like it had bubbly stuff in the corner of it and when I picked her up, below her eye looks puffy.

Here are pictures, please help if you can!





Here are pictures of her left eye, there's no puffiness under it.

 

[casportpony]

Bubbles means that it's probably a respiratory virus and/or infection, not an injury

 

[SistaChick]

Bubbles means that it's probably a respiratory virus and/or infection, not an injury

Sigh....now what? I am pretty new to chickens so I guess I better get to researching.

 

[casportpony]

Sigh....now what? I am pretty new to chickens so I guess I better get to researching.

Send a message to Dawg53 or Cowcreekgeek and see what advice they have to offer.

 

[austinclarksf]

Hi there,

I noticed this same thing on one of my girls.

My girlfriend surprised me with three chickens for Christmas (I know it's early) three weeks ago. I've never owned chickens, but my family does and I worked on a farm with a flock of about 30. I noticed this exact same issue on my chicken, and after researching, I've found mixed results.

The first week all the girls were fine. I first noticed some 'spittle' in my oldest plymouth rock's eye around the middle of the second week I had them. She has also stopped laying completely (5 days now, from once a day/every other day) A couple things happened around this time, so I really don't know what this could be or what triggered it.

First, the temp at night dropped to an average of 5-15 degrees from around 30. (I got them a timed heat lamp this week, after this eye spittle didn't go away). This chicken came from a cage with about 30 ducks and 10 chickens, so I'm thinking the change in temp at night may have got her sick?

Second, the day before I noticed this, the chicken in question got pooped on. Directly on her head. She'd decided to nest directly under the roosting pole. I moved some nesting boxes under the pole to eliminate this problem. I didn't think anything of it, and didn't clean it off of her because she was dunking her head in some water already.

The spittle has come and gone for the past week. In the mornings, it's there, in the evening, it's gone. Today I came home and the spittle was dripping from her eye. So, I grabbed her and washed her eye out with some water. I noticed a significant red bump right by her tear duct, where the spittle is exuding from. I cleaned her eye up with a wet rag, trying to scrape off what looked like poop from around her eye.

So, is this an eye infection or a respiratory issue? Chickens love to dig their heads in all kinds of crap, it's strange to me that some poop on her head would get her sick. I will inquire with the individuals posted by casportpony.

Her left eye is in question. The pictures of her right eye are blurry (I took about a dozen but she's fidgety) but you can clearly see how raised the bump is in contrast. When she looks at you straight on, the bump is so raised you can't see her eye.

 

[casportpony]

Hi there,

I noticed this same thing on one of my girls.

My girlfriend surprised me with three chickens for Christmas (I know it's early) three weeks ago. I've never owned chickens, but my family does and I worked on a farm with a flock of about 30. I noticed this exact same issue on my chicken, and after researching, I've found mixed results.

The first week all the girls were fine. I first noticed some 'spittle' in my oldest plymouth rock's eye around the middle of the second week I had them. She has also stopped laying completely (5 days now, from once a day/every other day) A couple things happened around this time, so I really don't know what this could be or what triggered it.

First, the temp at night dropped to an average of 5-15 degrees from around 30. (I got them a timed heat lamp this week, after this eye spittle didn't go away). This chicken came from a cage with about 30 ducks and 10 chickens, so I'm thinking the change in temp at night may have got her sick?

Second, the day before I noticed this, the chicken in question got pooped on. Directly on her head. She'd decided to nest directly under the roosting pole. I moved some nesting boxes under the pole to eliminate this problem. I didn't think anything of it, and didn't clean it off of her because she was dunking her head in some water already.

The spittle has come and gone for the past week. In the mornings, it's there, in the evening, it's gone. Today I came home and the spittle was dripping from her eye. So, I grabbed her and washed her eye out with some water. I noticed a significant red bump right by her tear duct, where the spittle is exuding from. I cleaned her eye up with a wet rag, trying to scrape off what looked like poop from around her eye.

So, is this an eye infection or a respiratory issue? Chickens love to dig their heads in all kinds of crap, it's strange to me that some poop on her head would get her sick. I will inquire with the individuals posted by casportpony.

Her left eye is in question. The pictures of her right eye are blurry (I took about a dozen but she's fidgety) but you can clearly see how raised the bump is in contrast. When she looks at you straight on, the bump is so raised you can't see her eye.

This picture shows swelling as well as a bubble in the corner of her eye and matting of the feathers above and to the back. I'd be willing to bet that it's some type of respiratory virus/infection/disease, not just an eye infection.

 

[austinclarksf]

I had just flushed the eye with water, several times, and scrubbed some stuff(it appeared to be dried poop) off of her eye area with a soft damp bandana. Her feathers were not matted or wet before. I'll post another pic in the morning, or at the latest by this time tomorrow.

 

[cowcreekgeek]

I had just flushed the eye with water, several times, and scrubbed some stuff(it appeared to be dried poop) off of her eye area with a soft damp bandana. Her feathers were not matted or wet before. I'll post another pic in the morning, or at the latest by this time tomorrow.

Sigh....now what? I am pretty new to chickens so I guess I better get to researching.

Although I appreciate the compliment by casportpony? I'd rather she review my slightly edited (de-personalized ~'-) response to austinclarksf's pm, which I'll offer as possibly another 'two birds w/ one post' as the same informations may apply to SistaChick's chicken(s) as well ...

