Mareks or Wry Neck

[Chocolate_Chick]

Hi, this afternoon I saw my rooster rolling around and flapping with its neck on the floor and twisted. My initial thoughts were wry neck due to how twisted the neck was. I've had a chicken with it before and the presentation looked similar. I gave him some vitamin drops and him into a box for support standing. He struggled to have control over one of his legs, and when his neck would twist he'd move with it and end up flapping about. He was also lethargic and closing his eyes. About an hour later he was doing a bit better, could stand without falling and more alert. I offered him some food and a drink which he took. He's still not quite right but much better than he was. He's still unbalanced when trying to walk, but can now walk without ending up all twisted. He has most of the control of his neck back, but it does still pull to the right a bit more than it should.

The last chicken I had with wry neck didn't improve and after a week of trying to treat her we put her down. Do chickens normally make such a speedy recovery from wry neck or is it more likely that he has Mareks disease?

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry about your rooster. Wry neck does sound like a possibility. But Mareks can look like those symptoms as well. Wry neck is just a symptom of a neurological problem, and can be caused by a head injury, vitamin E or B1 thiamine deficiency, and is seen in some diseases such as Mareks and others that affect the brain. Time may tell. Usually, it is good to use 400 IU of vitamin E, along with a chick vitamin or B complex that has thiamine in it. Most chick vitamins do not have enough E to treat wry neck. Sunflower seeds, almonds , and other foods contain vitamin E. Time will most likely tell if he is experiencing Mareks symptoms. If you should lose him, it would be good to have you state vet do a necropsy to look for Mareks. There is a $20 blood PCR test that can be done by this lab if you want to inquire:
http://www.vetdna.com/feedback