5 week old chick with tremors

EmmaEsme

Chirping
Nov 22, 2021
47
45
54
Melbourne, Australia
Hi everyone,

Melbourne Australia here. I asked on a Chook health FB forum I am a part of about this girl on January 28th when this started, and was told to give her vitamins and special diet. I do not think this is Marek's and I wondered about Avian encephalomyelitis, but as no other chicks are having problems, even the brother I put in with her, I don't think she is contagious at this stage.

I put Avi-Vital vitamins in the water and I've been giving her oats along with Barrastoc Chick Starter (medicated) and she has unfortunately not improved. She hasn't really worsened either per se, but the bigger she gets, the harder it is for her to move due to her own weight. I tried to give her yoghurt but they just filled the plate with litter. If i try to hold her to feed her, she goes nuts and flaps like mad to get away. Shes tough and strong and obviously eating and drinking but...

I guess, I'm really just wondering, when do I call it and need to cull her... It's just, I'd really prefer to save her, but I feel like maybe her quality of life isn't good enough. Thanks for any advice you can give.

Here's a Youtube video of her on Jan 28:

Here's today, 5th Feb. I had just taken the food, water and (because its only the 2 of them), heat plate out and added new bedding. She was a bit worked up, but still, she always moves like that. She seems quite a bit worse, seeing it side-by-side with the old video. Sigh. Maybe I should let her go.

Bit more background on this chick:
She's an EE hatched from purchased eggs first of the year. We had a 100% hatch rate in a Brinsea Maxi Advance II. Everyone seemed normal until the day I got up and found her like this. Poos have been normal, they've always been on medicated Barrastoc starter and no other chicks have signs of illness. Water has been from drippers the whole time for her, so it didn't get messy. They had probiotics in the water for the first 2 weeks.
On the FB forum I was advised her left hock had issue, and asked to check her legs. Both are equal length, straight and appear to have no issues, other then she will not bear weight on them. Left foot doesn't grip perch (my finger was a test), right did a little. She was not on a slippy surface and had no injury I know of from the brooder. She was in a larger brooder at the time this started and I moved her and her brother back to the baby brooder to isolate. She is always bobbing and wiggling when she tries to move, as in the video. When I hold her, it's as if she has the shakes. I've seen her drink regularly and her crop is full, though, she seems a bit underweight. She wants to scratch and do normal chook things, but it's as if she lost control of her nervous system or muscles in her legs, or both... As you can see, the brother I put in with her is totally fine. Cheers
 
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the bigger she gets, the harder it is for her to move due to her own weight. I tried to give her yoghurt but they just filled the plate with litter. If i try to hold her to feed her, she goes nuts and flaps like made to get away

she has tremors when you hold her and her head constantly bobs as per video.

On the FB forum I was advised her left hock had issue, and asked to check her legs. Both are equal length, straight and appear to have no issues, other then she will not bear weight on them. Left foot doesn't grip perch (my finger was a test), right did a little.
The video is unavailable. Can you upload it to youtube and provide a link.

You mention she has tremors when held...does she have tremors when not held?
Hard to know what's happening, hopefully we can see the video.
 
Thank you for the reply. Very annoying about the video link... She is always bobbing and wiggling when she tries to move, as in the video. When I hold her, it's as if she has the shakes. I've seen her drink regularly and her crop is full, though, she seems a bit underweight. She wants to scratch and do normal chook things, but it's as if she lost control of her nervous system or muscles in her legs, or both... As you can see, the brother I put in with her is totally fine.

Here's a Youtube video of her on Jan 28:

Here's today, 5th Feb. I had just taken the food, water and (because its only the 2 of them), heat plate out and added new bedding. She was a bit worked up, but still, she always moves like that. She seems quite a bit worse, seeing it side-by-side with the old video. Sigh. Maybe I should let her go.
 
