1 chicken dead and another unable to walk

[0wen]

I would syringe her some water. The white watery poop is often dehydration. Maybe add a soluble vitamin and/or electrolytes to the h2o. Maybe worth testing for coccidiosis if she doesn't improve after hydrating.

 

[Eggcessive]

Owen has given good advice. Check your feed for color and odor in case of mold poisoning. I have suddenly found my feed turn blueg green and have a checmical odor, especially in damp or warm weather. That can cause lameness, neurological symptoms and death.

Can you make a bowl of a little feed plus a lot of water and stir it to make it soupy. Most chickens will eat runny food, and that gets water into them. I would be concerned that there was either a predator or that you may have coccidiosis, even though they are old enough to have built up resistance to cocci. It might be worth looking the dead and live hens over more thoroughly for any marks or wounds. Corid (amprollium) is found at most feed stores in packets or bottles. You can treat all of your chickens in the water for 5-7 days. Dosage is 2 tsp of the liquid, or 1 1/2 tsp of the powder per gallon of water, as their only water source mixed new each day. You can also get a necropsy done on the dead chicken by your state vet or poultry lab to look for a cause of death. See below:
http://www.usaha.org/Portals/6/StateAnimalHealthOfficials.pdf
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/799747/how-to-send-a-bird-for-a-necropsy-pictures

 

[MarissaGayle]

I would syringe her some water. The white watery poop is often dehydration. Maybe add a soluble vitamin and/or electrolytes to the h2o. Maybe worth testing for coccidiosis if she doesn't improve after hydrating.

I gave her some fluids and have her soaking in warm water and Epsom salts just in case she is eggbound. I thought coccidiosis mostly affected chicks? Or am I wrong

 

[0wen]

It's not uncommon for adult birds to develop coccidiosis; especially in the spring as the ground warms and things that live within it come to life. It won't hurt to treat with Corid and there is no egg withdrawal while doing so.

 

[King CreekRanch]

I found a website with someone with a similar problem. The lady took her chicken to a avian vet and the vet suggested that the chicken has kinky back and that the disks might shift on their own and allow her to walk again. Or not. As far as I know this affliction can be caused by heredity or by feed. The good news is that this disease does not spread from bird to bird. My advise would be to vary the diet and see if you have any improvement. I would try some high protein in the diet like dog food. Hope this helps!!

 

[MarissaGayle]

I found a website with someone with a similar problem. The lady took her chicken to a avian vet and the vet suggested that the chicken has kinky back and that the disks might shift on their own and allow her to walk again. Or not.  As far as I know this affliction can be caused by heredity or by feed. The good news is that this disease does not spread from bird to bird. My advise would be to vary the diet and see if you have any improvement.  I would try some high protein in the diet like dog food.  Hope this helps!!

If she makes it through the night I'm taking her to the vet in the morning, hopefully then I can find out for sure what's going on.

 

[0wen]

I would try to get a necropsy on the dead bird. If you have a local state vet, it would likely be free. So many bird ailments have similar symptoms and/or cause other issues with same symptoms. With 2 birds getting I'll on the same timeline it's suspect. Lymphoid Leukosis potentially, but hopefully not... How's the bird currently doing?

 

[MarissaGayle]

I would try to get a necropsy on the dead bird. If you have a local state vet, it would likely be free. So many bird ailments have similar symptoms and/or cause other issues with same symptoms. With 2 birds getting I'll on the same timeline it's suspect. Lymphoid Leukosis potentially, but hopefully not... How's the bird currently doing?

She's about the same right now, hasn't gotten any worse or better. I've been giving her water through a syringe every so often but she still won't drink on her own. What is lymphoid leukosis? I've never heard of that

 

[MarissaGayle]

Good news!! I fed her some food mixed with water and her poop looks a bit more normal so at least she's getting hydrated now.

 

[0wen]

She's about the same right now, hasn't gotten any worse or better. I've been giving her water through a syringe every so often but she still won't drink on her own. What is lymphoid leukosis? I've never heard of that

It's bad.. There is a genetic component to the disease that is, the viral genes insert into the chromosome of infected chickens and the virus will pop out when the conditions are right. Similar to Marek's in that it is a virus that causes tumors - It often targets the liver which leads to many other problems, including dehydration. Birds will lose the ability to walk, a paralysis similar again, to Marek's though they often don't splay out like Marek's birds.. Possibly worse than Marek's because it can transmit to to chicks via the egg. Not as contagious as Marek's though and it doesn't survive well outside of it's host, but it can still transmit from bird to bird.