I don't know what's wrong

[maneuvers]

Yes I was feeding chunks of fodder and the last time I was cutting some out of the tray I saw mold . I threw it away

 

[maneuvers]

I put trader joes organic real apple cider vinegar in her water. She seems to be eating fine but still no moving

 

[bluefrog87]

I am now more sure it is probably botulism. If you can the epsom salt drip to crop i described earlier would help. Electrolyte treatment with a broad spectrum of vitamins will help

The vet has an antitoxin however it is very expensive and the vet is a personal decision. There are 2 forms of an antitoxin. Both are hard to obtain.

Isolation is best so the hen is not picked on. hand feed and water the best you can


Edited for the following resources

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/19/botulism
http://www.poultryhelp.com/botulism.html
http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/publications/field_manual/chapter_38.pdf

 

[casportpony]

If she's still eating I would suspect Marek's, but I haven't seen botulism, so don't quote me on that.

-Kathy

 

[bluefrog87]

The hen is vaccinated and moldy food was found

 

[casportpony]

The hen is vaccinated and moldy food was found

What I know about botulism is just what I've read and what I read says that will usually progress very quickly, so if she is still alive in 48 hours *and* eating, it's probably not botulism. If you bought her directly from a hatchery and paid for vaccination, she probably is vaccinated, but if you bought her from a feedstore, just know that places like TSC will tell people they are vaccinated when they aren't. Then there's no guarantee that they won't get Marek's even when vaccinated.

-Kathy

 

[Eggcessive]

The hen is vaccinated and moldy food was found

This chick does not have botulism. I suggested it as a possible cause in post #2, but if you read the OP's reply, the chick has not ever been out of the coop. Botulism does not come from mold. Mold can cause aspergillosis or aflatoxin poisoning, but not botulism. Please don't tell someone to give an epsom salt flush to a chick when you don't know what they have. Flushes like that can cause severe diarrhea and dehydration. Don't take this the wrong way, but we need to be cautious when telling a new person to do serious things to their chicks. Even if I'm pretty sure of a case of botulism, it makes me nervous to advise a flush because it could possibly push a weak chick over the edge.

 

[bluefrog87]

This chick does not have botulism. I suggested it as a possible cause in post #2, but if you read the OP's reply, the chick has not ever been out of the coop. Botulism does not come from mold. Mold can cause aspergillosis or aflatoxin poisoning, but not botulism. Please don't tell someone to give an epsom salt flush to a chick when you don't know what they have. Flushes like that can cause severe diarrhea and dehydration. Don't take this the wrong way, but we need to be cautious when telling a new person to do serious things to their chicks. Even if I'm pretty sure of a case of botulism, it makes me nervous to advise a flush because it could possibly push a weak chick over the edge.

I never said flush at all

 

[Eggcessive]

Quote from Bluefrog87:
Give Epsom salt drip to chicken's crop. Treatment: Antitoxin available from vet but expensive. If found early try 1 teaspoon Epsom salts dissolved in 1 ounce warm water dripped into crop several times a day. It's from chickens for dummies on botulism.
I am now more sure it is probably botulism. If you can the epsom salt drip to crop i described earlier would help.


The above would be an epsom salt flush, according to most links I have read. Yes, you called it a drip. Anyway, I wouldn't do this if I were the OP.

 

[Eggcessive]

Maneuvers, how is your chick doing? Many people on BYC have reported Mareks symptoms in chicks who were supposedly vaccinated. It takes 2 weeks or more for chicks to develop immunity after vaccination, which means if there has ever been a chicken on the property with Mareks (like on an old farm) they could get exposed before immune. I live on a very old farm myself, and I have always worried about Mareks. My first hatchery chicks were vaccinated, but the ones I have hatched with broodies or an incubator have not. Some say that Mareks can last 7 years in the environment, but I suppose it could last much longer. Do you have any old lead paint on buildings around your coop?