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I would try giving her 400IU Vitamin E and 1/4 tablet B-Complex daily along with some egg. Her cockerel buddy can have egg too, they love it as a treat.
Is her crop emptying overnight?

To me, the movements are neurological, but as to the reason, it's hard to know. Could be Marek's or something else.
 
At her age it could be avian encephalomyelitis since that affects chicks in the first weeks of life. Mareks could be possible, but I believe that it doesn’t show up in the first 5 weeks of life. But I would try the vitamins that Wyorp Rock recommended for a couple of weeks. It does hurt to watch her behavior stumbling and the tremors though.
 
Thank you both for your input. I'll get by a pharmacy today for vitamins and give a more directed dosage to her. I will also scramble them up some egg when I can.

As I said before, I have significant doubts it's Marek's. Marek's is not transmitted vertically, so unless it was on the outside of eggs I put in my incubator and survived incubation to infect them all at hatch, she would not have been exposed. She was brooded inside for almost 3 weeks, then outside in a brooder box on my back porch, (fox fenced) for a few days before this happened. She was 2 days off 4 weeks old, so technically too young to present symptoms. Also, no other chicks presented issues.

My suspicion if it's not a vitamin issue, was Avian encephalomyelitis, but again, out of 13 hatched, not a single other chick is having issues. Again, she was 2 days off 4 weeks old, so might have been too old to present symptoms, as this usually shows up by 3 weeks old.

I hope the vitamins help. I'll avoid gel caps. If capsules or tablets, do you think I can open/crush them and mix the powder to syringe to her in a bit of water? Otherwise, I'm gonna have to hope the tablets are tiny. Cheers

EDIT: I got B complex with no issues giving her 1/4. Unfortunately, shop only had 1 E vitamin range, which was gel caps.
 
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It's been 4 days since giving 1/4 a Vit B Complex tab. I was unable to get Vitamin E, particularly at the dose recommended, so I've been offering sunflower seeds and spinach from our garden (both high in Vitamin E) with some grit. She's still on Barrastoc Starter (medicated) until Sunday and gets Avi-Vital in her water. I am considering offering her some canned tuna in water for the Selenium. Any opinions on this?

The good news is, she is standing sometimes now! She still can't coordinate well enough to walk though. When I held her to tablet this morning, she put weight on her legs. She doesn't tremble constantly, but still bobs her head all the time though. I also took notice how small she is, it's as if she stopped growing when this happened to her. She is tiny compared to her flock mates... Hoping the new additions to her diet and going onto grower food will help her along more. There seems to be a glimmer of hope!

(I've also taken her and her brother off heat without issues.)
 
Glad to hear there is some improvement with the B complex vitamins. The sunflower seed is great for vitamin E and selenium, and egg has selenium which is only needed in small amounts. Let us know how she continues to progress.
 
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It's been nearly a week since my last update about little Velma, and I'm happy to report she is improving every day! She's walking quite well, without a lot of stumbling now. She's still very, very tiny compared to her hatch mates however.

I've moved her and her brother to the nest box attached to the grower house to reintroduce them to their flock as she continues recovery and grows some more. (It's secured with wire between everyone). I attempted to introduce her brother right back in, but one of my bigger males is a jerk and attacks him... So, he's a tad cramped, but happier (and safer) with his sister. I need to figure out some entertainment for them... its not big enough for a milk crate to perch on. Ideas welcome.


At this stage, I'm not sure when to stop the 1/4 B Complex tabs. I'm going to transition everyone to grower food as well now. Any tips on how to know when she won't need the vitamin tabs? I don't want to stop too soon and see her go backward. Ta
 
At this stage, I'm not sure when to stop the 1/4 B Complex tabs. I'm going to transition everyone to grower food as well now.
What protein % is the grower feed? I would keep them on a chick starter (non medicated) or an all flock feed that contains 18-20% protein.

You can give the B-Complex for a while longer. B vitamins are water soluble and any "excess" would be excreted in the urine.
 

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