Lump on Ear

My Golden Wyandotte has a large bump on her ear. What is it? It just started yesterday and is even larger today. She seems to feel fine.

Comments for Lump on Ear

Average Rating starstarstarstarstar

Click here to add your own comments

Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Ear Cyst
by: sharon

You and I are the only ones I know of that have seen this on a chicken. I had a Copper Marans rooster that developed a cyst on one ear, then on the other. They cysts eventually broke open and went away, but the rooster didn't live many months after this.

I was concerned about how close the cysts were to the brain, and concerned about the cysts rupturing and spreading infection internally. I gave antibiotics, which I don't like to give to birds. He lived through winter, but passed away without notice when spring began. He had been eating normally, acting normally, but just died. Possibly the antibiotic weakened his immune system.

So, I would suggest, since my treatment didn't work, that you only treat with topical antibiotics.

If I were dealing with this again, I would possibly open the cysts, and clean out as best I could. Normally I would clean out a cyst with hydrogen peroxide, but being so close to the eyes, I wouldn't do that. I would flush with water, wipe out infected matter with paper towels.
Then I would fill the cyst cavity with an antibiotic ointment, watch daily, re clean if necessary, and apply more ointment.

One of the most common causes for cysts on birds is an ingrown feather. Often, when I have opened and cleaned a cyst, I've found a curled up ingrown feather inside.

I don't think this is a disease or life threatening, and I think it will likely clear up on its own without any treatment. I did a lot of research to learn about the condition and found nothing on line.

The condition in that rooster was what lead me to this web site. I asked about it and no one knew anything. Soon after I started answering questions on this web site, about things I did know and later began writing articles here.

I've raised chickens for about a quarter of a century, talked to a lot of people who also raise chickens, and no one has been able to answer why my rooster got those cysts on his ears.

Click here to add your own comments

Return to Chicken health questions.
Share this page:
Enjoy this page? Please pay it forward. Here's how...

Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it?

  1. Click on the HTML link code below.
  2. Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, your Facebook account, or anywhere that someone would find this page valuable.
Custom Search