Immobile hen

[Fishsticks06]

Hey everyone, I’ll try to condense this with as much necessary information as possible. I have a hen who is about 9-10 lbs (rooster size, not obese) that suddenly became lame in her right leg one morning. She keeps tilting her head up slowly and jerking it back down often, and her balance also seems to be poor. She has been separated in a small coop where she can eat and drink and has managed to move around a little by crawling. She’s about 2 years old, it’s not hot here or in the coop, and the back of her comb turned purple which makes me think circulatory issue /stroke. Any advice would help, thanks.

 

[Patiocoturnix]

Hey everyone, I’ll try to condense this with as much necessary information as possible. I have a hen who is about 9-10 lbs (rooster size, not obese) that suddenly became lame in her right leg one morning. She keeps tilting her head up slowly and jerking it back down often, and her balance also seems to be poor. She has been separated in a small coop where she can eat and drink and has managed to move around a little by crawling. She’s about 2 years old, it’s not hot here or in the coop, and the back of her comb turned purple which makes me think circulatory issue /stroke. Any advice would help, thanks.

Sounds like some neurological issues I will tag some people that know how to take care of this I hope she gets better.
@azygous @Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hey everyone, I’ll try to condense this with as much necessary information as possible. I have a hen who is about 9-10 lbs (rooster size, not obese) that suddenly became lame in her right leg one morning. She keeps tilting her head up slowly and jerking it back down often, and her balance also seems to be poor. She has been separated in a small coop where she can eat and drink and has managed to move around a little by crawling. She’s about 2 years old, it’s not hot here or in the coop, and the back of her comb turned purple which makes me think circulatory issue /stroke. Any advice would help, thanks.

Can you get video of her movements? Upload video to youtube and provide a link.

What breed is she?
What do you feed?

When was her last egg?

What's her crop like?
What's her poop like - photos?

Tilting the head up - can you look inside her beak for any obstruction, mucous or canker?
Look inside her ear for any infection, pus or mites?

If you haven't done so, separate her out with her own food/water - make sure she can reach the food and water easily.

Hard to know what's going on with her.

 

[azygous]

It won't hurt anything to give her a vitamin E capsule with a little egg. It could help her, but it would also help us come up with what's wrong.

 

[Fishsticks06]

Can you get video of her movements? Upload video to youtube and provide a link.

What breed is she?
What do you feed?

When was her last egg?

What's her crop like?
What's her poop like - photos?

Tilting the head up - can you look inside her beak for any obstruction, mucous or canker?
Look inside her ear for any infection, pus or mites?

If you haven't done so, separate her out with her own food/water - make sure she can reach the food and water easily.

Hard to know what's going on with her.

I don’t know her breed, she’s just a large white chicken. I saved her from an overcrowding incident a year ago. I feed standard layer pellets and give them grains occasionally, and they have access to outside grass all day so I don’t know everything she eats outside but I assure you she isn’t chemically intoxicated. Don’t know when she’s last laid. Her poop is more liquid white and light green (she hasn’t eaten much). She struggled to eat or drink without assistance. She is seperate, and none of her tracts seem obstructed. Should I give her a general antibiotic to be sure? Here’s a photo of her. Sorry she looks so rough but she’s also been molting recently.

 

[Fishsticks06]

I don’t know her breed, she’s just a large white chicken. I saved her from an overcrowding incident a year ago. I feed standard layer pellets and give them grains occasionally, and they have access to outside grass all day so I don’t know everything she eats outside but I assure you she isn’t chemically intoxicated. Don’t know when she’s last laid. Her poop is more liquid white and light green (she hasn’t eaten much). She struggled to eat or drink without assistance. She is seperate, and none of her tracts seem obstructed. Should I give her a general antibiotic to be sure? Here’s a photo of her. Sorry she looks so rough but she’s also been molting recently.

I cleaned the dirty out of her nose after this photo; her nostrils aren’t clogged or runny, she’s just been falling on her face a lot.

 

[azygous]

I'm jumping in to assist @Wyorp Rock who will be back later today.

First, the darkened comb only at the rear doesn't necessarily indicate a circulation problem. Combs are sometimes mood indicators. If a chicken becomes stressed or upset, the comb may darken on certain portions. A uniformly darkened comb is what to be concerned about.

It's hard to say what could be going on with this hen. The head movement could be a symptom of torticollis. It's why I suggested trying vitamin E. Have you done that? See response window #4.

What does her poop look like? A photo would help. If you can photograph it on a neutral background so we can see it easily, it would be best.

Is she having trouble finding her food and eating? Can she drink okay on her own?

how long has this been going on?

