[Silkysmooth]

My black rock's are now Ill!

It started with one of them yesterday...She had bubbles in one eyes coming out near the conjunctiva and today that eye has closed totally and stuck together. The other eye is now full of bubbles coming out.

I took a look at the other two black rocks and they both have bubbles coming out of their eyes on one side!

The vet on monday gave me antibiotics for them all for 7 days but I have started them today (been given them due to the gapeworm from the still Ill rhode island).

They are oxytetracycline 50 and it sounds like they have mycoplasma! would this antibiotic be effective? and is it likely to be mycoplasma?

I'm just despairing at the moment...very sad about it all

Many thanks

[newatthis]

hi, so sorry to hear about the bad luck, it might be best to phone the vet and ask if it would work,
some one better to say whats best will be along soon to help

[joyfull]

I am on my third lot of antibiotics with my sablepoots, they have been on aureomycin which is chlortetracycline hydrochloride, then they went on this plus Denegard tiamulin which is tiamulin hydrogen fumarate, and now they are on tylan which is tylosin tartate. If your vet has prescribed it for this treatmant then hopefully it will work but my two have had problems since Winter so are pretty imune to some. My vet has now taken swabs to see what will cure them.
Do the chickens sound rattly when they breath?

[Silkysmooth]

They don't sound rattly - just bubbles and looking ill - sleeping lots and always in the coop

[Evansent]

I think Baytril is usually prescribed for myco.

C x

[joyfull]

and tylan and aureomycin and denegard and loads more 

[Evansent]

Do you sometimes get the feeling that the vets are just hedging their bets with chickens?

I quite often get more sound advice from my cousins partner, who is a veternary nurse and a chicken breeder!

C x

[rossivale]

Sorry to hear about your hens Silkysmooth.

Since finding bubbles on my hens eye yesterday, I have done a little bit of googleing, and it does seem a problem for many at this moment in time. 

Is it mycoplasma more "active" this time of year?

Lets hope our hens pick up soon, I will be off to the vets with mine tomorrow, after I have made a few phone calls to see which practice will be most suitable.

Jo

[Silkysmooth]

Thanks for all your replies!

I have just been down to the allotment to lock them in for the night. I had a close inspection of ALL of the birds and MOST of them have got these bubbles in their eyes with one of the silkies having an eye glued together.

I shall contact the vet in the morning about whether oxytetracycline will be good or if there is a better option!

do you know the mortality from this disease and if/how many times it can reoccur?

Thanks once again

[Silkysmooth]

A pic of the poor chucks eye!

[Silkysmooth]

And the other eye... which is sealed shut!

[joyfull]

they are never cured from this and it can reoccur at any time when the bird is stressed. It can also be passed through to their eggs so you should never breed from them. It is contageous as you have found out so all birds will need treatment but if you find an antibiotic that works for your girls then mortality is quite low I think. The key though is quick treatment as it is with any illness.
As for vets hedging their bets there are many respiritory infections that all look similar and some antibiotics will work for one and not the other which is why I have opted for swabs to be cultivated on my sablepoots. At my vets practice there are three vets that know about chickens (and one lived in South Africa with guinea fowl so I am chuffed about that) and one is in charge of vetinary care for some very large turkey breeding sheds so I trust their opinions. Often with humans doctors have to try several treatments to find one that will suit a particular patient so why should chickens be any different?