I've been looking online for two days for an answer to this but have found nothing - hopefully someone here can help??
My 6 month-old silkie cockerel Owen started showing signs of leg paralysis Saturday afternoon.
He was fine Saturday morning, never sick a day in his life - everyone else in the flock is thriving. They have a small coop for the night and a large grass and dirt pen for the day.
I isolated him as he could sit but not walk except by dragging himself by the wings to eat and drink.
Yesterday (Sunday) his paralysis spread to his entire body except his head. His legs are stiff and will not bend on their own but they do bend if I apply pressure to his knees. His instinct is to push them straight out of his body so he keeps topping over. His wings are held spread away from his body. His muscles have tremors. He has zero equilibrium nor muscle coordination and can only remain in the squatting position if I hold his legs.
He cannot eat or drink on his own yet is alert, clear eyes, cannot talk anymore but he tries. No fever, no discharges anywhere, poops are watery but not sickly looking. Eyes bright and alert. I looked for ticks or bugs or stings but cannot find anything.
If I put mash in his beak he will swallow it. I have been giving him water with poly-vi-sol with a tube directly into his crop, a little bit every few hours.
He has gotten progressively worse the past 48 hours and now can only lay on his side, legs feebly kicking from under him. He seems to be having more difficulty breathing today than yesterday.
He looks as bewildered as I feel - can anyone please tell me what's going on and if there is any hope we can fix it? I do not want to give up on Owen but I do not want to leave him suffering longer than he has to.
My husband is leaving tomorrow morning for two days and he is the one who gives mercy to our dying chooks, as I absolutely cannot do it - so I need some answers by tomorrow morning at the latest to make a decision on Owen's fate...
PS: It's not Mareks, the signs don't fit. Nor Botulism, again the signs don't fit - I cannot pull any feathers from his body, they are stuck in there tight.
Thank you -
from a very heart-broken chick mama
My 6 month-old silkie cockerel Owen started showing signs of leg paralysis Saturday afternoon.
He was fine Saturday morning, never sick a day in his life - everyone else in the flock is thriving. They have a small coop for the night and a large grass and dirt pen for the day.
I isolated him as he could sit but not walk except by dragging himself by the wings to eat and drink.
Yesterday (Sunday) his paralysis spread to his entire body except his head. His legs are stiff and will not bend on their own but they do bend if I apply pressure to his knees. His instinct is to push them straight out of his body so he keeps topping over. His wings are held spread away from his body. His muscles have tremors. He has zero equilibrium nor muscle coordination and can only remain in the squatting position if I hold his legs.
He cannot eat or drink on his own yet is alert, clear eyes, cannot talk anymore but he tries. No fever, no discharges anywhere, poops are watery but not sickly looking. Eyes bright and alert. I looked for ticks or bugs or stings but cannot find anything.
If I put mash in his beak he will swallow it. I have been giving him water with poly-vi-sol with a tube directly into his crop, a little bit every few hours.
He has gotten progressively worse the past 48 hours and now can only lay on his side, legs feebly kicking from under him. He seems to be having more difficulty breathing today than yesterday.
He looks as bewildered as I feel - can anyone please tell me what's going on and if there is any hope we can fix it? I do not want to give up on Owen but I do not want to leave him suffering longer than he has to.
My husband is leaving tomorrow morning for two days and he is the one who gives mercy to our dying chooks, as I absolutely cannot do it - so I need some answers by tomorrow morning at the latest to make a decision on Owen's fate...
PS: It's not Mareks, the signs don't fit. Nor Botulism, again the signs don't fit - I cannot pull any feathers from his body, they are stuck in there tight.
Thank you -
from a very heart-broken chick mama
