1 Year Old Wyandotte Can't Hold her head up suddenly- UPDATED with happy ending 😍

[mrskenmore]

We are going to learn how to tube feed today. I am so afraid of doing this, but she needs more food and vitamins to get better. She weighs 5.6 lbs, how much should she get fed and how many times a day? I also gave her one e and half b complex today along with one charcoal, her antibiotics and her anti inflammatory meds. Hopefully she will be able to stand again soon. Still pooping normal so I know her system is working.

 

[Eggcessive]

I think that 15 ml per pound of weight of fluid given 2-3 times a day is about right. Start slow with small amounts. There are 2 tip sizes in syringes, the regular tip found in feed stores, and the catheter tip seen in the pictures and video above. Many home stores sell tubing that can fit. Aquarium air tubing found at Walmart and pet stores will fit a regular tip, but only fluids, yogurt and raw egg will go through that. For something like KayTee baby feed or finely ground watery chicken feed, I think a large tube is needed. The link for the goat tube feeder would be good enough. @castoortpony has a number of threads about tubing, supplies, amounts, etc.

 

[Eggcessive]

If using plastic tubing, it helps to cut it down to size, a few inches longer than the distance from the beak to the crop. The part that goes into the throat can be burned slightly with a lighter to melt off any sharp edges. The red rubber catheters found online or a pt a vet office are fine as they are.
Here is a picture of where to put the tube down the chicken’s right side of the throat (where the syringe is) to avoid the airway (trachea)
https://i0.wp.com/www.smithersites.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/dosing_1_-609x588-300x290.jpg?resize=300,290

 

[mrskenmore]

This is a current state video of Penny

 

[azygous]

Oh, Penny. Not looking so well.

 

[Eggcessive]

Poor thing. I know that you said she was vaccinated for Mareks, but the split legs and her neuro symptoms look a little suspect. Hopefully it’s not that, but down the road, if you would lose her, I would have Cornell do a necropsy.

 

[mrskenmore]

I know, I thought the same. The fact that she is up and down with her progress too made me think that. Should I just let her rest at this point? She has about 30 ml of feed/water in her from this morning. Her crop is the size of a walnut

 

[azygous]

I would continue with treatment today. But if she is worse tomorrow in spite of it, then it would appear to be something much more than simple wry neck.

It could be she suffered permanent neurological damage from the toxic leaf or she has an avian virus that has become symptomatic and is reaching a critical stage where organ shut down could be happening.

When we throw every treatment we can think of at a sick chicken and she declines at a more or less steady pace, as opposed to showing a little improvement over time, that's when we accept that the condition is chronic and recovery just isn't happening. That's when we euthanize and have a lab to a necropsy.

 

[mrskenmore]

Thank you for that, she is holding her head up and I just ordered the syringe and tube along with the kaytees baby bird formula. Penny will continue to get the best care and we will monitor her improvement hopefully. I know it could be something more serious, but time will tell

 

[Allsfairinloveandbugs]

I'm really sorry for the roller coaster you are going through with Penny. @azygous or anyone else who knows, would the fact that Penny got much better on Saturday before taking a dive yesterday (Sunday) that was even worse than her initial symptoms on Friday rule out Daffodil toxicity?