Lost 6 chickens to limp necks

[Rockwell]

I'm afraid I must have fed my chickens overripe scraps and given them botulism. From what I've read, botulism comes closest to matching our problem. One day there were four dead birds with limp necks and two birds who could not hold their heads up. Feathers were falling out. They were eating and walking around, but heads hanging. We thought their were suffering terribly so we killed them. It was terribly sad to see and I'm worried about the other birds. We currently have 5 left, 4 seem completely healthy. One seems healthy, but her feathers on the back side of her neck are missing completely.

Does this seem like botulism? There was also a crow stuck in their area for a few hours the other day. Could it have brought something in? If it is botulism, what should I think about the surviving bird with missing feathers? What about the eggs? How long should I wait before using the eggs?

Should I take her to a vet? And if so, does anyone know of a chicken vet in the Owings Mills, MD area?

Thanks for any comments. This has been a really sad chicken experience.

 

[Eggcessive]

I'm not an expert on botulism, but in that disease there is a progressive paralysis of the legs, then wings, then the neck. Feathers do pull out easily. Since your chickens were walking around with limp necks, I would suspect something else. If you lose another one, you should refrigerate the body, and take it to your state vet as soon as possible for a necropsy to find the cause of death. You could be dealing with something worse. Here are some links to read along with one for your state vet:
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/19/botulism
http://www.merckmanuals.com/vet/poultry/botulism/overview_of_botulism_in_poultry.html
http://www.usaha.org/Portals/6/StateAnimalHealthOfficials.pdf

 

[Rockwell]

thank you so much