neck in an S shape!!

[jodievaughan]

so two weeks ago I bought a new type of pellets. this particular hen refused to eat them after the first try and then seemed ill for the next few days. I think she must’ve been allergic to something in them. She acted lethargic but was still walking, scratching around and pretty much alert. I got the old food again a few days later and she took to it just fine and seemed back to normal. However in the last few days she has deteriorated massively. She quickly became more and more lethargic - two days ago she started being stationary half of the time, yesterday she just stood still practically all day. I checked her over and noticed her back end was pretty swollen and felt kind of hard. I looked for advice on here and saw she might be egg bound, so gave her a warm bath/massage to try and help. This morning, she was on the floor of the coop rather than the perches and wasn’t moving at all. She can stand for a moment but her wings soon spread and she kind of splats, either backwards or forwards. She hardly opens her eyes even when I touch her and seems to be breathing heavy. I checked her over again and noticed her neck is literally an S SHAPE! This definitely wasn’t the case yesterday, all I can think is she fell from the perch in the night and broke her neck. Is it certain her neck is broken if it’s in this shape? Sorry if this is a stupid question, but I want to be sure before we do a mercy kill. Any advice would be really appreciated.

 

[Eggcessive]

Her neck being twisted is called wry neck or torticolis. It is a neurological symptom sometimes seen in head injuries, Mareks and some other diseases, and from vitamin deficiencies ( E and B1.) Her symptoms sound a bit like Mareks with her being unable to walk and using wings to help balance. It may be a coincidence that you changed feed recently, but she may not be digesting food. Can you insert a finger one inch into her vent to just check for a stuck egg. Rarely egg binding can cause a temporary paralysis.

I would place her in a basket or dog crate with food and water within reach. Give her 400 IU of vitamin E daily, along with either 1/4 tablet of B complex onto food, or a poultry vitamin in the water. Offer a small amount of cooked egg daily for selenium which helps the vitamin E. Keep her warm, about 70 degrees.

Can you feel her lower belly to check for swelling or enlargement. Also check her crop to see if it is empty or full, firm or puffy.

Here is some reading about Mareks disease, although I hope it is not that:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq.66077/

 

[jodievaughan]

Thank you so much for your helpful response Eggcessive!

I just checked her vent. I’m pretty certain there’s an egg because there’s an egg sized hard lump in there but it felt covered by skin. As I did this a few lots of yellowish fluid came out, is this a sign of anything in particular? I’ve offered her water and food all day and now again but she won’t touch either.

Her neck is still flexible and her legs move on their own but slowly like the rest of her. Weirdly she’s just stuck her head up and shook her head and then returned to the lethargic state.

Her lower belly does feel swollen. I read that article about Mareks disease and it sounds like it’s possibly the issue but I’m not sure.

 

[jodievaughan]

It’s going to be a very cold night and there’s no way I’ll be allowed to keep her in the house sadly (im a teen living with my parents). I’m torn whether or not it’s more cruel to leave her to see how she is in the morning or just put her out of her misery. I’d of course hate to find her dead in the morning and know she died a preventable slow death! Does anyone think this is likely to get better?

 

[ChickNanny13]

Sounds like the egg may have broken in her ... I've never experienced it but found this in my notes. You can also search Reproductive Disorders in the forum. You may want to give her a warm Epson Salt Bath, may help to expect the rest of the egg. Talk to your parents, see if they'll allow you to put her in a bathroom? See if you have some Tums or Calcium Carbonate w/D3, crush it up & mix with some feed that wet (make like oatmeal).

Egg Ascites - tetracycline
Egg Bound - warm soak in Epsom Salt, Tums smashsed & keep in dark room, humidity, feel for egg w/ glove *****Suprelorin Implants ******
Egg Peritonitis - Tums, Calcium Citrate w/D3, Calcium Carbonate w/D3
Egg Salpingitis/Lash Egg - Baytril, Fish Mox, Enrofloxacin, Amoxicillin

@Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock @azygous @casportpony @aart
Your expertise is greatly appreciated as with advice for OP ... Thank you in advance

 

[Eggcessive]

The yellow fluid may be droppings. If you can post any pictures of her vent area, that would be good to see. I have a sick hen similar to yours that is outside in my coop in a basket with think pine shavings. If you have a dog crate to put her in there, that would be good. Just make sure that she has some thick pine shavings or is sitting on a towel, and she should stay warm enough. A garage or basement would also be good.

It is hard to know if she will get better or not. If she has a stuck egg, she could. If she has a reproductive disorder or Mareks, she may not. You could try giving her some calcium with vitamin D today, and you can use a whole egg, shell and all, ground up and fed to her. Or a human calcium tablet or Tums fed to her. Calcium can help if she is egg bound.

It is always up to you to decide if she needs to be put down or not. It is especially hard when dealing with a sick chicken during very cold weather, or not knowing exactly what is wrong.

When chickens are egg bound, they sometimes will lay the egg when they are soaked in warm water just up to the feathers for 20 minutes, and given calcium. Do this only if doing inside and she is blown dry afterward. An alternative is to place her on a heating pad on low on a towel. It is also possible that she has a lash egg from salpingitis infection there instead of an egg. The swollen belly may be a sign of salpingitis or ascites, which are related to reproductive diseases.

 

[azygous]

The others have given great advice on how to treat for various issues this hen may be suffering from. I do believe she has more than just one problem. While it's not possible for us to accurately diagnose her, you now have some things to try.

However, you did question how to tell if she's terminal and suffering. Over the years I've lost my share of chickens. I've learned to tell when they seem to be so overwhelmed by sickness and pain that it may be time to end it for them.

When a chicken is in pain, they become stationary and hunch in their head into their shoulders and hold their tail low and flat. When they close their eyes, can no longer stand and lie on their side, then the end is near.

 

[jodievaughan]

So I just brought her inside and gave her a little bit of water with a syringe, and now this is happening. Is she suffocating? I have no idea what to do at this point, may have to just kill her

 

[Eggcessive]

Is she choking? I am sorry. It is better to let them drink from a small bowl on their own, or to tube feed them.

 

[jodievaughan]

I could hear a slight gargle every time she tried to breathe so I assume it wasn’t making it down her throat, and then she started gasping for over two minutes. I’ve decided it’s best to end it for her at this point because it wouldn’t be right to make her endure any more of this. Thank you so much for everyone’s help! Hopefully if this ever happens again I’ll be able to handle it immediately and maybe it won’t come to this.