EE pullet acting shocky

[BantyChooks]

Hello,
I have a young pullet that was on the feed box top when I went to close the chickens up. Originally, I thought she was dead as her neck was drooped over the edge but then she tried to stand when I came over. I picked her up and inspected her, No blood, missing feathers, toes and leg all intact and not broken, full crop but not overly so, and all my others have the same fullness too. Not egg binding either. My question is---is this really shock, if so why on earth was she down when all others were roosting and not a sign of a predator anywhere? Thee wooden box was right beneath her normal roost, and she is an early rooster.
She is shaky and her wings are almost dragging on the ground, she walks like she is drunken. Breathing is very fast. She does hold her head normal and slowly stumbles away from me and my flashlight, she has improved somewhat from when I first found her, but I don't know if that's the chicken "Don't let the scary thing see you are hurt" response. I'm hoping I don't go out and find a dead chicken in the morning.
Thanks in advance.

 

[Eggcessive]

Can you see if she will drink some water with electrolytes in it. Gatorade or Pedialyte will do in a pinch. Hold a small cup or bowl up to her beak--dip her beak into the water to get her to take a drink, and then she make drink some on her own. Get her warmed up, by bringing her inside, or setting up a heat lamp. But the water is most important to try first. She could just be very dehydrated, or have a vitamin deficiency, which can look neurological like Mareks. I would feel inside her vent an inch or so for a stuck egg, just in case. Riboflavin (vitamin B2) deficiency can cause the toes to curl under.

 

[casportpony]

This hen really does need to be in a warm place, 80-85 degrees is ideal. If she stays outside there is a very good chance the cold will kill her.

-Kathy

 

[Eggcessive]

It could be dehydration or a vitamin B2 (riboflavin) deiciency, or she may have cocci. I would either treat with vitamins and electrolytes for the vitamin deficiency, or I would start her on Corid. She also may have been injured in some way. Chickens can have all sorts of things that can affect them, but getting dehydrated perhaps from being kept from water by another chicken, can really cause problems fast. Here are some poultry vitamins with electrolytes and here is the Corid if you decide to use them:

These two are fed orally 1 to 3 ml daily by mouth

These 3 are put into the water

 

[casportpony]

Yeah, here's me suggesting Marek's to any other members ever again...

Nonononono, it DID match up really good, that was good reaserch on your part!!! I thought for sure it was mareks for a bit untill her symptoms changed!!

In your first post you said it was not egg binding, so I gotta ask, did you check for an egg? If this ever happens again, with some hens you can tell if they have an egg by gently palpating them. The fatter hens are harder to check that way, so with them I put on a glove, water based lube and very gently insert my finger into their vent. The treatment I use for this is a warm, steamy bathroom, oral fluids and calcium gluconate at 0.2ml per pound orally.

-Kathy

 

[BEEDiAMOND88777]

well it sounds like this little chickens having a hard time.. maybe it broke something. or maybe it is in shock.. if you really dont want loose her then try warming her up and feeling her joints. get a vet if avalable. 40% of living. and 60% of not living for this chicken

 

[Bridebeliever]

Do you know if your chickens have been vaccinated against Marek's? I copied the below information from this article on BYC:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/mareks-virus-the-most-frequently-asked-questions

FAQ
Q: What are the symptoms?

Since now there are more strains of Marek's Virus, there are more symptoms. A chicken could have all , some, or no symptoms at all. Most of us know the classic symptoms, but we do not recognize all the many symptoms that Marek's can have.

- The symptoms may include: paralysis of leg or legs, may have one point forward one backward OR not.
- Cloudy eye, gray eye, or pupil not perfectly round, OR not.
-They may have small tumors all over the outer skin.
Wasting: Appearing to eat but not able to aim and pick up food, or not absorbing the nutrients and calories. Not looking sick until the end
- Paralysis of ANY nerves in the body including nerves to the lungs (causing gasping), crop ,or digestive system not moving food along, (looks like impacted crop. OR not).
- Paralysis of the legs is the easiest to recognize.
- Small tumor lumps all over the body, or not.
- Loss of control of their neck, and can't aim at food and pick it up.
- Wing paralysis, or walking with their wings, or not.
- They can look like there is nothing wrong with them with or without symptoms.
- They may have some symptoms, or, symptoms that seem to come and go. . It may be months before death.
- A necropsy can show tumors on organs. Some appear to just drop dead. It may be because they are wasting (starving) and the weight loss is covered by feathers, so it's not
seen until the last few days before they die.
*I know that's alot to read , please read it several times.

 

[Teila]

Hey Bubbles12345 I am sorry to read that your pullet is unwell.

Sadly, as you probably know, chickens can show signs and symptoms which match up with many different ailments and it can be hard to narrow down the actual cause.

Your gal is no different and I agree that it could be shock or Marek’s as suggested.

I lost a young Silkie in similar circumstances, she had been free ranging with the flock in the afternoon and was absolutely fine when she went to bed. The next morning I found her in the nest box unable to lift her head and sadly, she passed away within a couple of hours.

She may have eaten something she shouldn’t on the free range; she may have been bitten by something or she may have just been so very good at hiding any symptoms until it was too late to do something about it.

I hope your gal survives the night and in the morning you are able to find and fix the cause of her being unwell

 

[BantyChooks]

well it sounds like this little chickens having a hard time.. maybe it broke something. or maybe it is in shock.. if you really dont want loose her then try warming her up and feeling her joints. get a vet if avalable. 40% of living. and 60% of not living for this chicken

I didn't feel any broken bones...there is no vet near, sadly.

Do you think she fell off her roost? She was in the right spot, under it, maybe she was bumped? It's a really high roost, over 6 feet off the ground.

I'd be so devastated if it was Marek's..... Please tell me it's not. Her eyes are normal, and all other chickens are as fat as ticks and healthy.

 

[BantyChooks]

Hey Bubbles12345 I am sorry to read that your pullet is unwell.

Sadly, as you probably know, chickens can show signs and symptoms which match up with many different ailments and it can be hard to narrow down the actual cause.

Your gal is no different and I agree that it could be shock or Marek’s as suggested.

I lost a young Silkie in similar circumstances, she had been free ranging with the flock in the afternoon and was absolutely fine when she went to bed. The next morning I found her in the nest box unable to lift her head and sadly, she passed away within a couple of hours.

She may have eaten something she shouldn’t on the free range; she may have been bitten by something or she may have just been so very good at hiding any symptoms until it was too late to do something about it.

I hope your gal survives the night and in the morning you are able to find and fix the cause of her being unwell

Gulp.... I'm not going to be able to sleep tonight..... She was normal just 3 hours ago, which is why I thought sudden accident.