Lethargic Rooster

[PonyRaindrop]

Hello BYC, I have a 3-4 year old silkie rooster who has been acting off for about a week now. He is lethargic and as far as I know not eating or drinking on his own. He also seems to loose his balance pretty easily and whenever I go out he is either next to a wall or a higher spot of pine shavings that I’m assuming he’s using to lean on while sitting next to it. He does have an appetite, and will eat if I give him bird seed, soaked oats, or soaked feed in a spoon close to his face. I’m not sure if him not wanting to eat or drink on his own is because of his loss of balance, because I tried to gradually bring the bird seed close to the ground, and once close to the ground he almost fell over his head. All of my hens he is with are healthy and acting normally. There are no signs of him being pecked super hard on his head or face. His poop was green when he was sitting on the ground, and yesterday a lot was stuck to his butt feathers but I was able to get the majority off and cut some feathers down with scissors.
Over a month ago one of my hens died, but the only symptom she displayed that my rooster has is being lethargic. It wasn’t nearly as severe as the signs he is showing, and she died a few days after showing signs.
I live in Michigan, US. It’s been the normal February temperatures; 20-30 Fahrenheit and we recently had snow. I use pine shavings in my coop and there is straw in the run.
If anyone had any of the same experiences or knows anything, help would be very appreciated.
Thanks!

 

[SBFChickenGirl]

I would start by separating him so you can keep a closer eye on him.
Check his crop, does it feel squishy? What about hard?
Check around the vent for lice or mites.

@Eggcessive

 

[PonyRaindrop]

@SBFChickenGirl His crop feels empty, and the little bit I can feel isn’t hard. There are no mites that I can see.
I tried to see if he could walk at all and he has no balance, he stumbles and his wings droop as if he’s trying to catch himself.
I’m worried if I separate him he will become stressed...is that something I need to worry about at this point?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

3-4 year old silkie rooster who has been acting off for about a week now. He is lethargic and as far as I know not eating or drinking on his own. He also seems to loose his balance pretty easily and whenever I go out he is either next to a wall or a higher spot of pine shavings that I’m assuming he’s using to lean on while sitting next to it.

He does have an appetite, and will eat if I give him bird seed, soaked oats, or soaked feed in a spoon close to his face. I’m not sure if him not wanting to eat or drink on his own is because of his loss of balance, because I tried to gradually bring the bird seed close to the ground, and once close to the ground he almost fell over his head.

His poop was green when he was sitting on the ground, and yesterday a lot was stuck to his butt feathers

I tried to see if he could walk at all and he has no balance, he stumbles and his wings droop as if he’s trying to catch himself.
I’m worried if I separate him he will become stressed

Can you post some photos of him and his poop?

The green poop could be from not eating/drinking well.
Any chance he's gotten into anything toxic - oil spill, fertilizer, weed killer, etc.?

Have you added any new birds recently?
Is he your only rooster?

If you feel it will stress him to remove him from the girls, then if possible, cage him within the coop/run. If he's not well, then he does need to be kept warm - ideally around 75-80F.

Some of the symptoms you describe sound neurological to me. I would start with administering vitamin therapy. 400IU Vitamin E along with 1/4 tablet B-Complex. Give him some egg or tuna for the uptake of E. Try to get him to eat his normal feed and make sure his crop is emptying overnight. Encourage him to drink too - you want him hydrated, then eating.

I would still give him a good going over as well. See if his eyes are clear and not odd shaped or a different color, do the feathers around his eyes need to be trimmed, inspect feet (bottom of feet too) for injury/frostbite/Scaly Leg Mites, check him well for lice/mites too. A fecal float if that's possible will help rule out worms and coccidiosis which can bring a bird down further if they are not well.

Look forward to more information and photos, keep us posted.

 

[Eggcessive]

Stop the bird seed and oats, and just feed him watery chicken crumbles made in an oatmeal consistency. Then offer some bits of scrambled egg, tuna, or canned cat food for interest. The seeds are not enough protein and nutrition, and too many oats can be bad for him. A balanced chicken crumble with the added protein is good, and I would add a little extra water to his food. It is hard to say what might be wrong with him, but hopefully he will get better with supportive care.

I agree with giving some vitamins as @Wyorp Rock suggested. If you cannot get his poop tested by a vet, I would go ahead and worm him with SafeGuard or Valbazen. Here is a worm test that you can send in to check for coccidiosis and worms:
https://www.amazon.com/Reptiles-Rabbits-Turtles-Collect-Sample/dp/B000J5SOZ4

 

[SBFChickenGirl]

@PonyRaindrop listen to Eggcessive and Wyrop Rock. They've given good suggestions and they are good at this. You're in good hands. Good luck and keep us posted!

 

[PonyRaindrop]

@Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock @SBFChickenGirl Sorry for the late response, I had to go to a barn that my horse is boarded at.
We separated him, he is now in our garage and there is a heat lamp on him about two feet away. We don’t have the vitamin b or vitamin e or wormer right now but we found lice on him and will be able to get that today. He doesn’t have an appetite right now, but I’m trying to coax him into eating some egg and some watery feed. The only thing I have at the moment is nutridrench and strike III wormer pellets, but they are all natural and not actual wormer.
There is a picture of the poop stuck to his rear feathers because as of now I don’t have any pictures of his droppings in the coop. I also have a picture of the lice that we found on him, it’s on my moms fingernail. The mess on his feathers on his face is from feeding him the oats yesterday.
I will update when I am able to get the stuff.
Is it possible that the lice are only on him? Or are they already on all of my hens?
Thankyou

 

[SBFChickenGirl]

If there is lice on one, there is lice on all of them. I learned that the hard way. I can remember what the spray to treat lice is called, but @Eggcessive should know what it is. Once you get that, spray all of them.

 

[PonyRaindrop]

If there is lice on one, there is lice on all of them. I learned that the hard way. I can remember what the spray to treat lice is called, but @Eggcessive should know what it is. Once you get that, spray all of them.

Thankyou for the reply.
Can lice cause him to act this way? Wouldn’t all the others be acting similar too?

 

[SBFChickenGirl]

He's probably just got a worse infestation.
I think the spray is called permethrin spray. But I'm not sure.