Chicken bald back

[chickenNutter]

Because I am a soft mug, I have recently taken on an 18 month old blind cuckoo silkie and her sighted sister. The poultry farm where I got her considered the blindness to be as a result of cataracts, and she is healthy, and seems to find her way about by chatting constantly with her sister.

 

Her eyes are clean although the lower lid of one bulges slightly, and they are like large black misty pools, but I have noticed that she shakes her head, just little intermittent flicks, so I was wondering if this was a sign of discomfort, and I came across a posting somewhere on the internet from someone who believed their bird had mites in the iris of its eye, and who had treated it successfully with Ivermectin. Of course I now cant find the posting, but wondered if anyone else had any views on whether I should try Ivermectin anyway, take her to the vet, or just let her get on with life. I could do without a trip to the vets as I have just spent over £100 at the vets following a fox attack, but if she needs it then obviously we will have to go.

 

She is very sweet, has been nicknamed 'Stevie' (Wonder) and I have adapted the run to make it safer for her, my hubby has even made little disabled ramps into and out of the run and into and out of the Eglu, as she interprets every ledge as a wall and just stops. Although she is a bit labour intensive, teaching her where to find food, and helping her in and out every morning and night, we are loving having her. I just want to make sure that she is not suffering with her eyes.

 

Any suggestions?

[Beantree]

The Iris will enlarge to compensate for low light conditions ChickenNutter. So something is telling her eyes that it is dark and the cataracts theory fits. We have chickens that flick their heads. I've checked for ear mites. They otherwise seem perfectly healthy and I wonder if they are just responding to the sound of movement of small flying insects like midges?

 

I find the eye mites theory a bit implausible. But perhaps the Ivermectin tackled something else? Have you checked her eye response with a torch? If her Iris contracts she can see something and that would confirm cataracts.

[mollyripkim]

Thats so lovely that you took her on, she sounds happy enough. I have silkies and they do shake their heads, particularly if I talk to them they do that chattering noise and sort of twitch their heads. They are over four years old now so its definitely normal for them and wonder if she does the same in response to noise, I wonder if her hearing is much better as often if someone is blind another sense is enhanced.

[chickenNutter]

I haven't checked her eyes with a torch Beantree, so I m not sure if she has any residual sight, but if you pretend to swat at her eyes she doesn't react, so I do think she has no sight at all.

 

Just hoping she is not in pain or irritation. I think it will be a long time before she works out where everything is. I don't think silkies are the sharpest tools in the box generally!