Marek's or Vitamin Deficiency: 10 day chick can't walk, falling over, sitting on haunches!

MVie

Chirping
6 Years
Jul 24, 2017
7
1
61
this is my first time with chicks. On 7/13 I brought home 4, 2 day old chicks from a local farm store-don't know where chicks came from. I set up a brooder in an oversized clear plastic storage container, with pine shaving, water, and food (just chick starter they gave me in unmarked bag at farm store) changed every day. Has a vented screened top and heat lamp. We are keeping them inside and give them about 20 minutes outside to explore everyday as their brooder is being cleaned. I have been very pleased with their progress and have enjoyed watching them grow. However, I noticed on Thursday morning, exactly a week after bringing them home, our Plymouth Rock chick Max, kept getting toppled over by the 3 other girls. She looked alert and awake but she wasn't walking around. I took her out and quickly noticed she was trembling, and her feet kept retracting in a curled ball. I tried to get her to walk but she kept falling over. I felt her over gently and she didn't seem to be bothered by my touch so she didn't seem injured-it seems more like a nerve problem. Almost like she was having a seizure. I separated her from the other girls. I googled and at first thought she had Mareks, then thought maybe a vitamin deficiency. It's now almost 3 days later and she is still alert, eating when I practically hand feed her, drinking when I do the same, but isn't getting any better! When outside to explore, she try's to keep up with the others but can't when walking. She has to fly a little to catch up. She will fall over on her side and have to kick and flap around to right herself. She barely stands up on her feet but sits back on her haunches.
I live in the middle of nowhere in Hawaii and have two small children under 3 so I have limited time and budget to just go out and buy random things to treat her. I want her to thrive but I also don't want to waste my limited time. I have been crushing the b complex vitamins we have on hand and rolling a little shred of cheese in it, with sand, and giving it to her once a day but it doesn't seem to be helping. If I put it in her water, she won't drink it. Is she too young for Mareks? My other 3 girls are growing like weeds and seem healthy. If it is Mareks, do they always have to be separated, max is so Isolated!
Please advise! Thank you!
 
hmm I am not sure what it is. But she sounds cold to me.
Personally I wouldnt let my young chicks walk alorund outside. It is much colder here though!

She might have a illness but I cant really tell. Keep her warm all the time, even if its sitting in your palm, placing a hand over her.
Feed her, if she eats out of your hand, do it that way. Give her fresh water, maybe dip her beak in it.

That is all I can say at the moment, hope it helps.
 
Hi. At 10 days she is too young for Marek's.....thank goodness!!
What is her poop like?
Vitamin deficiency can take a week or two to overcome.
Do you have any idea if the chick crumb is medicated or not? The medication in chick feed is usually a coccidiostat which prevents the absorption of Thiamine (Vitamin B1) that coccidia need to survive.....essentially starving the coccidia .... but it may be that the chick is also having problems due to lack of thiamine. I would be inclined to feed the chick scrambled eggs with the vitamin B complex sprinkled over it for another few days and no chick crumb (unless poop is bloody or runny and mucous like). Cheese on a regular basis is not good because it has a lot of fat and salt so I would skip that or keep it for a very special occasion. You could also add a little natural yoghurt and maybe some porridge (cooked oatmeal). Have chick grit available for the chick to peck at, but I would not be actively feeding it sand.
Keep it within sight of the others as much as possible, but you could also give it a little mirror and a small cuddly toy if it has to be on it's own for any length of time. Chicks can tolerate short periods of time of quite cool temps.... broody reared chicks happily run around in temperatures below 10C for 15-20 mins before needing a warm from their mother, so I'm pretty sure the temp. in a Hawaian summer will be adequate for them to be out in for the time scale you are talking about and I would be extending that each day. Obviously sick chicks and hens need to be kept warm but for that short spell once a day, even your poorly chick will be fine. It will also help the chick to develop coordination and improve muscle control to have that play time out with the others, as long as it isn't being picked on, so I would continue with that. I know it is not nice to watch one struggling but it is better that it tries to keep up than to be sitting on it's own isolated. As long as you ensure that it is getting plenty of egg to eat, so perhaps keeping it in a sectioned off part of the brooder with it's own food and water, but make sure it doesn't get too hot and change the water for cool water regularly. A bit of sugar in the water might help boost it's energy too.
Good luck with it.

Barbara
 
Much of what you describe is consistent with fresh feed. Do not loiter on that.

Get fresh feed, since going in and out, medicated feed and likely Corid for water to control cocci infection. You are right in window chicks most susceptible to coccidiodosis and taking them outside, then bringing them back in is the worst thing you can do.
 
