2nd UPDATE: 2 of 4 chicks with wry neck, questions answerd and possible cause discovered

I've googled and searched for treatment options and have seen many positive ones here on BYC. I am currently trying to get it rectified. Blanche, is in the worst shape because she started showing signs last night, but I thought she was trying to itch all the feathers coming in(faster than the other 3). The last few hours I realized what it was as it progressed, this is what I am using:

• 2 TBS Pedialyte
• 2 drops Baby Vitamin
• 100 units Vitamin E (squirt out half a capsule)
• 50 mcg Selenium (1/4 tablet crushed)

a few drops every 3 hours. I just noticed Dorothy showing the very beginning signs, since I couldn't find Poly vi sol without iron in it, I got tri vi sol (all that was available w/out iron) instead. Blanche seems to be responding, slowly but surely.

I guess I just want a little encouragement if any of you out there have experienced it. Am I doing it right? I added a 1/2 dropper full of the vitamin drops to the waterer (quartt sized) since Dorothy isn't as advanced yet. Is it ok for the others to have that in the waterer if they don't seem to be showing signs? I also used the above solution and made a paste mixed with their starter crumbles for just in case.

I have Blanche isolated in a separate brooder because I notice if she gets startled by the other chicks fluttering around and pecking at her she seizes up. The plan right now, keep her calm and comfy in the bedroom with us, and try to be proactive with Dorothy and the others.

Sorry for the rambling, I'm just a bit freaked out. If anyone has any other suggestions to add in addition to what else I have seen, please feel free. Thanks, y'all.

2ND UPDATE: They were on a medicated feed up until yesterday. I didn't discover the medicated feed depletes vitamins until late last night. I bought a new bag of unmedicated food and they are on that now. I had NO IDEA about vitamin supplements being necessary. luckily, thanks to all the help of the BYC community, I think I caught it just in time to prevent the other 2 from going down the same road. Fingers are crossed and prayers are being said! So, thanks!

There are chicken vitamins at most feed stores that can be measured to go in a gallon of water. Look for Rooster Booster vitamins with lactobacillus. Otherwise you can give Polyvisol 2-3 drops by mouth to each chicken daily. Poutry NutriDrench or Poultry Cell liquid vitamins can be used 1 ml daily by mouth. Wry neck can be very frustrating to treat since it can be caused by head injuries, vitamin deficiency, brain inflammation, or from diseases such as Mareks and avian leukosis and others. Selenium is found in eggs, ground meats, fish, and nuts.

Eggcessive said:

There are chicken vitamins at most feed stores that can be measured to go in a gallon of water. Look for Rooster Booster vitamins with lactobacillus. Otherwise you can give Polyvisol 2-3 drops by mouth to each chicken daily. Poutry NutriDrench or Poultry Cell liquid vitamins can be used 1 ml daily by mouth. Wry neck can be very frustrating to treat since it can be caused by head injuries, vitamin deficiency, brain inflammation, or from diseases such as Mareks and avian leukosis and others. Selenium is found in eggs, ground meats, fish, and nuts.

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Thanks Eggcessive!

Blanche perked up for a minute but she's in bad shape now. Dorothy, isn't advanced as she is, but it's coming. I will have to get the polyvisol, since I don't the the trivysol is enough of the right things. How long do I give them the vitamins for? do I continue until they reach 8 weeks or beyond? Provided, they make it that far. I'm a little worried for them.

is there a reason that iron is not recommended? I see tha tit is in the Rooster Booster Poultry Cell.

So, I ended up finding the polvyisol around midnight. I gave both birds the proper dosage, added it to the waterer for the 2 healthy chicks. So far, they show no signs(yet). Dorothy had gotten a bit worse, but does seem to respond a little. Blanche, the one worse off, Is responding more heartily, but it is back and forth. She slept through the night, on my chest, with no episodes of the seizing and neck twisting. Sometimes, she can stand up on her own and be 99% straight. Oddly enough, she managed to fly out of the brooder I had her in, and when I came back into the room, there she was, just walking around like nothing ever happened. She came straight to me and stood on my foot and even ran after me into the kitchen. Both birds are eating and drinking. I even tried to give them some egg. Not sure how well I am administering the dosages, but I am trying.

