Thanks.
Yes, he's huge and really special. He's always been a bit unique and different, right from when he burst out of his egg a day before the others and started running around the incubator immediately, not even resting after exiting the egg. He was bigger than the others all along growing up and has stayed much bigger since everyone has been fully grown. He's especially gentle and has always been so good with us and the hens. I always thought he was by far the strongest and fittest out of my whole flock so this is a bit of a shock.
Is it from the video that you think Marek's is a possibility? Is that the type of movement restriction you'd see with it?
It was keeping me awake overnight wondering if it was a huge mistake to put my hen out with him. Was I right about there being no point in quarantine at this point? They would all have been exposed to it if it's Marek's, wouldn't they?
I keep telling myself the logical answer is injury but then I'm watching him flailing around and not being able to walk and I just keep coming back to Marek's.
I've been thinking about my flock history as well. We got 6 point of lay production hybrid pullets from a very large breeder about 3 and a half years ago. Two of them are still alive. One died in a freak accident but the other 3 that died all sort of wasted away without clear symptoms. We've dealt with things like diarrhea, crop issues, general lethargy, not responding to treatments, randomly improving and then deteriorating again. Only one of them died quickly. The other two were just not quite right for a long time but sort of just hung on and kept going for several months, maybe even a year.
Of the two that are left, one hasn't laid an egg in about 9 months. The other gives us about one a week. They're both a bit lethargic but they've been like that for a year or maybe even two without declining.
It was around their first moult we started to see these issues. I had put it down to them being production hybrids and not bred for longevity. I would never have even considered Marek's because I thought it was a paralysis thing until I've read more about it now. So I'm a bit scared now that that's what we're dealing with.
The other thing is that we also keep peafowl and they were in direct contact with these hens in the early days and never got sick. I know peafowl don't get Marek's so that's another interesting sign.
My new flock were hatched in two batches from shipped eggs, one batch in June and one in July last year. We took their quarantine from the old aviary seriously and they grew up in a pastured situation in a separate part of the land with an electric fence. Then at the end of October with the bird flu housing requirements and our horrible winter weather, we moved them into the polytunnel for the winter. The polytunnel is where we used to bring our older hens when they were sick and dying. So if there is Marek's here, the new flock might have managed to not come in contact with it until they were 3 or 4 months old.
I know you say not to panic and I keep telling myself that constantly but I have to admit I am in a bit of a major panic about the new chicks. They are starting to pip right now. I don't think it's within our ability to manage the level of quarantine that's going to be required to keep them safe, especially while tending my poor Atreyu at the same time.
He's the same this morning so we'll see how he does today. My husband is starting to look into the options for his chair.
Sorry this is a massively long post and thanks so much to anyone who reads it all. I'm very sleep deprived and in a bit of a state. Any other feedback on whether his movement in the video looks like Marek's or not would really help me.
I know you read a lot. I do too, have for years and years. Folks get Marek's in their flock, it can be heartbreaking, I don't dismiss the hurt, sadness and frustration at all!! Here's the thing. Even if it's Marek's, managing symptoms and offering supportive care like you are doing is as of right now "the best" thing to do. There's no real treatment so vitamin support and nutrition, along with fresh air, sunshine and encouraging them to move about seems to be what most do. IF, IF he declines or you feel he's in pain/suffering terribly and you make the hard decision to let him go, then getting testing through your state lab will give you answers. 
