Hi, all! I originally posted this in the Turkey section of the forum, but didn't have any luck with responses. I also haven't been able to find any resources on my turkey's condition anywhere online. I'm posting here with the hope that maybe someone has seen and dealt with this issue in chickens. (I also raise chickens)
I have a 7 month old female bronze turkey who has developed strange balance/walking/coordination issues. When she tries to walk, she almost falls forward on her toes, holds her tail up for balance and drops her wings to steady herself. When I brought her in to our screened porch, she made her way- walking this way- to a corner where she was able to put her against the wall and steady herself to sit down. She will be calm and quiet then. I've got her in an isolated pen now and she does the same. As long as she's sitting down or against something, she seems okay.
The only thing I can compare it to is vestibular disease which I've seen in very old dogs. Or perhaps it is an inner ear infection? She has no wounds, no head trauma that I can see at all. She's able to stretch her wings out and both legs on her own. It's just when she starts to move forward that she loses her balance. I've searched and searched, but I can't find anything.
This has been going on with her for 4 days now with no real change. When she is settled, she is very alert. She's eaten some (I've tried everything from her own turkey food to bread, scrambled eggs, etc.) and I've seen her drink water a few times, but I'm also giving her watered-down nutri-drench in a syringe, because I'm so worried about getting dehydrated.
Additional info: She normally eats game bird pellets and free ranges with my other three turkeys and my chicken flock. None of the other birds have shown any signs like this. She typically sleeps on a 6-ft. high perch with the other turkeys, adjacent to my big chicken coop.
Any help at all would be appreciated! I've attached a photo of her- this is her standing on her tip-toes, trying to balance, with her tail up in the air.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
I have a 7 month old female bronze turkey who has developed strange balance/walking/coordination issues. When she tries to walk, she almost falls forward on her toes, holds her tail up for balance and drops her wings to steady herself. When I brought her in to our screened porch, she made her way- walking this way- to a corner where she was able to put her against the wall and steady herself to sit down. She will be calm and quiet then. I've got her in an isolated pen now and she does the same. As long as she's sitting down or against something, she seems okay.
The only thing I can compare it to is vestibular disease which I've seen in very old dogs. Or perhaps it is an inner ear infection? She has no wounds, no head trauma that I can see at all. She's able to stretch her wings out and both legs on her own. It's just when she starts to move forward that she loses her balance. I've searched and searched, but I can't find anything.
This has been going on with her for 4 days now with no real change. When she is settled, she is very alert. She's eaten some (I've tried everything from her own turkey food to bread, scrambled eggs, etc.) and I've seen her drink water a few times, but I'm also giving her watered-down nutri-drench in a syringe, because I'm so worried about getting dehydrated.
Additional info: She normally eats game bird pellets and free ranges with my other three turkeys and my chicken flock. None of the other birds have shown any signs like this. She typically sleeps on a 6-ft. high perch with the other turkeys, adjacent to my big chicken coop.
Any help at all would be appreciated! I've attached a photo of her- this is her standing on her tip-toes, trying to balance, with her tail up in the air.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
