Help needed again

Firecracker22

In the Brooder
May 13, 2020
11
16
39
I have a six month old silky roo whom I’ve been having issues with for a month now. Started out with not being able to use 1 foot to laying with his feet forward and now kind of having these tremors. I’ve tried several different things and now decided it is a vitamin E deficiency. So treating him with vitamin E for 3 days now, but wondering if we will be seeing any improvements. Anyone have any background on this situation? Not sure if it’s humane to keep him like this. I made him a sling because I could not stand watching him flop around. He seems happy, is eating and drinking water. How long should I expect before improvements?

Trying to attach a video or photo but not able to, anyone know why not able to?
 
I'm sorry about your roo. :hugs
Certainly seems like something neurological going on. I don't have any experience with silkies, but know they are prone to issues due to the vaulted skull. Do you think there is any possibility he may have been injured at some point, maybe by another roo or a larger hen? Another issue they can get is called 'water on the brain' it's infection/inflammation of the brain due to the vaulted skull. They are also more susceptible to Marek's, though this isn't typical Marek's behavior.
A couple of links that may be helpful, and I will tag some others.
https://poultrykeeper.com/blog/diseases-common-to-silkies/
https://silkie.org/silkie-problems-and-diseases.html
@Wyorp Rock , @Eggcessive
 
I’ve tried several different things and now decided it is a vitamin E deficiency. So treating him with vitamin E for 3 days now, but wondering if we will be seeing any improvements. Anyone have any background on this situation? Not sure if it’s humane to keep him like this. I made him a sling because I could not stand watching him flop around. He seems happy, is eating and drinking water. How long should I expect before improvements?

If you raised the sling up, can he push up/stand up on his foot pads (with support)?

You've tried several things - what have you tried?

I would try the Vitamin E (400IU) daily along with 1/4 tablet B-Complex daily. Give some egg along with his normal feed.

I do agree, it looks neurological. As to the cause - hard to know.
Looking at your other thread, it started as limping and has progressed - Marek's surely does come to mind.
Did you get rid of the lice?

As for humane. He's been like this for a month - you have to decide whether you want to try vitamin therapy for X number of days to see if there's improvement and then make your decision. Quality of life should always be considered. I'm sorry he's not doing well.
 
Sorry about your cockerel. I would agree that B complex vitamins and a little cooked egg for selenium might be helpful to give along with the E. How long have you had him? I assume that he wasn’t vaccinated for Mareks disease? I would suspect that it is Mareks disease, but hard to know for sure without testing or a necropsy. He seems to move his legs and his right wing quite a bit. Is his right leg stronger? Do both eyes appear the same color and normal? There is a PCR blood test for Mareks available for $20 on blood serum that can be done through the mail. If interested, here is a link to contact for details:
http://www.vetdna.com/application/forms/aviansubmittalform.pdf
 

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