Leg paralysis in hen-sudden onset

[LuvLexi]

GREAT NEWS! Buffy is now walking and standing really well! She gets a little wobbly every now and then but she still regaining the strength in her feet and legs day by day! I would have to say that she is 95% better and I couldn't be happier!

I am now monitoring her food intake and only allow her to eat about 3 to 4 times a day and I also changed her feeder to a poultry feeder rather then the plastic bowl I was using! Hope this may be of some help to others!

 

[LuvLexi]

Also, I am still giving them electrolytes, vitamins, and antibiotics in their water just in a lesser dose!

 

[Dar]

can you describe her legs?

I have a NN who is about 10 weeks old and 3 days ago she was fine, 2 days ago she was found lying on her side I thought she was dead but she was not... then we thought it was the heat... so when i checked on her yesterday she had not moved and at noon her crop was empty so i offered her food and she would not take it so I started force feeding her. I opened her beak and placed layer feed that was mixed with water to a paste n her beak and she swollowed.. I repeated this process till her crop was plump but not over full.

today she is eating on her own I am still offering her mush because i cant put water or food in her cage in case she spills it i dont want her lying in it and making matters worse but I offer her food/water many times throughout the day

we have made her a nest/donut for support to keep her right side up, we rolled a towel length wise and then formed that into a ring.

if she is not on her "nest" she will flop over on her back feet straight out, if i have her out in my arms she will tuck her legs but wont keep them under her... think about the frist time a kid goes ice skating... mom or dad holds their hands or under the arm pits and the kids feet go straight out front... thats what this reminds me of. she will weight-bear only about 50% of her weight

I have her on a chicken multi vitamin and on penicillin... I am going to start vit B tomorrow morning

 

[annewildey]

Yesterday one of my hens had leg paralysis. She was breathing heavily and looked in pain. Earlier she had made a loud clucking noise followed by an alarm cluck. I checked the nesting box and found the most enormous egg. Looking on the internet I found a reference to PEP - post egg paralysis, caused by damage to the nerves to the legs running close to the reproductive area. It seemed to make sense to me, and as the day wore on and after a good massage from me she began to improve. By the end of the day she was fine. Today she has layed a normal size egg but sounded like she was a bit sore as she made the same noise as yesterday. Hope that helps anyone with similar experience.

 

[TheMotherHen]

I am very glad to hear your hen is doing good. I had never heard about PEP. Strange! I hope someone can use this great bit of information you have shared. My little Chiclet is still doing good after her bout with paralysis a year and a half ago - her legs tire easily but she is a very happy hen and we like to sit together under the sun umbrella and read. I don't have to worry about her running off.

 

[littlebluechick]

Agreed.

 

[Daniel Lee]

Hi Everyone

I have a backyard flock of chickens and 1 of my hens is experiencing leg paralysis as well. She appears perfectly health in every other way expect sitting down a lot.

They have a diet of layers pellets, scratch, fresh greens etc. I have wormed and de loused them but the symptoms in this particular hen continuous .

Dose any one have any ideas????

Daniel

 

[moms]

Wow, you guys, I'm sitting her dumbfounded. I never had any idea about chicken paralysis. My little Butter girl got it Sunday. All of sudden, she was fine one minute and paralyzed the next. I'm heartsick. She is separated from the others, but she was with them till yesterday till i started reading all these threads. What do you do with a paralyzed chicken? She will not eat or drink, how can she possibly survive? We are now on the third day, actually 3 and half days. This happened last Sunday afternoon. Certainly I cannot keep a paralyzed chicken. I love her, but she is just a lump, with bright eyes and so pretty. Will she get any better? and how long can she go like this please? Thanks to anyone who replies. PS. I know this is not Mareks. It happened to suddenly. Must have been a bite (though I see none) or toxin. They free range in my yard, but who knows?

 

[tgooberbutt]

Wow, you guys, I'm sitting her dumbfounded. I never had any idea about chicken paralysis. My little Butter girl got it Sunday. All of sudden, she was fine one minute and paralyzed the next. I'm heartsick. She is separated from the others, but she was with them till yesterday till i started reading all these threads. What do you do with a paralyzed chicken? She will not eat or drink, how can she possibly survive? We are now on the third day, actually 3 and half days. This happened last Sunday afternoon. Certainly I cannot keep a paralyzed chicken. I love her, but she is just a lump, with bright eyes and so pretty. Will she get any better? and how long can she go like this please? Thanks to anyone who replies. PS. I know this is not Mareks. It happened to suddenly. Must have been a bite (though I see none) or toxin. They free range in my yard, but who knows?

I'm in the same boat. Any thoughts besides Vitamin B deficiency (which I'm going to start fixing today)? My hen is 2 yrs old - and in a molt. She was strong, but I noticed her comb is a bit bluish and drier since the past month.

 

[beach babies]

I'm in the same boat as the last poster and just don't know what to do. My RIR is 3.5 years old and was in a terrible molt, she looked worse than all the others (we have 4 others) and one morning I just found her sitting on the floor of the coop when the rest of them went out to range.

This has been going on for 4 days, she is not getting any better or worse and will only eat and drink when I hand feed her, which is not sustainable for me. I have her isolated from the rest of the flock, but have no idea what to do. She doesn't seem to be suffering, but just sits. WHAT caused this???