Chickens eyes and nose running plus they are slowing down

[gary123]

I have been introducing new chickens into the flock. One fell sick and stopped
walking about a month ago. I took it to a vet and he said, it will never walk again.
He offered to put it down. I said, it is not suffering so, I put it out on the lawn
in a cage everyday so it can live out it's last days. It flops around and eats and
drinks from the feeders. Now I have noticed that other birds are starting to slow
down and they have runny noses and their eyes are watering and sometimes
one eye will close completely because, of dried fluid. I have givin the sick ones
a shot of penecillin however, it doesn't seem to be helping. Any suggestions
would be greatly appreciated.
Sincerely,
Gary in San Jose
408 828 0460

 

[squeakyballs]

That sounds awful, but I have no idea what is wrong. I'm bumping the thread so maybe someone who knows will see it.

 

[MotherJean]

If the paralyzed bird and the others who are showing symptoms all came from the same source, I would suspect Mareks or Newcastle. Both, unfortunately, are very serious and have a high mortality rate. The problem is, there is no way to confirm a diagnosis of either of these diseases except through a postmortem exam. Newcastle is untreatable. The birds should be culled. There is some evidence that giving the Mareks vaccine to birds that are already infected may lessen the severity of the disease, but it is not a cure. Your Vet said the paralysis was irreversible and it is. In your shoes, I would not only accept the Vet's offer to put her down, I would ask him about sending the bird for necropsy so you can get a confirmed diagnosis of the disease you're dealing with. It will help you determine if the rest of your flock is at risk of serious illness or death. Moreover, it will guide you in any future decisions to isolate any new birds for 30 days before introducing them into your flock.

 

[BAkyARDchiks]

You Should Seperate the chickens or it will infect other chickens. The sickness could be Avian Pox. Does it have big black dots near its comb? I've Had a Sick Hen... My dad just gave it some panadol and it recovered.