- Aug 7, 2011
- 15
- 0
- 22
Hi everyone,
This is not an emergency, although obviously I'm very concerned about the situation and want to improve things for my chook ASAP.
The main issue is that as of about 2 days ago, my Olive-Egger pullet (about 4 months) (named Branwen) began breathing with an open beak, and has persisted in this behavior. There is no audible breath or wheezing, etc., or any discharge from anywhere. She is eating and pooping normally -- well, normally for her. That's the 'complicated' part. It's a long story to be thorough, so I'll give the short version, then the long version for any who are interested.
So, two weeks ago (to the day, tomorrow), Branwen became very suddenly and rapidly paralyzed in both legs. Over the past two weeks, she's made slow but steady progress reclaiming her mobility. But she obviously spends her time resting in unusual positions for a chicken, especially since she instinctively cranes her neck forward, struggling for balance with her non-working legs, which have been until recently pointing straight out in front of her. Maybe this has created the breathing problem??? We don't know. But I'm very concerned about it, especially as it seems she is just making real progress towards recovering from the paralysis. Oh, and for several weeks we've been battling lice which we found on all 4 of our new pullets, who are separate from our 8 hens (who occasionally get mites, but have never had lice!).
Please throw in any thoughts you have about potential causes and cures for the open-mouth breathing, and for the paralysis, too! We have made the decision to think that it is NOT Marek's, because it hasn't been acting like anything I've read about Marek's. We couldn't afford the test last Wednesday when we were at the vet's when it already seemed unlikely that it was Marek's. Some sort of bizarre neurological damage.... Ugh. But ideas about the breathing would be very helpful!!
UPDATE: Watching her sleep tonight, I discovered it's on the exhale that she opens her beak. The air sort of swells in her, her head tilts a bit, and her beak opens to let out the air. Hopefully that info. helps.
Thanks!
---- ---- ----
Long version! Two weeks ago, I went down to the coop in the afternoon to check on the chooks. Branwen and the three other pullets we purchased about a month ago are very active girls that all share a fetish for jumping on things and perching -- I've never had chickens that do it so much. Branwen had been perfectly normal in the morning according to my mom, who did the chickens that morning. I looked in at the pullets and saw Branwen uncharacteristically sitting down on the ground looking a bit funny. I went in and she got up to move away from me and seemed very wobbly and I noticed her knees were pointing inwards towards each other. She needed to sit down again very soon, although it was clear she wanted to move away from me again. I brought her up to the house and put her on the ground so I could run and grab a rubbermaid tub to put her in (yes, I was already terrified of Marek's and was thinking of ease of accessing her and of containing feather dander to put her in the tub vs. a cage -- we had 2 other hens with different ailments in the house at the time). In that short time, she lost the ability to get her legs under her and stand -- she did some terrified scrambling, but could no longer coordinate her legs. It progressed overnight until she could no longer feel anything in her feet (totally indifferent to any squeezing or pinching).
I immediately began researching, and we began treating her with B vitamin, then also with E. The paralysis seemed to stop at her legs: her wings and upper body were unaffected. For a little more than a day during the first week, she stopped pooping, but thankfully began again and has absolutely no problems now! We did have to feed her with a syringe the first several days because she was pretty disinterested in food and completely so in water: she'd gaze around in a trance and notice food eventually and peck a bit before relapsing into a trance again. I think the shock of losing her ability to move and have any balance played a big part. She began eating on her own and then drinking on her own -- drinking copiously. Very, very thirsty. Also, in the last week or so, I've noticed she begins shivering a little while she's drinking and stops after she stops drinking. The water is usually room temperature.
In the next few days after food independence the first week, she began twitching the toes of her left foot. Although both feet stuck out in front of her, she slowly became able to move her left foot and leg, and then her right. As of early last week, she became able to pull her left leg in under herself. Today, she was able to bring the right leg in, and while she cannot stand, is making progress towards moving herself around. About the third day of her paralysis, I put her in a t-shirt sling in her tub: leg holes cut through the shirt and the corners tied to the corners of the tub to suspend her upright. In the last week, with her increased mobility, such as it is, we've been just putting her in the sling without her legs through so she can bounce around in there safely, and she sometimes is taken out to sit on the ground propped in a towel thrown, or observed during short trips outside in the grass and dirt.
It was the day before yesterday we administered a dose of her meds and we noticed the breathing with the open beak. Yesterday and today we didn't give her her vitamins because we are afraid of vitamin E build-up in her system (toxic) and general overdosing. We're planning to knock the dosage down to 4 times a week or something. While it is warm here in Southern California, it's perfectly cool in the house, especially for a chicken that just sits there doing nothing. She's even gotten cold before. Plus, she had no unusual breathing through the 90 degree weather and the smoke from the fires the other week (we're in Fallbrook: right on the edge of Camp Pendleton and several of the recent fires). I can't figure it out and I'd appreciate any help. Apologies for the length, but I want to be precise and thorough.
