Swollen eyelids

[chrismahon]

We have something weird going on here. All the Orpingtons and some Wyandottes have swollen eyelids. Our pet Orpington cock 'Bottom' has the same. Close inspection reveals what appears to be a build-up of fat at the edge of the eyelids. Another issue is they are very slow to start laying again, even though they are fully feathered and have good daylight here being 1 ¼ hours more than they would get in the UK. Some of them feel very heavy indeed.

We have a problem with feed. As I am flying to the UK now I can't bring back any Smallholder layers pellets. The layers pellets here are compounded as an addition to true free ranging -no boundary fences. As such they are just meant to be part of the diet, the rest being what they gather, so they contain a massive 5.6% calcium. On it's own that is far too much for our contained flocks so we have been mixing it with growers pellets. Moving South to Gascony meant that the growers we got in Dordogne (Sanders) were unavailable. We have been buying the only stuff we had found which actually is designed for young chickens with just 0.7% calcium (Maisador's own brand). It is since we switched growers pellets that the swollen eyelids problem has become apparent. Now reading the label as best I can (should have tried earlier) reveals that the growers is designed for chicks 29 -52 days old. It also contains several ACS additives and carries a 5 day meat withdrawal period!!! I think it has a high proportion of Maize to fatten and yellow the birds ready for market, as that's the way they like to see them here.

Apart from the fact that we may be slightly poisoning our old birds with ACS I think that we have unwittingly over-fattened them. Has anyone seen a fat build up under the eyelids of birds fed on a maize rich diet before? Or has anyone seen fat hens with fat eyelids?

We will be changing our feed immediately. Bottom has been hyperactive recently and I think it may be the ACS additives or the 'Isophones' as warned about on the label. Fortunately today we have found a supplier of the previous Sanders growers we used to use (poulet poulette as opposed to poulet jeune croissant.) Fingers crossed things will get back to normal and all we have lost is €30 of feed.

 

[dinosaw]

Sorry to hear about your problem Chris, I can't answer for chickens but I know that in humans fat deposits on the eyelids is a symptom of high cholestorol so your thinking makes sense, hope the change in feed solves it for you.

 

[Margaid]

if you're not happy with the pellets you can buy have you though about mixing your own feed? Your main problem, if you can get the ingredients, is the amount you would have to mix for your birds. I've fed mine on the mixed grain diet recommended by Castlefarmeggs since I got them and have always had fantastic tasting well coloured eggs. They are on layers pellets now because my friend who kept the feed now has over 30 hens and is worried about rats as she is storing three or four different lots of grain etc (she ought to invest in some feed bins but it isn't the way she works). As my hens have to be rehomed it wasn't worth me getting the mount of grain etc needed to do the mix and they're not laying so I don't mind them eating soya protein.

 

[chrismahon]

We've been looking into feeding ours grain Margaid. We can't get anything much apart from wheat, barley, maize and sunflower seeds. Then there is all the stuff needed for trace elements? Then we would need storage space. The problem we have is the labelling on the premixed feed. Nothing on the bag mentioned 'medicated' -the three ACS additives were near the bottom of a very long list. We have switched feed now so hopefully things will pick up. We have three cockerels that seem 'under the weather' and doing green tinged poos. They are otherwise perfectly healthy but just a bit 'droopy' and I think it is the ACS additives. We should know in a week or so when the stuff has had time to clear their system. We have stopped mixed corn treats and give them a generous helping of wheat with sunflower seeds in the evening which they all go crazy for!

We still have birds moulting. Some are second time round this year and I think it is due to the sunshine and weather. They came from an enclosure in near darkness all year in the Dordogne. Even now it can be below zero at night and 30 degrees in the sun at midday. Looks like Summer may be rather hot!

 

[Margaid]

In the winter my birds were fed 4 parts wheat to 2 parts maize to one part rolled barley. The summer feed was 3 wheat, 1 maize, 1 barley. Their treats are live mealworms and sunflower seeds. The older books talk about adding other stuff but if they free range they should pick up whatever else they need. I haven't checked my hens for weight and their in 800 sq metres now but my friend says hers were all a good weight - they free range properly. Cocky, who is about 20 months old is magnificent - I just hope I can find good home for him if he isn't taken tomorrow with the leghorns.

The maize gives them enough body fat to keep warm in the winter - Castle Farm is 1000' feet up and very windy. My enclosure is also exposed to the wind. I expect you could cut down the maize even more in the summer. Provided they have access to oyster shell there's no need to feed growers and layers differently. Dave starts the chicks on medicated crumb but then they go on to the grain diet. I've seen hens of all ages, including broodies with small chicks all running around together without any problems - even the young cockerels were mixing with them. It was only the breeding groups that were kept separate. I know you have other constraints like the chasse.

Hope they all perk up once the additives have cleared their system.

 

[chrismahon]

Well to follow up, after a week off the dodgy pellets the cockerels are more active and the puffy eyes are subsiding. One cockerel didn't respond and has gone onto antibiotics -green tinged poos, purple comb, difficulty breathing and swallowing, generally lethargic and not mentally alert, his 'doodle' is raspy. We thought he has some kind of throat infection which is causing swelling in the neck. This is restricting the blood supply, his throat and his airway. After two days there has been a substantial improvement so we hope Merlin is on the mend as he is a lovely natured chap and respected by his girls.