This is in the Back yard Poultry magaizne I keep touting. It may or may not help.
Question: My chicks neck stays bent backwards and it walks backwards now. Whenit eats and drinks it hold it's neck normallyh other than that it's a healthy chick.
Answer: There are several things that can cause twisted necks in chickens. Thiamin (vitamin B1) deficiency is one. It can occur in chicks or adult and can ussually be corrected pretty easily. A human vitamin containing B vitamins will usually treat them. If this works then yuou'll want to get a different feed so it doesn't recur. Some mycotozins can also destry thiaminin a feed so that can cuase the same symptoms.
Newcastle disease, caused by a virus can somtimes cuase twisted neck. Sicne this is a virus there's not really a treatment. There are vaccines available if this continure to be a problem. Tere are several different tyupes of Newcastle disease, reangin from some that cause very few problem up to exotic Newcastle, which is a very seruoius disease. The expotick form is not currently present n the US,, and wil be a major problem if it does show up here.
There is a gene, calle dstargazer or congenital loco, that cause es the bird to twist it's head back. It was first reported in 1929, and occurs occasionally in many differnet breeds. It's thought to be an autosomal recessive gene, but not much more is known aobut it. It usually show up immedieantely at hatch, so most chicks with this would be destryed at the hathcery.
Finally twisted neck can be cuased by an injury. The bird may fly into the pen and cause damage, or it might hnave some toehr nerve damage. These will sometimes go away, or they may be permanent. I'd try the B-vitamin and see if it helps. If ti doesn, there's probalmy not alot you can do. . If the bird can eat and drink and you want to wait and see, it maight get better with time. Chances are the chicks quality of life will slowly deteriorate.
Sorry for the typing.
All the best
Rancher
