chicken walking like a drunk

[Christine44]

Any guesses as to why one of my chickens is walking like a drunk? Half of them are going through a molt. She was given a warm bath (in case it is an impacted egg) and is separated. I may bring her home tonight (she is boarded). I am not familiar with any reasons for a drunk like walk. The barn owner says her left leg is walking left and her right leg is walking right so I imagine it looks drunk like. I haven't seen it myself yet. I am going out tonight.

 

[Eggcessive]

How old is she? Has she been laying lately? A penguin walk or reluctance to walk may happen with internal laying or egg yolk peritonitis. You can easily check for a stuck egg by inserting a gloved finger 1-2 inches inside the vent. Vitamin deficiency, dehydration, or Mareks disease could be some of the other possibilities for the wobbly walking.

 

[Christine44]

She is 2 1/2 years old. I googled Mareks disease and her eyes are normal, not grey. It's been a couple days since my original post and she has improved a bit. She is in the middle of a molt so maybe she is just in a lot of discomfort? She is still alert and eating. I added a vitamin to her water to help ensure she is getting enough vitamins.

 

[Eggcessive]

The eye form of Mareks is only seen in certain cases of Mareks. The tumors which cause the eyes to become gray can be anywhere in the body, so some chickens may have paralysis, some have the eye form, while others may have growths on the skin or in the digestive tract. There can be a lot of weakness and stress when chickens molt, and they can look very sick. Hopefully it is just something temporary.