Chicken Paralysis, Help Please with this Mystery!

[silverlakefarm]

Hello All,

Hoping for some wisdom on a strange occurrence in our flock. We have 3 adult hens and 4 ~6month old hens. They have a coop but free range on our farm during the day.

Last night we returned home after dark and found one of the 6month old hens in the yard, laying on her stomach, seeming alert but paralyzed. She did not react to her legs being touched, and couldn't seem to stand or walk despite much assistance on our behalf. We decided to keep her in a dog crate for the night, and retired to much frantic worrying and reading of forums!

This morning, we opened the dog crate and she walked right out! She seemed a little "drunk" but walked all the way back to the coop and started eating. (we have not yet let out the other hens, and I am in the process of creating a restricted space for her to stay for now apart from them).

She has not yet laid an egg to my knowledge, and the only other thing I could think of would be perhaps dehydration as we had a warm day.

Appreciate your advice!! Thank you!

Update: She continues to seem mostly "normal" and is doing her best to emancipate herself from the quarantine space.

Hope you guys can help with what could have caused this? How long to separate from the other chickens?

 

[Glenda Heywoodo]

well sounds like early Marek's but that may be too severe of thought.
here is what I would do for the whole flock.
As it is ood for life of chickens to keep them going good and healthy.
right now I would feed the Vitamins in the WET MASH POBIOTIC MASH.
WET MASH PROBIOTIC RECIPE FOR CHICKENS WITH ANY HEALTH PROBLEMS
Glenda Heywood

WET MASH PROBIOTIC RECIPE FOR YOUR CHICKENS HEALTH.
Glenda Heywood...
ACV by Bragg's is sold by Amazon and at Walmart. (remember to get Bragg's unpasturized, as it has the "brown mother" in the bottom of the bottle.)

Glenda Heywood
My Daughter JoAnna Mertz feeds this wet mash probiotic several times a week to our 10 hens, 5 buff orpingtons 5 plymouth rocks, and they are eating it up in 30 minutes.

Glenda Heywood To make the WET MASH PROBIOTIC RECIPE HERE IT IS
(A) TAKE 2 CUPS OF DRY CRUMBLES OR PELLETS,
(B) 1 TSP OF DRY FLAX SEED MEAL (THAT IS FOR HUMANS)
(C) PUT 4 CUPS OF MILK ANY KIND SOUR OR FRESH, 1 tbsp of dry flax seed meal,
(D) AND 2 TBSP OF THE BRAGG;S ACV.

(E) ALSO 1 /2CUP OF UNFLAVORED YOUGART.

(D) MIX GOOD. PUT IT IN GLASS CONTAINER, AND KEEP ON THE COUNTER OVER NIGHT.

(E) IF IN THE MORNING YOU CAN ADD ANOTHER CUP OF MILK TO THE MIX TO MAKE IT SOLUBLE, like cookie dough, not soupy,

(F) DO NOT MAKE IT SOUPY AS CHICKENS DO NOT LIKE IT SOUPY.
(G) IF THE MIX IS OKAY IN THE MORNING AND NOT TOO DRY FEED IT IN THE GLASS CONTAINER SO ALL THE CHICKENS CAN GET TO IT.

(H) I USED 2 VERY LARGE GLASS PIE PLATES. AND THEN CLEAN THE PIE PLATES BY BRING THEM BACK TO THE HOUSE.

(I) FEED THIS AMOUNT TO EACH CHICKEN 3 tbsp of mix when wet, so make your recipe to fit all amount of chickens to be fed.
(J) WHEN MIXING FOR 1 CHICKEN DO THISIE: take 3 tbsp of dry feed and add 6 tbsp of milk, 1/4 tsp of dry flax seed meal, 1 tbsp of yougart plain kind, 1 tsp ACV,

(K) NOW IF THE CHICKEN ISSICK ADD THIS TO THE WET MASH PROBIOTIC RECIPE
(L) 1 Vit E capsule buy cutting end of capsule off and squeezing it into the wet mix.
(M) 1-Vit B tablet crushed in table spoon and add a little water to dissolve crushed tablet and then add to wet mash
(N) 1- Selenium tablet crushed in tbsp and add little water to it and then add to wwet mash.
(O) now mx good and feed sick chuicken evey day for 7 days
(P) now feed it 5 times for second week.
(P) then 2 times a week frlife.
(Q) feed all healthy chickens 2 times a week for life WITH VITAMINS ONCE EVERY TWO WEEKS.

