Neurological Issue?

[RavenWood]

I have a six week old Silkie peep who just started exhibiting some weird motor issues. She can walk around just fine and do all the normal things chicks do, but when she stands and looks at me head on her head falls to the left as if she is having trouble holding it up. It kind of bobs up and down. Is this some sort of neurological issue or indicative of something else? Can it be corrected or will it get worse? She has not suffered any injuries that I am aware of and has been safe in her coop with all the others since I brought her home. Thoughts?

 

[silky ma]

This is Crook Neck!! Get to your vet and get prednisone 5 mg tablets and divide each tablet into teeny pieces. Follow the vets recommendation on the timeline. THis is due to brain swelling from a hit on the head from another bird.

 

[RavenWood]

That doesn't sound good. I'll have to call the vet in the morning, though I'm not sure my vet works with birds of any sort and we don't really have any other options out here. I was also noticing today that several of the other chicks seem to have their heads hunkered down into their bodies and are frequently shaking their heads - or 'flicking' them as if something is bothering them. Would this be indicative of something as well, or am I just being paranoid now?

 

[silky ma]

it could be something else but I dont know of anything else that comes close. Go to http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps044 hit this site and be patient it is alot to read. You need to check the area where your chickens forage for toxic plants. Go to this list. Remember that certain weeds are beneficial such as dandelion. Never use toxic sprays etc... Food Grade DE is best for flea and mite control.
http://www.poultryhelp.com/toxicplants.html

 

[RavenWood]

Thanks. I'll take a look at the article. These are 6 week old chicks - they don't forage and are still indoors because it's cold up here in the north and they don't yet have enough plumage to spend time outdoors so I don't think they've come in contact with any toxic plants. They have only had a few lettuce scraps from the garden. They are eating medicated chick crumbles. I'll check them for mites too.

 

[yo burrill]

Look up wry neck. It is in part due to a vitamin deficiency. It can be treated but does take time.

 

[RavenWood]

I've only had these little guys for 2 weeks now. I'm confused as to how she would have such an imbalance/vitamin deficiency since they are all eating the same thing - medicated chick crumbles. Is there something else I should be feeding them? As I mentioned above, they all seem to be shaking their heads a lot. Should I separate my bobble head chick from the rest?

 

[yo burrill]

They can be vitamin deficient right out of the egg but it takes time for it to show up. Some dont absorb the vitamins in the food as well as others. If they are all showing signs of it I would treat them all. And change to a different brand of food. At 6 weeks they should be on a high quality grower food.

 

[RavenWood]

Only the one chick is showing bobble head signs. The others are just flicking their heads as if they have mites or something - just thought it odd that they all started this at the same time. I have looked closely but don't see anything. Will Diatomateous Earth work for that? Do I feed it to them or dust them with it? So should I take them off the medicated chick feed and put them on unmedicated grower now? Is there such a think as chicken dewormer? They are about 8 weeks now that I think about it. Not sure where those 2 weeks went.

My vet wants $200 to examine my chick and to do a post mortem - but my chick is still very much alive - so I'm not going to sacrifice her for that and the others aren't showing any of the wry neck symptoms. I can't get prednisone without a prescription. Should I start her on Poly-vi-sol (just the a/b drops) and vitamin E capsules with selenium? I looked and can't find selenium on it's own and I'm a bit afraid to overdose. I do have some loose mineral that I feed my horses that contains selenium. Do you think she'd eat that if I put a few grains in front of her with some food? She is eating/drinking on her own. I should take a video to show ya'll. She does not appear to have any swelling on her head/face so I suspect a vitamin deficiency rather than injury.

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

I don't think your Silkie has wry neck. I've had one chicken get wry neck, and her head was twisted around like she was looking backwards. What's more likely is your Silkie baby was pecked or hit its head on something. Silkies have a soft spot on their heads under the crest where the brain is exposed, and if they take a hit on that soft spot they can damage their little brains and get slight or severe cases of the wabbles, I've even seen Silkies who would walk backwards and do a back flip. One second they'd be fine, then they'd start their little episode of moon walking backward and then back flip and be fine for a little while after it was over. I have a 5 week old Silkie with the wobbles. It hit its head on a perch I put in the brooder. It eats, drinks and gets around just fine. But its little head bobs back and forth if it has to look up or down. Watch for anyone picking on it and make sure you remove any "dangerous" objects from their space. Good luck!