Is the leg broken?

[Isabella6Storm4]

I keep finding hens under the coop laying on there side with their legs sticking out. They have no balance and cant get up to eat by themselves. So far i have 3 of them in a crate due to this. One leg is always limp while the other seems to be working just fine. The first one is walking again but i'm keeping it in so i can keep an eye on it. The 2nd seems to be breathing pretty heavily and i found the 3rd just this morning. i'll post pics later. Any ideas?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

the are crowded yes. We de-worm regularly they have three feeding stations and a constantly replenishing water station. The feed is kept in the barn untill it is brought into the back of the coop and never touches water.

Storage sounds good.
It's often how the feed is stored before you get it. I've bought feed and brought it home only to discover that it's got molded clumps while in the bag.

You are having birds recover right? Anything special you are giving them - a different feed, supplements/vitamins, etc.?

It's still possible to have a few become symptomatic at the same time with Marek's. You have 100 birds, so 3 out of 100 is not that far fetched. But I would still access food/water, if they are getting into compost, getting around equipment where they could get into oil/machine liquids, etc. Consider everything.

 

[sourland]

Sadly it sounds as if they may have Marek's disease. Have they been vaccinated for Marek's?

 

[Eggcessive]

Were the symptoms seen in the vaccinated birds? Can you keep the body cold/refrigerated, but not frozen, and send it to Cornell for a necropsy? If you have had Mareks confirmed before, that may be what is going on. Mareks can last for months or years in the coop, since it is spread by dander and feather dust. Are you feeding a fresh layer or all flock feed? If not, it could be a vitamin b 2 deficiency. Sorry for your loss.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

what they eat is like crushed corn in this like, powder stuff. I think its like protein and other things.

I am trying to get to the point were i make money off of eggs. My parents said i could buy any chickens i wanted with the money i got and i just descovered Frizzle Eastereggers soooooo. thats what im trying to figure out.

We sell non GMO soy free eggs.

Does everyone else really think it's Marek's? Three birds all becoming lame within a few days of each other, the one bird to die within a day is the one that was vaccinated for Marek's, and one birds seems to be back on her feet after a day or two....

No.
Overcrowding? Injury? Moldy feed? Not enough feed/water stations?
Dehydration? Reproductive problems, Parasites.....?

Do you currently sell eggs or are you trying to get into the egg business? Getting a necropsy would be a wise thing to do since you are losing birds and you have birds that are not well. If the issue is correctable or treatable, then you need to know. Sick birds = loss of profits.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/isabella4storm2s-flock-and-farm.1558405/post-26425681

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Dang you did some digging to find that

No. Those photos were posted this month.
When someone has an ER issue, you look at past posts to see if there are pieces of the puzzle missing. Past threads and posts often give a lot of information.

The post is not to make anyone angry or uncomfortable, the OP is asking for help, this is part of the process of trying to find out what may be affecting her birds.
While disease like Marek's is always a possibility, there can be other issues at play that can exacerbate symptoms. If these issues can be addressed quickly and easily, all the better.

 

[Razzlefrazzle]

My bird was vaccinated against mereks too. Once one has it, they all can get it. I mean really, what else could it necessarily be other than mereks??

My bird was the same way, became limp, started laying on her side, not moving, and then within a week she died…. It’s all signs with mereks.

Although that one bird could have not been mereks, maybe that one had something else going on. But the two others point to mereks

Vaccination isn't 100% but I would expect it to offer some protection rather than that hen being the first and fastest to die. Also a bit unusual that one is already back on her feet. With such quick onset on symptoms in a number of birds I think of botulism or some other toxin. There are also other diseases than Mareks that cause lameness... How old are the birds?

 

[Isabella6Storm4]

I know i’m just saying, i never really thought to look in past posts because some of the time there’s nothing, yk? I hope they figured out a different coop set up because that’s very bad overcrowding

Dad is working on a cow barn a rabbit hutch and something for the pigs but i'm despratly trying to get a new coop bumped up on his list. Its set up for maybe 30 birds and we have over 100.

 

[Razzlefrazzle]

Do they eat formulated layer pellets or...? Noticed any diarrhea or funny droppings?

So the leghorn went from fine to paralyzed to dead within a day? I don't think you'd see such a fast progression with vitamin deficiency or a disease. It sounds most like botulism to me. I would check everywhere they have access to for rotting food/matter or old, stagnant water.

 

[Eggcessive]

A body that is being sent for necropsy needs to be cold, but if it freezes, they will not be able to do the necropsy. So refrigerate it wrapped in garbage bags in a cooler. Do you not have access to a balanced chicken feed?

If you have any birds from the flock who were exposed to the ones 7 years ago, the disease stays with the whole flock. Here is a list of state vets to contact for a necropsy:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry-labs.html