Hi. At 10 days she is too young for Marek's.....thank goodness!!
What is her poop like?
Vitamin deficiency can take a week or two to overcome.
Do you have any idea if the chick crumb is medicated or not? The medication in chick feed is usually a coccidiostat which prevents the absorption of Thiamine (Vitamin B1) that coccidia need to survive.....essentially starving the coccidia .... but it may be that the chick is also having problems due to lack of thiamine. I would be inclined to feed the chick scrambled eggs with the vitamin B complex sprinkled over it for another few days and no chick crumb (unless poop is bloody or runny and mucous like). Cheese on a regular basis is not good because it has a lot of fat and salt so I would skip that or keep it for a very special occasion. You could also add a little natural yoghurt and maybe some porridge (cooked oatmeal). Have chick grit available for the chick to peck at, but I would not be actively feeding it sand.
Keep it within sight of the others as much as possible, but you could also give it a little mirror and a small cuddly toy if it has to be on it's own for any length of time. Chicks can tolerate short periods of time of quite cool temps.... broody reared chicks happily run around in temperatures below 10C for 15-20 mins before needing a warm from their mother, so I'm pretty sure the temp. in a Hawaian summer will be adequate for them to be out in for the time scale you are talking about and I would be extending that each day. Obviously sick chicks and hens need to be kept warm but for that short spell once a day, even your poorly chick will be fine. It will also help the chick to develop coordination and improve muscle control to have that play time out with the others, as long as it isn't being picked on, so I would continue with that. I know it is not nice to watch one struggling but it is better that it tries to keep up than to be sitting on it's own isolated. As long as you ensure that it is getting plenty of egg to eat, so perhaps keeping it in a sectioned off part of the brooder with it's own food and water, but make sure it doesn't get too hot and change the water for cool water regularly. A bit of sugar in the water might help boost it's energy too.
Good luck with it.

Barbara

Wow! Thank you so much for the detailed response!

Her poop seems ok. I've even looked at a chicken poo chart which was pretty gross. Sometimes it's runny and brown, but mostly it's looks like normal chicken poop with some white in it.
I don't think any of them get cold when they are outside. I always do in mid afternoon when it's nice and warm out and they make happy content sounds and explore close to me and one another.

Since she's too young for mareks, thank goodness, would it be ok to move her back in with the others? As long as she's not getting picked on? I will continue to feed her separate.
 
Can you post some photos of her?

Sure! These were from today as I cleaned their box and they were exploring. She sits back on her feet and pecks around and only gets up to run/fly to catch up if everyone leaves her. I still have her separated in her own brooder so she doesn't get trampled over by her " sisters". Given her scrambled egg for the last two days rolled in crushed vitamin b complex, along with her chick starter, since Sunday.
 

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Were you able to get some fresh feed as suggested by @centrarchid ?
Does she have any swelling of the hocks?
Are the legs bowed, crooked or misshaped in any way?
Is she still having tremors or shaking?
What does her poop look like?

It's very hard to know with chicks, so many things can go wrong. It could be Cocci, but also something like Avian encephalomyelitis or Mycoplasma Synoviae, but there is no way to know without testing.

She may benefit by being placed in a chick chair or sling to get her off the hocks and make the legs stretch/move. Do the best you can, seeing that she is eating and getting the extra vitamins in. Keep us posted.

6612_chick_chair.jpg

https://sites.google.com/a/larsencreek.com/chicken-orthopedics/

LL
 
Were you able to get some fresh feed as suggested by @centrarchid ?
Does she have any swelling of the hocks?
Are the legs bowed, crooked or misshaped in any way?
Is she still having tremors or shaking?
What does her poop look like?

It's very hard to know with chicks, so many things can go wrong. It could be Cocci, but also something like Avian encephalomyelitis or Mycoplasma Synoviae, but there is no way to know without testing.

She may benefit by being placed in a chick chair or sling to get her off the hocks and make the legs stretch/move. Do the best you can, seeing that she is eating and getting the extra vitamins in. Keep us posted.

6612_chick_chair.jpg

https://sites.google.com/a/larsencreek.com/chicken-orthopedics/

LL
I was confused by @centrarchid's post about fresh feed.
Still just giving her what I got at feed store, the unmarked bag of chick starter. Her legs seem ok but I agree it may be worth making her a little seat. She seemed to be having little tremors on Thursday/Friday when I first noticed her acting poorly. And she was shaking like she was cold but seems to be better now-haven't noticed it.
 
I was confused by @centrarchid's post about fresh feed.
Still just giving her what I got at feed store, the unmarked bag of chick starter. Her legs seem ok but I agree it may be worth making her a little seat. She seemed to be having little tremors on Thursday/Friday when I first noticed her acting poorly. And she was shaking like she was cold but seems to be better now-haven't noticed it.

LOL He is a bit cryptic at times - that scientific mind of his.....:D

He can probably explain his response better, but I think he was questioning the freshness and/or quality of the feed you received from the feed store. You mentioned in your first post "just chick starter they gave me in unmarked bag at farm store" It is best, if possible, to get feed that has a date, a label with the ingredients and if possible a nutritional analysis on the bag, this way you know what you are getting. There's no harm in getting feed from a mill or farm store, but they should be able to give you an idea of the ingredients.
 

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