My chick is struggling to walk. Please help !!

[Eggcessive]

So sorry for your loss. She was very young to have Mareks disease, but it was possible. Normally they are several months old before showing symptoms. However a serious leg bone deformity, slipped tendon, or vitamin deficiency could have caused her inability to walk. Good luck with your other chicks. Here are some good articles with more information on Mareks:
https://extension.umd.edu//sites/ex...Preventing Mareks Disease in Small Flocks.pdf

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq.66077/

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi guys
It is with great sadness that i give you the news. Our beloved little chick had to be put down. We called a vet and they said that the symptoms our chick had, was Marek's disease. Or it was some kind of vitamin deficiency, I'm not sure which vitamin though.
I gave our chick some food as his last meal, which he ate alot of. I then took him to Speedy, his mother, so that she could say goodbye. She obviously did not know what was going to happen, but I guess the chick appreciated it to be with his mother for his last few minutes.
We then took our chick to the vet to be euthanized. It made me cry to have to watch my chick go, but there was just no hope left for him
We suspected that it might have heen Marek's , but I guess that I did not want to admit it, because it has happened before, and I know what the end result is. But I think that he actually had some kind of vitamin deficiency, because he was so much smaller than the other chicks.

If you think that your chick has Marek's, here are some symptoms:

1. Your chick makes a fist with his foot
2. Your chick becomes paralyzed, they usually stretch their feet forward or backwards when they get lame
3. They just go sit, as if they are tired of walking

There are more symptoms, but i can't remember all of them.
If you had a chicken that had Marek's , it would be a good idea to give your chickens shots against it.
You can give an egg a shot at 18 days old, or give it to a chick 24 hours after it is born. Usually it is too late if you do it later than that.
Please guys, do your research if you think your chickens have Marek's. Chickens can be carriers of the disease and it stays in your flock for YEARS

I'm so sorry to hear about your chick.
Thank you for letting us know. The links provided by Eggcessive are good to read and have a lot of information about Marek's.
I hope the rest of Speedy's chicks remain healthy.

 

[chicki291]

I'm so sorry to hear about your chick.
Thank you for letting us know. The links provided by Eggcessive are good to read and have a lot of information about Marek's.
I hope the rest of Speedy's chicks remain healthy.

Unfortunately one has a slipped tendon or something. He can't walk, but will be going to the vet tomorrow

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Unfortunately one has a slipped tendon or something. He can't walk, but will be going to the vet tomorrow

I'm sorry to hear that!
Let us know what you find out.

 

[chicki291]

I'm sorry to hear that!
Let us know what you find out.

Okay so heres the news :
The vet says that our chick had a spinal injury or something, because he cant feel anything with his toes. His legs work and move though We suspect that it was our rooster that maybe stepped on our chick. We were told to let him exercise. So we leave him with the others. He staggers along on the knuckles of his feet
Qny advice on how we can let him exercise? We are going to try and make a wheelchair with a.sling so he can practice to walk
And our vet says that if there is no improvement within two weeks, we should put him.out of his misery

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Making a sling may help. Do you think this one could also have Marek's?

I would get some vitamins that contain B2 (riboflavin) - can you get some human B-Complex? If you can, give him 1/4 tablet daily for a week, see if those help.

I hope it's injury from being stepped on and that he recovers soon.

 

[chicki291]

Making a sling may help. Do you think this one could also have Marek's?

I would get some vitamins that contain B2 (riboflavin) - can you get some human B-Complex? If you can, give him 1/4 tablet daily for a week, see if those help.

I hope it's injury from being stepped on and that he recovers soon.

The doctor said that the chances are slim for him to get Mareks at this young age. But its possible, but he believes that this chick does not have, because they usually get tumors on their skin

Ill try and find the meds. If i remember ill let you know if i found it

We think the rooster stepped on his back and gave him some nerve damage, because there is no signs of a break in the legs

At the moment he could actually walk fine if he did not have toes, because he lost feeling in his toes and now he cant move them

I Made a joke with my mom that we should amputate his toes and make a kind of shoe boot with rubber toes on for balance. Just a joke though

But i guess i have to be honest with myself.. this chick wont survive. Or if it does, it will never walk normally or jump. But im fine with that. But we'll see and make a sling. Ill make him walk every day. Not much else i can do just hope. We all have to hope

 

[chicki291]

Oh and is our chicks had mareks, at least one of the other chicks would also have showed signs of Mareks