My main concern now, is keeping Blanche warm out of the brooder. She seems to prefer roaming freely, but my house isn't ever above 71, maybe a little higher in our bedroom. Warmest room in the house. currently, she is asleep on my chest again and likes to walk around on the bed(I have it protected with old towels and sheets). As long as she is near me, she responds well. Not sure how to protect Dorothy from the others, being separated freaks her out too much and she hates being held, touched, or bothered with the dropper.
I would like to know now, given the odd turn off events for Blanche's preferences, is it safe for her to spend this much time out of a heat lamp? I have an electric blanket on the bed, but she is most comfortable ON me. LOL
The only other heat source is a regular 100 watt bulb in a reflector base. It seems blindingly bright. Can that mess up her eyesight? I appreciate anyone who is out there listening and am thankful for all who have responded to my long winded newbie issues.

Well I'll be darned! It's an EAR INFECTION! That explains everything. And now looking back, they were the only two I remebwr scratching their ears a lot. Way before the wry neck started. I dabbed a teeny tiny amount of warm Vet Rx on her swollen ear last night, now she's a totally different girl. Still has spasms & pain but her energy level is through the roof. Now, I guess I'm off to google how to treat it.

At the top of the page do a search for "gunky ears" and read Dawg53's post about how to deal with it.

Eggcessive said:

At the top of the page do a search for "gunky ears" and read Dawg53's post about how to deal with it.

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haha! I think I searched/googled everything except "gunky ears". I see no visible gunk, though. (?) just very swollen. I thought there was, but on closer inspection, it's the hairs.



I plan to try an antibiotic starting tomorrow. both birds are much more active the last 24 hours. Especially Dorothy. I had thought for sure she was a goner. The supplements are improving her condition, but I feel like antibiotics may help them progress a bit more and prevent the infection from spreading or getting worse. I had forgotten that a friend of mine is a vet in Atlanta( we lost touch for a few years) and she put me in touch with her vet friend who clued me in to the possibility of ear infection. Lo and behold, I take a look at their ears compared to the 2 healthy ones, bingo! Then it dawned on me, I never saw the other 2 scratching their ears a whole lot. If at all. Blanche and Dorothy have been scratching their ears since long before the wry neck symptoms started and they still are. I feel kinda silly for freaking out and thinking they had Crazy Chicken Disease. I have bookmarked the post from Dawg53. That is some good to know info. I am probably going to start keeping stuff printed out in a notebook so I can reference it when I need to. Now I need to find the thread where I learn how to make a very spoiled chick understand that sleeping on my chest every night in my bed, isn't a permanent set up. Is there a thread for that?

So far, so good. I adjusted temps on feed & water for Dorothy and Blanche who were in quarantines. That seemed to help Dorothy's crop issue. I had the temps too cool and with everything else going on it was slowing her digestion down. I began treating them for ear infections with VetRX, improvements were slow for Dorothy but as soon as I put her on a broad spectrum antibiotic, zero symptoms anymore. Her neck is only slightly crooked but as she gets bigger and stronger each day, I notice it gets better. Blanche is also much better and shows almost no signs of the wry neck either. I have continued with the Pedialyte/Poly/VitE/Selenium solution and will do so for a few days after Dorothy is done with her meds. As far as worrying about Dorothy losing her place at the top of the pecking order? Clearly she has no problem there. LOL I let her and Blanche(who's much larger now) out to play together and Dorothy immediately reminded us who the boss lady is. I am quite pleased with this outcome. And quite thankful to all of you who helped me through it.

So, I just thought y'all might be amused to find out: Dorothy, who I treated for this wry neck so long ago, is actually Stanley!

Turns out, "she" was a rooster all along. Both birds are currently doing well. They're pretty awesome. I was reminded of this thread by a mention of wry neck today. Here they are a few weeks ago. The only evidence of their former condition is when Stanley runs he's goofy as heck. It's only noticed by me when I am handling them. I can feel where both of their necks have a slight leftover twist. But it's really barely noticeable even to me.