[Bumblebee1]

Hello, I am hoping someone with some knowledge of chicken eye problems can help me!  My bantam cockerel, Barney, has a problem with one eye - the left side of his head is swollen and when he opens his eye, the place where his eye should be is just red - no pupil, nothing, just red.  Has he lost his eye? He is acting perfectly normally, seems to be his usual happy self.  Whatever has happened would only have happened between putting them to bed on Thursday night and getting them up yesterday morning. 

I have taken a photo of it, not sure how to post it on here though

[Bumblebee1]

Ah, here's a photo - someone please help me, he was supposed to be re-homed yesterday and I can't take him until this is sorted - I dread a huge vet bill

[bantam novice]

Hello Bumblebee1 and welcome to the forum  
I'm so sorry to hear about your cockerel   I am not an expert but it sounds as if you may need to take him to a chicken-friendly vet.  
You say he is doing the normal chickeny things.  Is he is eating, drinking and poohing OK?
When was the last time he was wormed or treated for external parasites?
Does he have a temperature?  You can take this by feeling under the wing of one of your other birds and then under his to see if he feels hotter.
I'm sure some more experienced people will be along with advice, in the meantime good luck with Barney and keep us posted.
As I was typing you posted your photo so I will have a look

[Bumblebee1]

Thanks so much for your reply - he doesn't like to be picked up until bedtime, so unfortunately I can't tell his temperature this morning - last night he had a bedtime cuddle and didn't feel hotter than usual though.  Yes, he is eating, drinking and poohing as normal, scratching around just as he always does and seems perfectly happy.  I did call an emergency vet and she didn't know what it could be but advised me to bathe the eye with tepid water.  I did that last night and Barney really didn't enjoy it at all, so I am guessing it was painful when I touched it.

[bantam novice]

Oh poor Barney that does look inflamed
It looks as if he needs some antibiotic eye drops.  I am not a vet but it looks as if the internal eyelid is inflamed and I can see something that looks like little red speckles around the inflamed area.  
If he is doing all the usual chickeny things then I would take him in tomorrow to the vet but keep him isolated.  Hens can peck at red areas and may be tempted to peck at his eye.
Good luck and let us know how you get on.

[Bumblebee1]

Thanks for your reply and advice - I did take Barney to the vet, and he had a shot and some eye drops, but by the Tuesday the abscess was swollen to the same size as his head, so I had to let the vet put him down
Very sad to lose Barney, but am hoping to get a replacement in the form of a cuckoo frizzle pekin next week as my girls are missing having a boy about the house!

[bantam novice]

Oh I'm so sorry to hear that 
You did everything you could for Barney.  What area do you live in?  I am looking for a home for my four month old cuckoo Pekin that I am almost sure is a boy.  He/She is not a frizzle but is very handsome.  Mind you s/he hasn't started to crow yet so might turn out to be a girl 

[Bumblebee1]

Hello - ooh, I'm near Tidworth in Wiltshire and see you are in Somerset - whereabouts in Somerset are you? Have you got any photos you could post?

[Anndee]

Wish you lived near York, Yorkshire. I am looking to rehome a lovely lemon cuckoo Pekin cockerel about 20 weeks old.    I need a good permanent home for him