- Aug 2, 2009
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Greetings to All..
I just found this site while searching for information about my Game Rooster who apparently fell from his roost and injured his back..
I am hoping someone can tell me what I am doing wrong..
He is about 4 to 6 yrs old, and lives next to two of his brothers of the same age..All three were healthy, but about 2 weeks ago I found him standing on one leg, unable to use the other at all..2 days later, I saw a hump in his lower back..I figured out he had fallen from his roosting limb, likely due to a stroke.Can't think of any other reason for a grown rooster to fall off a limb.
At first, he hopped on the one leg, but started losing weight and getting weaker until he was unable to hold himself up on the one leg..He began going yellow/white on his face skin, and getting lethargic..I started him on Auromycin, (to stave off pneumonia or anything else he might get from being in a weakened condition)and started hand feeding him..His appetite soared, but he was not thrilled about drinking the medicine water..
Their normal feed consists of a mixture of scratch seeds, wild bird seeds, fermented oats (re-cleaned oats for feed) a Game bird and Show bird granulated feed for starting and growing birds and mixed with water..They also get grapes, frozen (thawed) cob corn, fresh cob corn in season, honey wheat bread, watermelon in season...
Ok..5 days ago I started him on a steroid from the vet..It seems to have made the swelling on his back go down, but the useless leg is still useless, and has drawn up some at the joint. The other leg is weak as water, but is not drawn up, and he can stretch it out some..
After talking with the vet, I went ahead and took him off the antibiotic on the 7th day of giving it to him, because his face skin was getting worse, and because more and more he was refusing to drink the water..He is still on the steroid, but I intend to start reducing it this evening and stretch out the weaning over a few days..
Thing is, he has crowed some every day until today..This morning he ate all the watermelon I gave him, but did not seem interested in his corn and grape, seed and granule mixture..Then again, the grapes were cold this time..so that could have been a turn off..
Still, I don't know if I should really try forcing water on him, or letting him decide for himself on that..
Is the face skin looking dry and whitish due to dehydration like I think it is? His neck feather quills seem thin and brittle too..
Also, since he cannot get up and walk, but can only use his wings to ooch himself around, I have put hay in his pen for him to cushion where his breast bone is protruding some..He stopped losing weight and may have gained back a few ounces, but the bone can still be felt..
Also, I clean his rear end feathers twice a day with warm water, and dry with papaer towels to keep his skin from getting infected..So far so good on that..
My main concern is keeping him as comfortable as possible for whatever time he has left, and I am willing to care for him this way for however long he's with me..But if I need to be feeding him something different, or doing anything different, I sure would like to know..
I'm sorry this is so long, but just want to give the whole picture..
Thank you...
I just found this site while searching for information about my Game Rooster who apparently fell from his roost and injured his back..
I am hoping someone can tell me what I am doing wrong..
He is about 4 to 6 yrs old, and lives next to two of his brothers of the same age..All three were healthy, but about 2 weeks ago I found him standing on one leg, unable to use the other at all..2 days later, I saw a hump in his lower back..I figured out he had fallen from his roosting limb, likely due to a stroke.Can't think of any other reason for a grown rooster to fall off a limb.
At first, he hopped on the one leg, but started losing weight and getting weaker until he was unable to hold himself up on the one leg..He began going yellow/white on his face skin, and getting lethargic..I started him on Auromycin, (to stave off pneumonia or anything else he might get from being in a weakened condition)and started hand feeding him..His appetite soared, but he was not thrilled about drinking the medicine water..
Their normal feed consists of a mixture of scratch seeds, wild bird seeds, fermented oats (re-cleaned oats for feed) a Game bird and Show bird granulated feed for starting and growing birds and mixed with water..They also get grapes, frozen (thawed) cob corn, fresh cob corn in season, honey wheat bread, watermelon in season...
Ok..5 days ago I started him on a steroid from the vet..It seems to have made the swelling on his back go down, but the useless leg is still useless, and has drawn up some at the joint. The other leg is weak as water, but is not drawn up, and he can stretch it out some..
After talking with the vet, I went ahead and took him off the antibiotic on the 7th day of giving it to him, because his face skin was getting worse, and because more and more he was refusing to drink the water..He is still on the steroid, but I intend to start reducing it this evening and stretch out the weaning over a few days..
Thing is, he has crowed some every day until today..This morning he ate all the watermelon I gave him, but did not seem interested in his corn and grape, seed and granule mixture..Then again, the grapes were cold this time..so that could have been a turn off..
Still, I don't know if I should really try forcing water on him, or letting him decide for himself on that..
Is the face skin looking dry and whitish due to dehydration like I think it is? His neck feather quills seem thin and brittle too..
Also, since he cannot get up and walk, but can only use his wings to ooch himself around, I have put hay in his pen for him to cushion where his breast bone is protruding some..He stopped losing weight and may have gained back a few ounces, but the bone can still be felt..
Also, I clean his rear end feathers twice a day with warm water, and dry with papaer towels to keep his skin from getting infected..So far so good on that..
My main concern is keeping him as comfortable as possible for whatever time he has left, and I am willing to care for him this way for however long he's with me..But if I need to be feeding him something different, or doing anything different, I sure would like to know..
I'm sorry this is so long, but just want to give the whole picture..
Thank you...
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