I just hatched a barnyard mix chick (dad is a Easter egger, mom is a Australorp x Cuckoo Bluebar cross) that appears to have one eyeball bulging out of the socket. To my untrained eye this looks like it may be due to skull deformity as opposed to trauma. The right eye (the one that is protruding) is further forward and lower on the side of the head than the left (the left eye looks normal). The chick is behaving normally, but I am not sure of it's outlook going forward. Right now it is in the incubator by itself (where it hatched by itself a couple of hours ago). I am reluctant to place it in the brooder with my other chicks, given their propensity to peck at each other. Does this chick have any practical chance of survival? Do these problems sometimes correct themselves as the bird matures and the bones grow? Could the eyeball be popped back into the socket?
All help/advice is greatly appreciated!
All help/advice is greatly appreciated!