Any advice? Treated rooster for mites/lice and he still falls over

[lagomorph500]

Hello!

We have a rooster who suddenly started falling over when he tries to fly. Here is the background. If anyone has suggestions, please advise!
- Noticed worms in bird poop about 3 weeks ago. Started treating coop for worms using "Backyard Chicken" drops in water. Spread agricultural lyme on coop floor to kill worm eggs on ground.
- Once rooster started looking sick about 4 days ago, we examined him and realized he had both scaly mites on legs and lice on body. Treated this thoroughly (legs dipped in gas followed by ointment on legs/permethrin powder all over body)
- At this point he is eating, drinking, able to stand up. He seems strong, alert, and his comb looks good; however, if he bends forward to peck, he falls over forward.

I am at a loss as to what to do next. He is a strong, alert bird, but I can't see feeding him every day if he can't start moving better and feeding himself.

 

[Yardbird22]

I would not do anything else. Old off with treatments. Too much of a good thing can be a bad thing. Between the worming, Lyme, and permethrin all are poisons. Why they kill mits and worms. He could have neurological damage from to many toxins at once. Lyme is a strong base, especially when it gets wet it becomes corrosive. A strong Base can be worse than a strong Acid. If he ingested any of that it could have caused internal damage. I would remove him from the area. And add some vinegar to his feed or water the acid in the vinegar will neutralize the base. It might help definitely won't hurt. This is all conjecture, I'm just trying to trouble shoot possibilities. I hope he pulls though. Good luck.

 

[Yardbird22]

I stand corrected if you used agriculture lime. Then that's ok. It's just "calcium carbonate." I was thinking of something else. They used on our fields as a kid. It was nasty stuff. Had to keep cattle off of it till it rained a few times.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hello!

We have a rooster who suddenly started falling over when he tries to fly. Here is the background. If anyone has suggestions, please advise!
- Noticed worms in bird poop about 3 weeks ago. Started treating coop for worms using "Backyard Chicken" drops in water. Spread agricultural lyme on coop floor to kill worm eggs on ground.
- Once rooster started looking sick about 4 days ago, we examined him and realized he had both scaly mites on legs and lice on body. Treated this thoroughly (legs dipped in gas followed by ointment on legs/permethrin powder all over body)
- At this point he is eating, drinking, able to stand up. He seems strong, alert, and his comb looks good; however, if he bends forward to peck, he falls over forward.

I am at a loss as to what to do next. He is a strong, alert bird, but I can't see feeding him every day if he can't start moving better and feeding himself.

Hi

Welcome To BYC

Can you post a video of his actions?
Can you take him to a vet, or atleast take a poop sample to the vet for testing of Cocci, worms and bacterial infection?
How old is your rooster?
What type of food/treats do you feed?
What specific "agricultural lime" did you use - do you have an ingredient list?
Was he vaccinated for Marek's?

Separate him from the flock and keep him in a clean, well ventilated area. A wire dog kennel works well for this. Provide him with some poultry vitamins and offer him some wet feed with extra protein like egg or tuna.

Loss of balance can be caused by a number of things. Since you found scaly leg mites, he may also have lice/mites. Check his ears for any infestation or infection. Toxicity overload could also be the cause (gasoline,permethrin, lime), as well as certain diseases like Marek's.

It sounds like you used Zyfend A to deworm your rooster - as far as I can quickly read, it does not really claim to be a dewormer or kill intestinal worms - it is an " all natural supplement formulated to help break down the natural defenses of intestinal worms
and their eggs." The keywords to me is "supplement" and "help break down". I am not really familiar with the product, you would need to do some research - it may be "helpful" as a "preventative" in healthy chickens, but I feel that it's unlikely to take care of a poorly chicken that has an infestation.

Was the "wormer" that you used Zyfend A?
http://www.dbcagproducts.com/wp-content/uploads/Zyfend-A-Sell-Sheet-2015-V2.pdf
http://www.dbcagproducts.com/wp-content/uploads/Zyfend-A-SDS-07292015.pdf
http://www.dbcagproducts.com/backyard-chicken-health-pack/

Let us know how he is doing.

 

[lagomorph500]

Thank you so much for responding! Yes, it is agricultural lime. Knowing this, would you still recommend just the vinegar?

 

[lagomorph500]

Thank you so much for responding! Yes, it is agricultural lime. Knowing this, would you still recommend just the vinegar?

 

[Yardbird22]

Wyorop Rock, made a lots of good suggestions as well. It's really hard sometimes to figure out what's going on with out all the information. If you don't have electrolytes. Little Apple cider vinegar mixed with water, can also be used as a electrolyte. It has high levels of sodium and potassium. My best advice when it comes to things like this. Is read all you can. Take everyone's advise into account. There is so much valuable experience on this form that everyone contributes too, but every case is unique Then you need to use your intuition and the advice that you get on here, or from reading other sites and make the best informed decision you can given the circumstances. Come to terms that you might lose him, and do the best you can. We all lose birds at some point, and it's sad and can be devastating. Especially if you loose your top breeders of your line. However, they all serve as a educational opportunity. This is how you develop your skills and get a trained eye to treat and prevent losses in the future. Keep us posted and if any symptoms change let us know, and perhaps we can suggest treatment as it progresses. Hopefully he recovers soon. Remember, there are no failures when it comes to farming, gardening, and animal husbandry. These are all skills that we are consistently learning and developing. Good luck.

 

[lagomorph500]

Thank you Wyorop Rock and Yardbird 22. Yes, we used Zyfend A to treat the worms. You add to their water for about 6 days and then repeat every 3 weeks.


I am not able to videotape him, but it seems like the rooster's balance is ever so slightly better today than yesterday. He still tips forward.
My boyfriend noticed something new to add to the equation....the rooster's neck is very swollen. I already knew he was having trouble eating the pellets without adding water to make them a little mushier.

I will keep reading these posts. My instinct says that he is not on toxic overload because he was having trouble with balance/falling over before we used the gasoline or premethrin, and the agricultural lime and the Zyfend A seem like they are not toxic.

I will let you know what happens so we can all learn!