 

[silverlakefarm]

Thank you so much for the recipe...

But do you all believe she could be a Marek's case when she had a less than 10hr turnaround back to "healthy"?

Thoughts on how long to separate her?

 

[Glenda Heywoodo]

Well the only way to tell is to take her to a vet,
and most vets want several hundred dollars to look them over let alone the testing.
So keep her separated and try the wet mash probiotic recipe twice a day.
Probably will take a couple of weeks to see if she gets over it or worse.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

6month old
laying on her stomach, seeming alert but paralyzed
This morning she walked right out! She seemed a little "drunk" but walked all the way back to the coop and started eating

Hi @silverlakefarm Welcome To BYC

When you crated her last night, did you give food/water? Did she eat/drink during that time period?
What breed is she? 6months and no egg...does she have any swelling of the abdomen?
Any chance she may have ingested a moldy/spoiled feed or dead animal matter or maggots?
When she was laying down - any splaying of the legs or were they underneath her and were you doing all this manipulation/trying to make her stand in the dark?

Provide her with some poultry vitamins that contain B vitamins or you can crush a human B-Complex tab and add it to her feed. See that she is drinking well. Heat exhaustion and dehydration could be partly to blame.

Keep watch on her, if you see symptoms like that again, then check her over well. If you have a vet that can see her that would be best.

It's possible it could be something like Marek's, without testing/necropsy there is no way to know for sure. There are other conditions and/or deficiencies that can "mimic" some symptoms of Marek's. Here's a long, but comprehensive article about Marek's along with some of the "mimics" https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq.66077/

Let us know how she is doing.

 

[silverlakefarm]

Dear @Wyorp Rock

Thanks for the info! Yes 6 months is an estimate she could be 5 months or so. I got them as started pullets, and she is one of 2 "eastereggers" and neither of them have laid. Also at the same time I got a Barred Rock and a Buff Orp (she is the only one who is laying of the 4).

We were manipulating in the dark, I don't believe her legs were splayed, and she seemed to have some "toe curling". She did have water overnight, no food. Ever since the am and letting her out she seems almost normal (perhaps somewhat distressed to be separated) and seems to be eating and drinking.

Not aware of moldy feed or anything dead she would have been exposed to.

They are just a small flock and have not had any other illnesses in the time I've had them.

Really appreciate the advice, I'll grab some vitamins, and great article on Mareks. I'm new to chickens and not to what to do next!

Here is a photo of her as I'm not sure what a distended belly looks like.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

She's a pretty girl

I was wandering about doing that in the dark - here's why - chickens can't see at night very well, so she may have been a bit "frozen" if you will unless she had light to see.

Having water overnight may have revived her a bit if she was dehydrated.

I'm glad to hear she seems to be improved. If she were mine, I would keep an eye on her, see that she has eaten and drank some, then let her back with the others to see how it goes. It can be distressing to be separated. If she did have something "contagious" the others would like already be exposed. If you feel that she still need separating, place her kennel in the run so she can be near the others.

I hope with TLC, some vitamins, food/water she does just fine.

Keep us posted.

 

[Glenda Heywoodo]

sure is a pretty chicken.
She is striking black.
the whole group should lay soon.
Glad she is better.

 

[silverlakefarm]

Hello All!
An unfortunate update: I found this egg in her quarantine space, broken, assuming it came out of her like that. This would be her first egg to my knowledge. What should I do now?

She is acting normal aside from some light straining while laying down.

 

[Eggcessive]

She may have been temporarily egg bound, and on a rare occasion, that can cause some temporary paralysis. But as the others have said, continue the vitamins (especially riboflavin and other B vitamins) and watch her to make sure that she doesn't go down again. You could probably set her free now, and put the vitamins in everyone's water. In summer, I always put out several 1-2 gallon bowls of water so that even the most meek have a chance to drink in hot weather. B Complex tablets are easily crushed or dissolved into water--1 per gallon, and are economical to use.