Chickens tongue keeps almost going down her throat

[OwO]

How is she doing?

Thanks for checking in, not much has changed unfortunately. Still eating a lot, but still itchy and still getting white flaky bits on her face every morning

There's a qualified chicken vet near me who does online video calls or house visits so I'm going to book something with her and see if she is able to spot something I haven't been able to.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Good luck, keep us posted.

 

[OwO]

Hi guys, I have an update. Coco saw a poultry vet yesterday, and she was almost certain it's Marek's

She is going to send a test off to the lab to make sure, but she said she would be extremely surprised if it is anything else.

Coco is still doing pretty well and eating a lot, I let her outside for a bit and she's having a dust bath right now, but still very bad balance and quite itchy.

I just picked up one of my other chickens who I got at the same time as Coco, who is also around 8, and I noticed she has got raised areas at the base of some of her feathers which I'd never noticed before. I'm guessing the disease is progressing now due to their age and is becoming more noticeable

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm glad you are getting some testing, let us know what you find out.

Marek's can affect chickens in different ways. Not sure if what you are showing in the photos would be indicative of Marek's or not. Living to be 8 years of age, if it is Marek's, then what you have, imho, would be a mild strain.

 

[OwO]

Update: Marek's came back negative, although the vet says this test rarely gives false negatives so I think she is going under the assumption that it is a rare case since she ticks all the boxes. Either way, Coco is doing very well and is back to living with the rest of the flock most of the time she isn't completely back to normal but given her age I'm honestly not expecting her to, I just want to make sure she lives comfortably for the time she has left.

Balance is a LOT better - she has been jumping up onto perches and running around occasionally. Still slower than I would like, but a big step up from a couple of months back. She is trying so hard and is doing so well and I hope she keeps improving. I am no longer using any anti-fungal cream, but when her skin starts getting flaky I spray with Leucillin. Not sure if it's actually doing anything or not tbh but I feel like it's helping long term

edit: here's some before and after images of her neck twisting! A huge improvement!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you for the update.

I'm glad to hear she's improving enough to where she can be with her flock, that's a nice big step forward!

 

[OwO]

Hi again everyone!

I am wondering if she maybe has a Vitamin A deficiency. She has been having bubbly saliva around her mouth for about a year and a half now, which I noticed at the same time as I noticed the growths in her neck (can't remember if I've mentioned that in this thread or not) so I assumed it was because of that. I just read online that it could be due to Vitamin A deficiency. I was searching for preen gland issues as her preen gland appears slightly lumpy (also indicates low Vitamin A), although does not appear to bother her when I touch it.

I was giving her vitamins every day when she was inside the house, but she would still have bubbly saliva sometimes. Is there anything specifically I can give her for Vitamin A, or should I just keep mixing general vitamin supplements in with some food for her?

Anyway here are some pics of her sunbathing outside the other day

Edit: I also want to thank everyone again for all the help you have given me in this thread - she is doing really well now and a lot of it is thanks to you guys taking time out of your day to help

 

[azygous]

Glad to hear she's doing well. She appears to be in great health and enjoying life. She's quite beautiful.

As long as she's behaving normally and eating and pooping okay, I caution against being overly concerned about tiny little things. I know a few chicken keepers that have been obsessed with solving every tiny odd thing with supplements, and one eventually ended up poisoning and killing the chicken with a toxic herb by following advice off Facebook. The other one likely contributed to the demise of the hen because it was being fed too many supplements that eventually overloaded the chicken's liver and kidneys.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

She should be really getting all the vitamins/minerals she needs if she's eating a nutritionally balanced feed.
Extra Vitamins can be part of initial supportive care to get a hen through an acute crisis, but they are not meant for long term continued use.

I agree with @azygous if she's acting relatively normal, then I would just monitor and let her continue to chicken.

Your comment about the preen gland is curious, the gland is like a little lump and it's not on the neck, it's at the tail. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding.

I noticed the growths in her neck (can't remember if I've mentioned that in this thread or not) so I assumed it was because of that. I just read online that it could be due to Vitamin A deficiency. I was searching for preen gland issues as her preen gland appears slightly lumpy (also indicates low Vitamin A), although does not appear to bother her when I touch it.

 

[Allsfairinloveandbugs]

Your comment about the preen gland is curious, the gland is like a little lump and it's not on the neck, it's at the tail. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding.

I think @OwO was talking about growths on her hen's neck and the hen's "lumpy" preen gland as two separate issues, but saying that they read that vitamin A deficiency could cause both issues.