Mystery illness - lethargic, droopy wings, and limited leg use

[Ltilden]

Hi all! Dealing with a mystery illness with one of my bantam girls, Betty who is almost 2 years old. She is a Belgian d’Anvers, so very tiny compared to my other bantams. I noticed starting last week that she seemed a bit off. I would check her everyday to make sure there wasn’t anything obvious and she seemed fine, when I would pick her up she would perk up and fly out of my hands. She would occasionally breath with her mouth open while I was checking her out but I assumed that was because she was stressed while being handled. I chalked it up to the back and forth cold/warm weather we’d been having, and her just having a hard time adjusting to the switch each day.

Yesterday when I went to open the coop, she was noticeably more sick. Her tail feathers and wings dropping way down. I picked her up to check her over and instead of perking up and flying out of my hands she just closed her eyes and didn’t move at all. I immediately brought her inside with me, and have her a quick bit of nitro-drench. She has messy bum feathers which I cleaned a week ago, but they were back so I gave her a quick rinse. Her crop had food in it but it was very small, and she had been eating when I picked her up so I don’t believe it’s impacted or sour. I felt around her vent to see if I could feel and egg, I thought I could feel something so I thought she could be egg bound (her sister of the same breed suffered this a few months ago with very similar symptoms) but later that night I check her vent internally and couldn’t feel anything, so I don’t believe that’s what we’re dealing with. Unless the egg could be further back in the tract that I couldn’t feel it??

The most concerning symptom is her unwillingness to use her legs properly. I don’t want to say she can’t use them at all because occasionally she can, but in general she is not walking or using her legs at all. I saw this same symptom when her sister was egg bound because the egg was pressing on her nerves, but this doesn’t seem to be the case here. She is eating and drinking still, but just in general very lethargic and not moving much if at all. Her poops seem to be normal, but tinged slightly green ( we do often give spinach and kale as snacks here and there so that could be why but it definitely been a few days since the last time we did).

Any suggestions on what else to look for/treatment options? I am trying to avoid going to the vet at all costs, the one near me is super flaky and only works occasionally so you essentially have to luck out and call when they are in because they don’t make appointments ahead of time. The others would be hours away. Im also currently pregnant with twins so we are watching our finances and my activity level very closely .

Thanks in advance for any tips!

 

[MysteryChicken]

Could be the onset of Marek's Disease, but we need a video, or some pictures of your bird which would help.

 

[Ltilden]

Ugh that’s my biggest fear the majority of my flock is vaccinated, but I have a few from a local breeder that are not (which she is one of). It would be abnormal for it to present this late though right? She is 1 year 8 months old and we’ve had her since she was 3 months old. I am working today, but I brought Betty with me to keep an eye on. I will send pics and videos as soon as I can!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Can you post some photos?

Do check to make sure her crop is emptying completely overnight.
Look for lice/mites.
I would work on hydrating her and her eating.
Possible she's having trouble passing a soft shelled egg. You can give extra calcium for a couple of days. 1 caltrate a day.

Consider getting a fecal float to see if worms are part of the problem.

Hard to know about the immobility. Could be a reproductive problem or disease like Marek's. While your checking her over, feel the legs and feet for any tenderness, swelling, etc. just to be sure she has no injuries.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Ugh that’s my biggest fear the majority of my flock is vaccinated, but I have a few from a local breeder that are not (which she is one of). It would be abnormal for it to present this late though right? She is 1 year 8 months old and we’ve had her since she was 3 months old. I am working today, but I brought Betty with me to keep an eye on. I will send pics and videos as soon as I can!

The vaccine is a leaky vaccine. It only lessens symptoms, & slows tumor growth. Those that are vaccinated become carriers, & spread it to unvaccinated birds. It doesn't prevent infection.

Okay, sounds good.

 

[Myrshine]

Sadly, it is very difficult to diagnose based off the symptoms alone, as most infections or diseases can all have the same or very similar symptoms to one another. However, I can list possible causes of what she may be dealing with, ideally, you’d want to get testing done, so you can treat it accordingly.

• Lice or mites - I would check her all over for lice or mites in case, since she’s a bantam, she’ll go downhill faster than a standard sized bird. Lice or mite infestation can suck the life out of birds and fast too. These external parasites can cause anemia, lethargy/weakness, loss of weight, damaged or dull feathering, depression and droopy wings. There are many sprays and powders that you can use for this, however, stay clear of DE (Diatomaceous Earth) as it doesn’t really do much and it can cause respiratory distress.

