Brabanter with head injury

[fancyfowl4ever]

I need some advice, my one and only brabanter roo got pecked in the head by my boss roo to get him off a hen.
Usually those pecks are not too bad(get grabbed by the feathers and pulled off the hen) but with just one peck my brabanter roo was down for the count and seems to have severe brain swelling or something of that sort.

He keep his head curled underneath his body(kinda like crooked-neck in silkies) and you can clearly see his brows are swollen and his eyes are oozing white liquid.

He has been like this for about 2 days now, I force fed him with a seringe and a tube since he cannot keep his head up at all. Still is pretty lively, hates to be touched and even with his head curled up and eyes swollen shut he puts up one heck of a fight when I try to handle him.

Any Ideas what else I can do for him? Right now I am putting tetracyclin in the parrot handfeeding formula I give him.

I would like to save him, he is my only brabanter roo and a quite nice looking one at that.......

Any advice would be very appreciated,

Anna

 

[beakkeeper]

This sounds very serious. He seems to have sustained neurological damage, by your description. Keep up with the antibiotics, and try to clean the wound with a sterile saline solution or other. I don't know what else to do... i'm so sorry.

 

[fancyfowl4ever]

There is no open- visible wound, his head is just swollen.

 

[fourfeathers]

The below information by Alan Stnaford has been very valuable for me on two occasions in which I had chicks with suspected head injury and one with neurological problems. If it were mine, I would start him on this ASAP. Katharine

Treating "Crookneck"
by Alan Stanford
Permission to share this is granted as long as you give credit to the Author

Here is my theory and therapy for what some call "limber neck" and I call crookneck. The symptoms first show as a crook in the neck. It progresses to
tucking the head, then tucking the head between the legs, then backing up, and tumbling over. It usually hits young birds but can happen at any age.

It is unclear what causes crookneck. American Silkie Bantam Club members suggest water on the brain, vitamin E deficiency, and injury to the brain that
is outside the skull and forms the knob on the top of Silkie's heads. The brain injury is the cause I feel fairly certain about.

Water on the brain was seen in a necropsy of an affected bird. Prednisone was suggested as symptomatic relief. Vitamin E and B complex are both good for neurological disorders. Selenium helps absorb vitamin E.

Here's what I do for affected birds. If started before symptoms get severe, the bird will totally recover. To give vitamin E - just cut the end off a human capsule and squirt it in the bird's mouth.

It is important to be sure the bird gets enough to eat and drink while it has this problem. Birds with severe cases of crookneck can't eat and drink enough to survive. You will need to gently place their head in the feed dish and carefully dip just the tip of the beak in water. Be careful not to dip too far into the water and to not stress the bird while trying to help.

The following is for an adult about 2 pound bird. Scale back for smaller birds.

For the first week I give

Twice a day
2.5 mg of prednisone
400 IU of vitamin E

Once a day
A piece of human vitamin B complex pill or a squirt of human liquid vitamins
Selenium (50 micrograms/day for half size juvenile for 3 days)

For the second week I give

Once a day
2.5 mg of prednisone
400 IU of vitamin E
A piece of human vitamin B complex pill or a squirt of human liquid vitamins

Every other day
Selenium (50 micrograms/day for half size juvenile for 3 days)

For the following weeks I give

Once a day
2.5 mg of prednisone
400 IU of vitamin E
A piece of human vitamin B complex pill or a squirt of human liquid vitamins

Every third day
Selenium (50 micrograms/day for half size juvenile for 3 days)

Do not abruptly stop prednisone, the swelling rebounds, decrease dose
gradually.
Vitamin E recovery can be slow; continue the vitamin E for several weeks at
least.

You can get the prednisone from a vet; just describe the problem of
swelling in
the brain probably due to injury. Yes Silkies' brains do stick out through a
hole on the top of the skull.

You can get the vitamin E, selenium, and vitamin B complex or liquid
vitamins at
any pharmacy.

To get prednisone, print the pictures at
http://www.browneggblueegg.com/HoleInHead.html
and take them to a vet. (for those unable to access this article, Alan has generously given his permission to repost the article/photos below)