Neurological issue in 4 week old chick?

[chicksinthecity]

Hi everyone! We have 12 chicks that are about 4 weeks old. We hatched them ourselves and purchased the eggs from reputable local breeders. All are doing really well - happy and healthy except for one. About 10 days ago we found her huddled under the heat lamp with eyes closed and feathers ruffled. She had a hard time balancing and wouldn’t try to walk. I immediately pulled her out and put her in a separate cage by herself. We immediately suspected coccidiosis but found no bloody poop at all. Her crop was empty and the only poop we saw from her was yellow and runny, not really foamy at all. We started the entire flock on Corid and I fed it to her with a syringe along with a slurry of mashed crumble. She seemed to bounce back overnight and in 2 days went from laying on her side to running from me. I kept her isolated for 4 more days but it didn’t appear she was eating or drinking on her own so I kept feeding her. No other birds seemed to have any issues at all. I took a sample of loose poop (which I now understand was cecal poop (?) to the vet to have it tested and it came back negative for coccidia). After everybody had been on Corid for 6 days, test came back negative and sick chicken seems normal I decided to put her back in with the flock to see if she would start eating on her own. At first all she would do was peck at their feet and beaks, as though she had forgotten how to eat and was just mimicking movement. After about 10 minutes the light seemed to come on for her and she started eating and drinking normally. She’s been back in for 2 days and each day I check her crop and it is full. I haven’t seen her poop yet so still watching for that. And though I am grateful that she is better something is still not quite right with her. She just continues to look dazed or confused not curious and sharp like the other chickens. I’m wondering now if she even had coccidiosis or if it was something else and she just got better because I force fed her food and water.
I apologize for the rambling long story but I’ve read every thread I can find on here trying to find something similar and I can’t find anything that describes this situation. I don’t mind if she’s just going to be “gently special” for the rest of her life but I just want to make sure that I’m not missing something and that having her back with the rest of the flock is putting them in some sort of danger. Thanks in advance for any and all advice!

 

[Eggcessive]

She may have a problem with her immunity, or be a failutpre to thrive chick, but I think it sounds like she did respond to the
Corid, so she probably was affected. Coccidiosis can cause damage in the gut, and she may benefit from probiotics and some chick vitamins for a week to get her built up more. You can also give another 5 days of a reduced dose of Corid. Cocidiosis doesn’t always cause blood in the poop. Enteritis can also be a problem after coccidiosis. It can require an antibiotic, but aimwould try the probiotics. Some feeds have them already, and certain vitamins have them.

 

[dawg53]

It could be a vitamin or mineral deficiency:
https://www.jefferspet.com/products/avian-super-pack-4oz

 

[chicksinthecity]

She may have a problem with her immunity, or be a failutpre to thrive chick, but I think it sounds like she did respond to the
Corid, so she probably was affected. Coccidiosis can cause damage in the gut, and she may benefit from probiotics and some chick vitamins for a week to get her built up more. You can also give another 5 days of a reduced dose of Corid. Cocidiosis doesn’t always cause blood in the poop. Enteritis can also be a problem after coccidiosis. It can require an antibiotic, but aimwould try the probiotics. Some feeds have them already, and certain vitamins have them.

It did seem to me that she responded to the Corid. I just went out and watched her for a bit and finally saw her poop and it was completely normal. Her crop is not as full as I would like for it to be at this point in the day but she is continuing to eat. I am going to follow your suggestion of a few more days of a lower dose of Corid. I also just bought a bottle of Big Ole Bird. Is that sufficient to follow up with after the Corid? Can I do them simultaneously?

 

[Eggcessive]

I haven’t used Big Ole Bird probiotics, but it may be fine. You could probably find a less expensive one such as Probios Powder, and Purina sells packets of them at TSC for animals. Many feeds contain probiotics nowadays. What brand do you use?

For feeding, you may try some soft scrambled egg or put Corid water into your feed in a small bowl. Good to hear she is doing better.

 

[Kiki]

Since you treated for coccidiosis already and you have had poop test negative for it I would recommend dosing her for a few days with Nutri Drench...straight to the beak.

 

[Eggcessive]

I have recommended chick vitamins earlier in addition to the probiotics. Just wanted to make sure you knew that BigOle Bird was just probiotics and no vitamins. Poultry NutriDrench, Poultry Cell, or other brands are good.