Hen cannot walk or stand—advice needed

[marymasc]

I have a 10 month old Cochin hen who cannot walk. It started about a month ago as a slight limp in her left leg, which I looked at and found no signs of mites, bumble foot, swelling, dislocation, injury, etc. I brought her in the house so that she could eat better without being bullied by the other birds, but the leg continued to get worse to the point where she could no longer walk on it at all, and how she can’t walk or even stand on either leg. I made her a sling a few days ago that she sits in to take the weight off her legs so that they can heal, but I’m not sure what else to do. I do not believe that this is Marek’s or something similar because no one else is having any trouble walking. She also has had no other symptoms of it—droppings are normal, she’s still eager to eat, her eyes look normal, etc. So, what can I do to help her? Thank you for reading, and advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[azygous]

Marek's isn't the only avian virus that produces these symptoms. In fact, you probably could rule Marek's out due to the age of this hen as Marek's usually shows up when chicks are a couple months old.

Lymphoid leucosis, on the other hand, something that I've had a lot of experience with, shows up at this age. Here is a thread I made the last time I dealt with it in my flock. https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...update-now-another-pullet-going-lame.1432738/

The reason why you are not seeing more flock members with symptoms is because LL, in spite of being just as terrible as Marek's, is a virus that most chickens are able to develop resistance to.

If this young hen continues to get worse, appetite falling off, weight loss, and eventual organ shut down, you should be ready to hand her off to an animal testing lab to have a necropsy performed so you will know for sure if you have this virus in your flock.

Read through the thread. It documents several treatments I tried before I reached the conclusion and diagnosis it was a virus and not some sort of neurological disorder. The first thing I would suggest is trying B-complex to see if it might reverse the paralysis. Add a daily vitamin E capsule for added neurological support. A sliver of selenium is necessary for best absorption or give it with egg.