Thanks for any ideas!
Twitcherette
This is not an emergency, although obviously I'm very concerned about the situation and want to improve things for my chook ASAP.
The main issue is that as of about 2 days ago, my Olive-Egger pullet (about 4 months) (named Branwen) began breathing with an open beak, and has persisted in this behavior. There is no audible breath or wheezing, etc., or any discharge from anywhere. She is eating and pooping normally -- well, normally for her. That's the 'complicated' part. It's a long story to be thorough, so I'll give the short version, then the long version for any who are interested.
So, two weeks ago (to the day, tomorrow), Branwen became very suddenly and rapidly paralyzed in both legs. Over the past two weeks, she's made slow but steady progress reclaiming her mobility. But she obviously spends her time resting in unusual positions for a chicken, especially since she instinctively cranes her neck forward, struggling for balance with her non-working legs, which have been until recently pointing straight out in front of her. Maybe this has created the breathing problem??? We don't know. But I'm very concerned about it, especially as it seems she is just making real progress towards recovering from the paralysis. Oh, and for several weeks we've been battling lice which we found on all 4 of our new pullets, who are separate from our 8 hens (who occasionally get mites, but have never had lice!).
Please throw in any thoughts you have about potential causes and cures for the open-mouth breathing, and for the paralysis, too! We have made the decision to think that it is NOT Marek's, because it hasn't been acting like anything I've read about Marek's. We couldn't afford the test last Wednesday when we were at the vet's when it already seemed unlikely that it was Marek's. Some sort of bizarre neurological damage.... Ugh. But ideas about the breathing would be very helpful!!
UPDATE: Watching her sleep tonight, I discovered it's on the exhale that she opens her beak. The air sort of swells in her, her head tilts a bit, and her beak opens to let out the air. Hopefully that info. helps.
Thanks!
---- ---- ----
Long version! Two weeks ago, I went down to the coop in the afternoon to check on the chooks. Branwen and the three other pullets we purchased about a month ago are very active girls that all share a fetish for jumping on things and perching -- I've never had chickens that do it so much. Branwen had been perfectly normal in the morning according to my mom, who did the chickens that morning. I looked in at the pullets and saw Branwen uncharacteristically sitting down on the ground looking a bit funny. I went in and she got up to move away from me and seemed very wobbly and I noticed her knees were pointing inwards towards each other. She needed to sit down again very soon, although it was clear she wanted to move away from me again. I brought her up to the house and put her on the ground so I could run and grab a rubbermaid tub to put her in (yes, I was already terrified of Marek's and was thinking of ease of accessing her and of containing feather dander to put her in the tub vs. a cage -- we had 2 other hens with different ailments in the house at the time). In that short time, she lost the ability to get her legs under her and stand -- she did some terrified scrambling, but could no longer coordinate her legs. It progressed overnight until she could no longer feel anything in her feet (totally indifferent to any squeezing or pinching).
I immediately began researching, and we began treating her with B vitamin, then also with E. The paralysis seemed to stop at her legs: her wings and upper body were unaffected. For a little more than a day during the first week, she stopped pooping, but thankfully began again and has absolutely no problems now! We did have to feed her with a syringe the first several days because she was pretty disinterested in food and completely so in water: she'd gaze around in a trance and notice food eventually and peck a bit before relapsing into a trance again. I think the shock of losing her ability to move and have any balance played a big part. She began eating on her own and then drinking on her own -- drinking copiously. Very, very thirsty. Also, in the last week or so, I've noticed she begins shivering a little while she's drinking and stops after she stops drinking. The water is usually room temperature.
In the next few days after food independence the first week, she began twitching the toes of her left foot. Although both feet stuck out in front of her, she slowly became able to move her left foot and leg, and then her right. As of early last week, she became able to pull her left leg in under herself. Today, she was able to bring the right leg in, and while she cannot stand, is making progress towards moving herself around. About the third day of her paralysis, I put her in a t-shirt sling in her tub: leg holes cut through the shirt and the corners tied to the corners of the tub to suspend her upright. In the last week, with her increased mobility, such as it is, we've been just putting her in the sling without her legs through so she can bounce around in there safely, and she sometimes is taken out to sit on the ground propped in a towel thrown, or observed during short trips outside in the grass and dirt.
It was the day before yesterday we administered a dose of her meds and we noticed the breathing with the open beak. Yesterday and today we didn't give her her vitamins because we are afraid of vitamin E build-up in her system (toxic) and general overdosing. We're planning to knock the dosage down to 4 times a week or something. While it is warm here in Southern California, it's perfectly cool in the house, especially for a chicken that just sits there doing nothing. She's even gotten cold before. Plus, she had no unusual breathing through the 90 degree weather and the smoke from the fires the other week (we're in Fallbrook: right on the edge of Camp Pendleton and several of the recent fires). I can't figure it out and I'd appreciate any help. Apologies for the length, but I want to be precise and thorough.
Thanks for any ideas!
Twitcherette
Last edited:
