Don't know if it seizures! Help!

[MotherhenXOXO]

Hello everyone. Our precious baby needs help. We have a Japanese Blacktail hen who is over 13 years old. We know we have been extremely blessed to have had her this long. We love her so very very much. She lives in the house with us!! Just suddenly about a month ago she started flapping around in her bedtime pen with her her head twisted downward. While flapping she is on her side like she has fallen. We quickly get her out and hold her close to our body and carefully lift her head up for her. That instantly gets her out of that stage but for many hours afterwards most of the time she seems to only move backwards and of course is very exhausted. I feel I should mention it only seems to happen at night. We have noticed an occasional gurgling sound that comes from her belly area but there is no sign of sour crop. We have tried oil, molasses, apple cider vinegar, and plain Greek yogurt. Her eating is good but weird. Some of her food choices probably are not ideal but at certain times it would be the only way we could get her to eat. For a while she would only eat noodles and lettuce. We let her have it and she eventually started to eat her regular feed again. Then she stop eating her regular feed again so I introduce rice because that was the only way I could get her to eat yogurt and molasses. Now she is back on eating her regular food and loving mealworms but she had another one of those episodes. She has probably had 5 in just over a month. She's eating, preening, laying in the sun but has many moments where she just stands there puffed up looking sad. She spends a lot of time snugged in my husband's armpit! She loves it there. Can anyone tell me what maybe happening to her? If it were a seizure why is it as soon as we hold her and lift her head up she is okay. If it is sour crop there is no smell and if it was impacted crop don't impacted crop turn into sour crop? That would have happened by now,right? Any thoughts or suggestions would be so appreciated. I know a vet sounds like what we should do but the closest one is hours away and at her age from experience with our other hens we feel the fear of a stranger handling her will surely kill her. Thank you all so much. Our little Baby Angel Emma needs help.

 

[Kiki]

Vitamin and nutritional deficiencies can cause things like this so be sure to lay off the treats and feed a balanced poultry diet of a pelleted or crumbled poultry feed.

 

[MotherhenXOXO]

We do have her on crumbles and mealworm available to her all day. For some reason she can't seem to get enough mealworm right now. She does get a treat on a daily basis and the problem is she is SPOILED! She let's us know when she wants her treat by standing by our kitchen door and will whine and pace till she gets what she wants. Do you think lettuce would be okay? Also, I get so many different answers for this one.... Crushed up unsweetened shredded wheat? One more thing we did take notice after staying up with her all night after that episode. It seems a few hours after her head twisting downward and her flapping flat on her side she does a really big poop and when it's actually time to start her day she eats like crazy and seems about 50%better but her poops get small again.

 

[coach723]

Age may be catching up with her. No matter how spoiled she is, you really must stop the treats, they dilute the necessary nutrition she needs to be healthy. Vitamin deficiencies are very common and can cause very weird symptoms. An older bird may not be absorbing nutrients as well, and that will just make it worse. Think of a toddler that only wants candy, throws a tantrum for it. Would you just let them eat candy all the time? No matter how much they want it, you know it isn't good for them, so it's a no. I would give her a super B complex tablet or capsule daily (human ones, any pharmacy should have them), see if that helps with the symptoms. Mix her regular feed with a bit of water to make a mash, they often like it that way, and it can also help with hydration. I would limit treats to (very) small amounts of cooked, chopped egg, or small amount of canned tuna, sprinkled over her feed, only if needed to coax her to eat. Once the constant treats stop, she will stop asking all the time. A healthy bird won't refuse to eat and starve themselves on purpose.

 

[MotherhenXOXO]

Lol!! I agree. We don't always give in. I admit when she was not eating at all we panicked so rice and noodles probably were over feed but not now.I just wanted to know if shredded wheat and lettuce would be okay in her condition since she is so picky and we do want her to be happy since there is a possibility it is just her age catching up to her. She won't eat eggs scrambled or boiled and believe it or not she will not eat her crumbles wet. Tuna she says no to as well. Right now it is mainly her crumbles, meal worms, lettuce, and occasionally rice and oatmeal. I will try the vitamin B but would a vitamin deficiency explain the gurgling sound in her belly area? Also, she weighs less than a pound How much of the vitamin B complex should I give her?

 

[Eggcessive]

B complex is a great supplement, containing all b vitamins. It is hard to overdose since it is a water soluble vitamin. Chickens only need about 1/4 to 1/2 a day. Crush it in food or a spoonful of water, or give it whole into the beak after she eats. I would also get some human vitamin E softgels and give 400 IU daily, which may help her neck movements and walking backward. She is truly a pampered senior citizen.

 

[MotherhenXOXO]

B complex is a great supplement, containing all b vitamins. It is hard to overdose since it is a water soluble vitamin. Chickens only need about 1/4 to 1/2 a day. Crush it in food or a spoonful of water, or give it whole into the beak after she eats. I would also get some human vitamin E softgels and give 400 IU daily, which may help her neck movements and walking backward. She is truly a pampered senior citizen.

Hello, it has been a while but our Emma has been hanging on. Nothing has really changed. She seems to bounce back then go back down hill. This time it seems she is not bouncing back so well. I am noticing that gurgling sound in her tummy is worse but no signs of sour crop. I have read that chickens can get a kind of acid reflux and I am wondering if this is what is going on cause I also notice her smacking her beak a lot and when she sleeping with her head in her wing her body jerks up and down like she is struggling. Can I give her pepto bismol? Thank you!!!!!! She is such a little fighter!!!

 

[coach723]

They don't get acid reflux, they can bring stuff back up if the crop is not emptying or if digestion is slowing due to another issue farther down the digestive tract. The jerking may be crop adjusting, that is common if the crop is very full, they are trying to get it to move and empty. Sometimes if they have a reproductive problem, cancer, infection, etc. the digestion slows or stops, which can cause crop issues. The same issues can cause absorption issues with nutrients, so that can manifest as vitamin deficiencies and those kinds of symptoms. It's very hard to know for sure since we can't see inside. And they are very good at hiding symptoms, that is a survival instinct as being weak or sick can cause a flock to drive them out or attack them. I would not give pepto bismol. For crop issues these are very good articles with a lot of information on causes and treatments:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ntion-and-treatments-of-crop-disorders.67194/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

 

[MotherhenXOXO]

They don't get acid reflux, they can bring stuff back up if the crop is not emptying or if digestion is slowing due to another issue farther down the digestive tract. The jerking may be crop adjusting, that is common if the crop is very full, they are trying to get it to move and empty. Sometimes if they have a reproductive problem, cancer, infection, etc. the digestion slows or stops, which can cause crop issues. The same issues can cause absorption issues with nutrients, so that can manifest as vitamin deficiencies and those kinds of symptoms. It's very hard to know for sure since we can't see inside. And they are very good at hiding symptoms, that is a survival instinct as being weak or sick can cause a flock to drive them out or attack them. I would not give pepto bismol. For crop issues these are very good articles with a lot of information on causes and treatments:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ntion-and-treatments-of-crop-disorders.67194/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

That is a very good article and I am going to keep it cause it will be very helpful. Thank you. Only problem is I don't know how to treat it cause I don't know what it is. Like you said unfortunately we can't see what's going on inside and her symptoms could be a number of things. The jerking is not crop adjusting at least I don't believe so cause I have seen that many of times before. This is almost like a need to take her head out of her wing to get air cause while her head is in her wing she is struggling to breathe or something cause her body is doing a bouncing motion. I have no idea. She is over 13 and may be just losing her strength to hang on but we just love her so much and don't want to give up.

 

[MotherhenXOXO]

That is a very good article and I am going to keep it cause it will be very helpful. Thank you. Only problem is I don't know how to treat it cause I don't know what it is. Like you said unfortunately we can't see what's going on inside and her symptoms could be a number of things. The jerking is not crop adjusting at least I don't believe so cause I have seen that many of times before. This is almost like a need to take her head out of her wing to get air cause while her head is in her wing she is struggling to breathe or something cause her body is doing a bouncing motion. I have no idea. She is over 13 and may be just losing her strength to hang on but we just love her so much and don't want to give up.

Emma says hello!! She is still not doing so well. She has been eating good and sometimes has moments where she is full of energy but then she gets very puffed up and lethargic. Mainly after she eats. She is also very uncoordinated and wobbly. I do have a question.. I have her on poultry cell but have been doing apple cider vinegar on a weekly basis because I think she is having digestive issues. Is it safe to do both at the same time? She is less than one pound so I don't want to overdose her with anything. Thank you so much!