 

[Fishsticks06]

I'm jumping in to assist @Wyorp Rock who will be back later today.

First, the darkened comb only at the rear doesn't necessarily indicate a circulation problem. Combs are sometimes mood indicators. If a chicken becomes stressed or upset, the comb may darken on certain portions. A uniformly darkened comb is what to be concerned about.

It's hard to say what could be going on with this hen. The head movement could be a symptom of torticollis. It's why I suggested trying vitamin E. Have you done that? See response window #4.

What does her poop look like? A photo would help. If you can photograph it on a neutral background so we can see it easily, it would be best.

Is she having trouble finding her food and eating? Can she drink okay on her own?

how long has this been going on?

Hey; sorry for the delayed response. Been busy with family. She isn’t pooping much (this is the only i could find). All of this happened overnight. I woke up one morning and she was laying on the coop floor and wasn’t able to get up. She can move around a little bit but she can’t pivot. I find her in corners and need to rotate her to food and water. I haven’t seen her eat yet but I think she has been (even by a little). I’ll make some mash for her tomorrow. When she tries to drink, she has poor motor skills. She sometimes cannot aim her beak into the water and sometimes tips over completely. I don’t think it’s wry neck, as the head jerks are very subtle. She wasn’t doing it when I got up to her but she might tomorrow morning and I’ll try to video it whenever I can.

Thanks for the help.

 

[azygous]

Wry neck comes in all kinds of different forms. It isn't just a neck thing. If you would try the vitamin E, it might help us get to what's actually wrong by process of elimination. There is no other way to do it because we are out here in internet land, not physically there with you and your hen.

I hate to blurt out the worst case scenario, but it sure looks like chickens I've had in my flock that made it to a few years old and then became symptomatic with lymphoid leucosis, an avian virus similar to Marek's. My flock carries the leucosis virus. I'm very familiar with it in its many forms.

However, we should try other things first before we talk about this being one of those deadly viruses. What I recommend trying, besides vitamin E 400iu once a day with egg, is vitamin B-complex, one table a day for the next two or three weeks. Pop these pills right into her beak. These vitamins can repair damaged nerve connections. Get them were you buy people vitamins.

You said it hasn't been hot there. But has there been anything that might have caused this hen a lot of stress? Predator attack? A vicious toddler attack? Attack by another hen? Rooster aggression? Stress and subsequent shock can produce symptoms just like your hen has. The treatment for that, even if you don't necessarily suspect it, is give her sugar water, one teaspoon sugar in one cup water.

Starvation also produces these same symptoms, so the sugar water can raise glucose and provide enough energy to get the hen standing and eating again.

Our goal is to help you get this hen well and back to normal, not come up with a diagnosis. By trying each of these suggestions, you are doing things that can return a weak hen back to normal as long as there are no other underlying medical issues.

And, if you do all these things that have been suggested, and none of them work, then you are closer to finding out what's making her sick.

 

[Fishsticks06]

Wry neck comes in all kinds of different forms. It isn't just a neck thing. If you would try the vitamin E, it might help us get to what's actually wrong by process of elimination. There is no other way to do it because we are out here in internet land, not physically there with you and your hen.

I hate to blurt out the worst case scenario, but it sure looks like chickens I've had in my flock that made it to a few years old and then became symptomatic with lymphoid leucosis, an avian virus similar to Marek's. My flock carries the leucosis virus. I'm very familiar with it in its many forms.

However, we should try other things first before we talk about this being one of those deadly viruses. What I recommend trying, besides vitamin E 400iu once a day with egg, is vitamin B-complex, one table a day for the next two or three weeks. Pop these pills right into her beak. These vitamins can repair damaged nerve connections. Get them were you buy people vitamins.

You said it hasn't been hot there. But has there been anything that might have caused this hen a lot of stress? Predator attack? A vicious toddler attack? Attack by another hen? Rooster aggression? Stress and subsequent shock can produce symptoms just like your hen has. The treatment for that, even if you don't necessarily suspect it, is give her sugar water, one teaspoon sugar in one cup water.

Starvation also produces these same symptoms, so the sugar water can raise glucose and provide enough energy to get the hen standing and eating again.

Our goal is to help you get this hen well and back to normal, not come up with a diagnosis. By trying each of these suggestions, you are doing things that can return a weak hen back to normal as long as there are no other underlying medical issues.

And, if you do all these things that have been suggested, and none of them work, then you are closer to finding out what's making her sick.

Alright. I know there’s nothing I can do if it’s Mareks, and I don’t know if the previous owner had them vaccinated so it’s always a possibility.

I’ll try everything listed and get back to you if her condition better or worsens.