Bantam Silkie chicken flopping and convulsing... HELP. What do I do??

[bayareachicken]

My bantam silkie who is 5 months old is convulsing and flopping around gasping for air. It is on its side in a ball and can't breathe or stand. It was perfectly fine today. It had fresh water, food, and an insulated coop. I recently brought it to live at my house. It had been living in a large makeshift 'coop' from an extra-large dog shipping crate approx. 4-8 sq. feet. There was a towel on the bottom of the crate with multiple layers of paper towels. The chicken had been roaming outside on the gravel today, perfectly fine. I do not know if it banged its head, or if it had Marek's disease. What do you think? I really need help. Also to mention, she had symptoms 4 days after being completely separated from the coop, and as far as I know, the other chicken's do not have anything wrong.

 

[Neggative]

could you send pictures.... plz its hard to know without...

 

[bayareachicken]

could you send pictures.... plz its hard to know without...

She just passed. I do not know what happened, and I called vets and they were unhelpful. She was curled on her side with her beak open struggling to breathe. Then she would randomly flap, but that only happened once before she lost the energy to. I think her eyes were becoming grey-ish, so I am curious if it might be Marek's. She was asymptomatic 8 hours ago when she was outside roaming. I am sorry I don't have any photos and she has passed. I still am curious what she died from.

 

[diamondsilkies]

It sounds like Marek's to me. It is very common in both 5 to 7-month-old pullets and in silkies. The flapping around and grey eyes are very common symptoms. It can strike very quickly as well. So sorry to hear about your girl, it's a hard thing to watch.

 

[Neggative]

awww, thats sad....

 

[Vickischics]

She just passed. I do not know what happened, and I called vets and they were unhelpful. She was curled on her side with her beak open struggling to breathe. Then she would randomly flap, but that only happened once before she lost the energy to. I think her eyes were becoming grey-ish, so I am curious if it might be Marek's. She was asymptomatic 8 hours ago when she was outside roaming. I am sorry I don't have any photos and she has passed. I still am curious what she died from.

So sorry about your loss.
Too sad.

 

[Neggative]

watch the others close.... this mareks desease is contagious....

 

[Vickischics]

So sorry about your loss.
Too sad.

You mentioned she was out roaming today and fine. Could it be that she got into something poisonous or moldy since she was Asymptomatic 8 hours prior to displaying the convulsive Sucking in air behavior? As a RN, that behavior suggests she had cardiac fluid overload and the lungs were filling up with fluid. Her heart was not able to continue pumping effectively therefore, she wasn't able to breathe off the carbon dioxide as she was attempting to gasp for more oxygen. Then, the result is a cardiac arrest followed by death. The eyes also turn grey from lack of oxygen and cardiac failure.
Just a thought. I'm sorry for your loss.

 

[bayareachicken]

You mentioned she was out roaming today and fine. Could it be that she got into something poisonous or moldy since she was Asymptomatic 8 hours prior to displaying the convulsive Sucking in air behavior? As a RN, that behavior suggests she had cardiac fluid overload and the lungs were filling up with fluid. Her heart was not able to continue pumping effectively therefore, she wasn't able to breathe off the carbon dioxide as she was attempting to gasp for more oxygen. Then, the result is a cardiac arrest followed by death. The eyes also turn grey from lack of oxygen and cardiac failure.
Just a thought. I'm sorry for your loss.

I do not know. She was roaming in an enclosed area on small gravel. The only thing she might have pecked at was something in the gravel. The confusing thing is that I do not know if it could have been Marek's disease since she started displaying symptoms 4 days after being removed from the coop. She wasn't removed for any reason of infection or illness. When she was curled on her side she would be still and then randomly squawk and flap her wings. If she didn't get into anything poisonous, could she still have cardiac fluid overload as a result of something else? Thank you. I am just trying to find answers.

 

[Vickischics]

I do not know. She was roaming in an enclosed area on small gravel. The only thing she might have pecked at was something in the gravel. The confusing thing is that I do not know if it could have been Marek's disease since she started displaying symptoms 4 days after being removed from the coop. She wasn't removed for any reason of infection or illness. When she was curled on her side she would be still and then randomly squawk and flap her wings. If she didn't get into anything poisonous, could she still have cardiac fluid overload as a result of something else? Thank you. I am just trying to find answers.

Idk that answer. Her behavior is so similar to a human that has a cardiac overload with resp failure. Hopefully someone with more chicken experience will answer.
It's sad across the board.