- Feb 1, 2014
- 7
- 0
- 7
I have two 10 week old Sultans along with 19 other assorted breed chicks. The two Sultans (Lady Gaga and Lois) have always been at the bottom of the pecking order but they get along just fine. They've always seemed a bit "needy" in that they were always crying when I let them out. The two of them always stick together and if one gets out of sight the other starts chirping hysterically until it finds the other, even if all of the other chickens are around.
A few weeks ago "Lady Gaga" started acting odd. If all the chickens were walking around and they got more than 15 ft away she would seem lost and panic. She would stand in the middle of the yard with her neck outstretched just chirping hysterically as if she'd been abandoned and she couldn't see the others.
The oth
er Sultan, Lois, would always come running but finally tired of Lady Gaga's hysterics and just ignored her like the other chickens did and carried on doing chicken things like scratching and chasing bugs.
I thought maybe she couldn't see and needed a "haircut" as she has a huge full crest. We trimmed around her eyes thinking this would help. It helped a little but not much. She still acted as if she were nearsighted. She could see fine up close but nothing beyond 10 - 15 ft. Multiple times I'd find her crying hysterically. When I would speak up though her head would perk up and she'd come towards my voice. I jokingly referred to her as my "special needs" chicken.
Yesterday, she was on my lap as she'd gotten a small scratch on her nostril from a rose bush I believe and I was seeing if she was ok. Of course, the other chickens saw me and came running. She panicked and jumped off my lap, caught her leg in the chair's arm rest and made a very ungraceful landing. She laid there and didn't move. I hurried and picked her up and her head just hung down and her eyes were closed. At first I thought she was dead but I could feel her breathing in my arms. She would perk up a little bit and then go unconscious again. My five year old granddaughter held her in her arms and sang to her and she started to come around. I put her in the coop alone and after a couple of hours she seemed to be doing ok. She was eating like it was her last meal so I figured she was fine. I took her out into the backyard with the other chickens and she just stood there acting like she really didn't know what was going on. I put her in a 2x3 bird cage with bedding, feed and water (with Kwik Chick added) .
This morning she has these jerky movements like Cerebral Palsy. I've searched online and others have posted similar problems with their chickens and said it was possible protein deficiency or low electrolytes.
I just now made this quick video. Please give me some suggestions on what to do.
Oh, all my chicks were vaccinated for Marek's & Cocccidiosis.
A few weeks ago "Lady Gaga" started acting odd. If all the chickens were walking around and they got more than 15 ft away she would seem lost and panic. She would stand in the middle of the yard with her neck outstretched just chirping hysterically as if she'd been abandoned and she couldn't see the others.
The oth
I thought maybe she couldn't see and needed a "haircut" as she has a huge full crest. We trimmed around her eyes thinking this would help. It helped a little but not much. She still acted as if she were nearsighted. She could see fine up close but nothing beyond 10 - 15 ft. Multiple times I'd find her crying hysterically. When I would speak up though her head would perk up and she'd come towards my voice. I jokingly referred to her as my "special needs" chicken.
Yesterday, she was on my lap as she'd gotten a small scratch on her nostril from a rose bush I believe and I was seeing if she was ok. Of course, the other chickens saw me and came running. She panicked and jumped off my lap, caught her leg in the chair's arm rest and made a very ungraceful landing. She laid there and didn't move. I hurried and picked her up and her head just hung down and her eyes were closed. At first I thought she was dead but I could feel her breathing in my arms. She would perk up a little bit and then go unconscious again. My five year old granddaughter held her in her arms and sang to her and she started to come around. I put her in the coop alone and after a couple of hours she seemed to be doing ok. She was eating like it was her last meal so I figured she was fine. I took her out into the backyard with the other chickens and she just stood there acting like she really didn't know what was going on. I put her in a 2x3 bird cage with bedding, feed and water (with Kwik Chick added) .
This morning she has these jerky movements like Cerebral Palsy. I've searched online and others have posted similar problems with their chickens and said it was possible protein deficiency or low electrolytes.
I just now made this quick video. Please give me some suggestions on what to do.
Oh, all my chicks were vaccinated for Marek's & Cocccidiosis.
