my chicken has a sore eye

[skyenewman]

pressure was put onto my chickens face onto concrete and she has grazed around her face, they eye that was towards the concrete is still there but she wont open the lids. she is eating fine and drinking. i think she is in a lot of shock at the moment. any ideas what i should do?

 

[casportpony]

Welcome to BYC, can you post come pictures?

 

[skyenewman]

yes of course

 

[coach723]

Have you opened the eye and looked at it under the lid? Is the other eye open and normal? Has it gotten worse or better since Saturday? A picture of the eye itself might be helpful.
In general I would flush the eye well with sterile saline or eye wash to remove any debris, and then use either terramycin eye ointment (available at most tractor supply stores) or plain neosporin in the eye 2-3 times a day.

 

[skyenewman]

on sunday we checked on it. it was a lot more red than usual. it seems to be a bit bruised. we pat on it with a bit of cotton wool with warm water and salt. the other one is open yes. she seems to be walking in circles at times aswell. when i try to open the eye she shakes her head very fast so can’t manage to get to it

 

[coach723]

You will likely need a helper to hold her while you look at the eye. You can try wrapping her in a towel like a burrito, and laying her on her back, she may calm down that way. If I may ask, you said she was pressed into the concrete, how did that happen? Is there a chance she may have a head injury? That may be a reason for walking in circles, or she just may be disoriented from only having one eye at the moment. I would keep her crated for now, if she's acting odd or off she may draw an attack from a flock member.