I have one or two birds a year with this condition. Some years none of them will show this swelling so it is not very contagious.
I looked up Wet Pox on the Mississippi State University web site
This is just an extract from the article please go the the above website to read the entire article.
"Wet pox is associated with the oral cavity and the upper respiratory tract, particularly the larynx and trachea. The lesions are diphtheritic in character and involve the mucous membranes to such a degree that when removed, an ulcerated or eroded area is left."
The mass was removed from below the eye not in the larynx or trachea and was not attached to any tissue it popped right out after the incision was made.
I also sent my pictures to:
David A. Halvorson, DVM
College Of Veterinary Medicine
University of Minnesota
His response follows:
"Below the eye of birds is a sinus - called the infra-orbital sinus -
that is connected to the nasal cavity. Any respiratory disease that
affects that area can cause "sinusitis" or inflammation of the sinus.
Usually this inflammation is associated with a liquid exudate that
can drain naturally into the nasal cavity. Sometimes this exudate
solidifies into a yellowish mass - sort of solid pus - and then is
unable to be removed naturally by the chicken. That is what your
chicken's mass seems to be.
There are probably several respiratory infections that can cause this
type of mass.
From this information I do not think it was a form of fowl pox, but a sinus infection that got out of control.