• Intestinal worms or parasites - Some species of worms don’t actually show up visibly in birds droppings, so you’d have to get a fecal done at your vet or base it off of if you ever dewormed or not in recent months. Just like external parasites, intestinal parasites can cause anemia, lethargy/weakness, loss of weight, dull feathering, diarrhea or watery droppings, depression, ruffled up appearance and droopy wings, severe cases will cause death. A very common intestinal parasite that affect any age of chickens is Coccidiosis, a Protozoan infection that lives and eats away the intestinal lining of birds, causing diarrhea, bloody droppings, weight-loss, ruffled feathers, droopy wings, depression, weakness or lethargy, unable to stand or walk (severe cases) and death if not treated right away. You can treat intestinal worms by using dewormers for goats or horses, chicken specific dewormers do exist as well. Coccidiosis would need to be treated by using Corid (Amprolium) or Albon for 7 to 14 days depending on severity. Most birds will show improvement within the 2nd or 3rd day of be treated.

• Vitamin deficiency - A low vitamin deficiency (more specifically vitamin E and B), can cause physical issues such as weakness, unsteady gait/wobbly walking, temporary or partial paralysis of the legs, torticollis (wry neck), weight-loss and vent gleet (where the droppings get caked around the vent, potentially causing an infection or trouble deficating). You can treat a vitamin deficiency by giving her vitamins everyday for a week or 2, some birds may recover faster than others, it’s just all about patience and time.

• Marek’s Disease - One of the worst diseases that any poultry owner could hear and unfortunately, it’s very common and very hard to avoid altogether. Marek’s Disease can mimic symptoms of other diseases and can only be diagnosed via PCR as there’s another disease that can cause lesions and tumors in the organs. The most common symptoms of Marek’s Disease are paralysis of the legs, wings and neck (torticollis), unsteady gait/wobbly walking, weight-loss, tremors, anemia and sudden death. There is unfortunately no cure or treatments for this virus, but there is a preventative vaccine that you can get for your birds to protect your birds.

• Avian Leukosis Virus (ALV) - Just like Marek’s Disease, ALV can present and mimic other diseases that affect poultry. ALV also mimics Marek’s Disease as well, with very similar symptoms such as paralysis of the legs, wings or neck, unsteady or wobbly gait, weight-loss, depression, lethargy, dull feathering, ruffled feathers, droopy wings, diarrhea, anemia, tremors, seizures (severe infections) and sudden death may occur. Unfortunately, this virus can not be cured nor treated and unlike Marek’s Disease, ALV does not have a preventative vaccine. ALV can present with lesions and tumors on the organs, therefore, you’d need to get a PCR done to determine if ALV is to blame.

• Stress or weather changes - Believe it or not, birds can get easily stressed just by weather changes alone, from cold to warm or hot to cold can be hard on their bodies. Stressful events such as a new flock member, loss of a flock member, getting bullied or a new home can also stress out birds. Stress and weather changes can cause a lot of stress on their bodies, causing weight-loss, depression, disease, diarrhea and other common symptoms.

I hope this can give you some insight and I really hope that your girl gets well very soon!

 

[Ltilden]

Here are some videos and photos of her just now. She is breathing heavily (as am I, sorry you have to listen to that throughout the videos!) but it definitely gets worse as the video goes on and she starts to breathe through her mouth. Her poops still look the same as yesterday, and she is definitely eating and drinking still today. She just won’t willingly use her legs or wings even though she is clearly able to. You can see she jumps out of my hand at one point so she has use of these limbs but is choosing not to use them the majority of the time I guess - maybe it’s painful? Let me know if there’s anything that stands out to you in the videos/pics.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Can you take a sample of her poop for a fecal float to see if worms and/or coccidiosis are part of the problem?

I would still re-check her crop first thing in the morning to make sure it's emptying.
With her being a couple of years old, she may be starting to have some reproductive problems. I would keep her hydrated and eating, give vitamins for a couple of days and get some Calcium into her.

 

[Ltilden]

Can you take a sample of her poop for a fecal float to see if worms and/or coccidiosis are part of the problem?

I would still re-check her crop first thing in the morning to make sure it's emptying.
With her being a couple of years old, she may be starting to have some reproductive problems. I would keep her hydrated and eating, give vitamins for a couple of days and get some Calcium into her.

I’ll have to see if any vets around me can perform the fecal float test. These things always seem to happen on a weekend don’t they.

I’ll continue with the vitamins, and check her crop again tomorrow morning. Nutridrench is sufficient for vitamins (in addition to the calcium) correct? I’m gonna make sure to pull her food and water tonight from her crate so when I check her crop in the morning I can be sure it should be fully empty.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Nutri-Drench is fine to give.
Hopefully she will start to get better. Please keep us posted.