For safety of both the bird and the others, I'd consider isolating, preferably in a manner in which they can continue to see/hear one another ... if it's contagious, then they've most likely all been exposed, but if it's bacterial, then there's less chance of spreading it.

First thing, and I do this pretty much all the time, is switch 'em over from water to an astringent solution of Apple Cider Vinegar, at the rate of four teaspoons to each gallon. It's a treatment for some respiratory diseases/illnesses, as it 'cuts through' coatings w/in the mouth, throat and intestines, and helps 'em to more easily expel mucus. This also improves the uptake of nutrients/vitamins, and boosts their immune system, and helps to prevent intoxification by the toxins produced by botulism, algae poisoning, yellow jasmine, etc. and the list goes on and on, even more than I do. And, this will absolutely not harm the first feather of any chicken.

Get some Johnson & Johnson's 'No More Tears' Baby Shampoo, scrub up your hands to the elbows, and put a few drops into/onto somethin' before goin' near the chicken -- take this approach, w/ all your medical supplies/equipment, so as to never risk contamination of the contents, 'cause this stuff is also useful for you, should you ever notice yourself having discomfort in your eye, 'n figure out it's a stye ... you don't need a lot of it, but extra won't do any real harm; you can literally rub just a very small amount (not even a full drop) directly into both of her eyes, and work it up 'til you can see lather/suds. While it's still in the eyes, wash her head/neck off w/ a warm and very wet soft cloth, stroking always in the same general direction of her feathers. I've been using a spray bottle w/ a few tablespoons each of Murphy's Oil Soap and White Vinegar, and often spray this directly on my birds on warmer sunny afternoons (makin' sure they have time to dry completely before nightfall), but this mixture helps to reduce the number of bacteria 'n such that's on their skin. You'll also wanna pay close attention to the front underside of her wings, as chickens ten to tuck their heads under there as they sleep, which perpetuates the problem.
One more brand-specific item, even if it costs a bit more -- not gonna suggest the ridiculously expensive Neosporin opthalmic solution, as the ingredients are identical to the OTC Neosporin Ointment (but NEVER w/ pain relief, as some of these ingredients are toxic to chickens). You're gonna wanna place it inside the eye, and rub it down 'n under the lids if you can ... and several times a day, 'til well after the bump disappears, which it will, and relatively fast, if it's the result of the typical bacterial infection that one might expect when somebody poops directly into their eye, and further testament as to the low intelligence of poultry.

Now, despite these two immediate treatments havin' a good chance of fixin' your chickens right up? You may be dealin' w/ somethin' else entirely, as sudden drops in egg production coupled w/ the eye goop is often a symptom of infection by disease. Not hopin' to borrow any trouble, but ... coverin' all the bases here, in the format of:
Symptom... Possible Cause;

Eyes:

Watery... Infectious coryza
Blindness... Fowl pox; aspergillosis; Arizona paracolon; paratyphoid
Watery, red, inflamed, closed...
Laryngotracheitis; ammonia burn; Newcastle disease; nutritional
deficiency-vitamin A
Cataracts... Epidemic tremor
Crusts on eye lids... Nutritional deficiency-vitamin A; fowl pox
Pupil irregular, blindness... Marek's disease
Blood in eye... Hemorrhagic anemia
Large, swollen... Mycoplasma infection

Egg Production:

Sudden severe drop ...
Newcastle disease; infectious bronchitis; laryngotracheitis;
influenza-A, mycotoxin, mismanagement (no lights, feed, or water)
Unsatisfactory...
Infectious coryza; fowl cholera; chronic respiratory diseases; diet
deficiencies; gizzard impaction; fowl pox; hepatitis; lice; mites;
ascarids; capillaria; lymphoid leukosis; coccidiosis; enteritis;
pullorum; fowl typhoid; aflatoxicosis; adenovirus infection; toxins
Egg wrinkled, depigmented... Necrotic enteritis; infectious bronchitis
Production pause... Epidemic tremor
Poor shell quality...
Newcastle disease; infectious bronchitis; adenovirus infection; diet
deficiency; T-2 fusariotoxin

Note that I tend to over-think things a bit, but my logic is to identify every possibility, and then (and this part throws some folks off) simply ignore any disease/illness for which there is no effective treatment/cure, so that you can do whatever you can about whatever else it might be ... if it's untreatable? Then, treatment makes no difference, and has no negative impact upon the likely outcome anyhow, so it's always worth givin' it a shot ~'-)

 

[dawg53]

The bubbly eye couldve been caused by the poop dropping on her head and getting in her eye, also there arnt any other respiratory symptoms as you mentioned. Their feces is loaded with bacteria. I recommend that you liberally flush her eye with saline solution. Then put neosporin in her eye for 4-5 days and see if there's improvement. If there isnt any improvement, it could possibly be the onset of a respiratory disease depending on the incubation time of the particular disease.

 

[SistaChick]

Although I appreciate the compliment by casportpony? I'd rather she review my slightly edited (de-personalized ~'-) response to austinclarksf's pm, which I'll offer as possibly another 'two birds w/ one post' as the saonchitis; laryngotracheitis;

Thank you cowcreekgeek