2nd time with wry neck... This time is much worse

[Eggvillan]

I have three silky / egger cross breeds.

At about 2 months of age, one of them got wry neck. This happened within a day or two of her flying into a wall. We assumed it was due to head trauma. It was terrifying and devastating. But, she was still able to walk around and eat by herself. We treated her with vitamins and lots of love, and she got better after a few weeks. She is now happy and healthy, ( but really really really stupid)

2 months later (yesterday), I came home to find a different one of our girls laying motionless with her head twisted around..... She has wry neck, but this case is MUCH worse. She's not walking around, not eating at all, and she barely accepts water when we try to force feed it to her. Giving her vitamins is also quite the task given that she is not interested in swallowing things. Her eyelids seemed kind of Droopy as well. I had to get her out of the coop in the morning, and when I got back from work today she was in literally the exact same spot. She had not moved at all.

We are leaving for vacation tomorrow night, don'tand wehave anyone who can take the critical care of her that she needs. Even if we were here, I'm really not convinced she would make it.

Any advice? Does this sound like typical wryneck? Way more intense than what I experienced before.

What are we doing wrong? We are feeding them commercial starter feed, which we occasionally supplement with scratch and mealworms.

I understand that regular silkies don't have completely formed skulls and that they are more prone to head trauma. Could this seriously be the cause?

I feel like a failure and want to cry

 

[DiYMama540]

I have three silky / egger cross breeds.

At about 2 months of age, one of them got wry neck. This happened within a day or two of her flying into a wall. We assumed it was due to head trauma. It was terrifying and devastating. But, she was still able to walk around and eat by herself. We treated her with vitamins and lots of love, and she got better after a few weeks. She is now happy and healthy, ( but really really really stupid)

2 months later (yesterday), I came home to find a different one of our girls laying motionless with her head twisted around..... She has wry neck, but this case is MUCH worse. She's not walking around, not eating at all, and she barely accepts water when we try to force feed it to her. Giving her vitamins is also quite the task given that she is not interested in swallowing things. Her eyelids seemed kind of Droopy as well. I had to get her out of the coop in the morning, and when I got back from work today she was in literally the exact same spot. She had not moved at all.

We are leaving for vacation tomorrow night, don'tand wehave anyone who can take the critical care of her that she needs. Even if we were here, I'm really not convinced she would make it.

Any advice? Does this sound like typical wryneck? Way more intense than what I experienced before.

What are we doing wrong? We are feeding them commercial starter feed, which we occasionally supplement with scratch and mealworms.

I understand that regular silkies don't have completely formed skulls and that they are more prone to head trauma. Could this seriously be the cause?

I feel like a failure and want to cry

First of all don't cry, things happen, and we learn from it. Also, you're not a failure! Whenever I'm having a bad bird day, I find comfort in the fact that I'm doing the best I know how to do, I have great support here at BYC, and my home I've made for them is still better than commercial poultry farms! (High standards I know )

Sounds like your birds are about 4 months of age? Should be about time to switch them to a grower or even layer feed. There are several deficiencies and deformities that can happen when they aren't getting the right amount of protein for the life stage they're at. Are your birds allowed to free range at all? Someone will come along who can definitely advise you on what their diet should look like right now. I'm just a silkie admirer, not owner

 

[Folly's place]

I like to feed an all- flock (20% protein) feed to everyone, with separate oyster shell for the laying hens. They also free range, so get other stuff seasonally.
Your diet sounds fine, as long as the mill date on each bag of food is recent, as within one month or so. older feed can have issues with some of the vitamins, and vitamin deficiency can cause wry neck.
Some individuals will have an exceptional need for extra nutrients of some sort, as a vitamin, and do badly on a 'normal' diet. They may do better with extra supplements, but it's not a good thing.
Your bird may have injured herself, or been injured, and nursing care is what you can offer.
I found Silkies too fragile and fussy in my mixed flock, and gave up on them.
Good luck,
Mary