Hen teeters, stumbles, and sometimes falls

[oellian]

I have an 8-month old Speckeled Sussex, of seemingly normal weight. She is having trouble standing stably, and when she walks, she teeters, stumbles, and sometimes falls over.
She was exhibiting these symptoms about a week ago, so I brought her onto the closed-in, slightly heated back porch, and she seemed to get better. Today, she was lethargic and unsteady again, and had a bit of poop accumulating around her vent. I brought her in and bathed her. I didn't detect any injury of any sort. She seems normal when she's just sitting. I have a Golden Polish who may be exhibiting similar behavior, but she's always been a bit shaky, literally. Ten other birds of various breeds all seem fine. The coop has pine shavings for the bedding.

 

[azygous]

I can't tell you precisely what's wrong with your chicken, but the symptoms can be, in order of seriousness, starvation, shock, hypothermia, toxic poisoning from insecticides, petroleum distillates, or mold, and an avian virus.

Do any of those match up to anything currently going on in their environment?

 

[oellian]

Starvation seems unlikely. I have three feeders in the coop, all on-demand, for twelve birds.
I don't know of any source of shock, so I think that's out.
Hypothermia seems unlikely, since it's only been down to the mid-twenties at night here lately, and she roosts with other birds.
I don't use any insecticides on my property, and am unaware of any potential sources of petroleum distillates.
It has been wet here for a good ten days, but I don't see any mold anywhere.
Virus is always in the environment, so that's always possible with all of us. All ten other birds appear entirely normal, FWIW.

 

[azygous]

Good. You've ruled out environmental factors. That leaves nutritional or neurological causes. Weakness and motor instability can be caused by vitamin deficiencies and/or genetic predisposition to nervous system disorders such as wry neck and weak nerve connections.

If you are up to it, you can try her on B-complex to strengthen nerve connections and vitamin E and selenium for neurological causes. I recommend the B-100 complex as it has a high concentration of B-2, B-6, and B-12, all good for repairing nerve connections. Give one tablet each day.

Get some vitamin E 400iu and give one capsule each day with a sliver of selenium for absorption. If no improvement, give two capsules per day, morning and evening.

The secret to giving pills to chickens is to pry open the beak firmly and shoving the pill inside. No fuss, no muss.

 

[oellian]

OK, that sounds like a good approach. Do you have any preferred sources, or should I just visit my local Southern States to see what they carry?

 

[azygous]

I'm not familiar with "Southern States". If it's a vitamin shop or pharmacy that carries people vitamin supplements, yes, that would be a good source. Or Walmart vitamin aisle.

 

[oellian]

It's a farm store here on the east coast.

 

[azygous]

You won't find the vitamins there, then, except for the aforementioned poultry multivitamin compounds.

 

[oellian]

You won't find the vitamins there, then, except for the aforementioned poultry multivitamin compounds.

Good call. They had nothing.

 

[oellian]

Here is a video displaying the behavior, poor thing: