Paralized.....from the neck down.

[allaboutdemchicks]

Everyone.....this was no broken neck, no broken back. It could not have been the way this chicken is recovering. Yesterday, day three, I woke up early to feed her and her neck was a little hanging but she eat well and was still standing but no walking. After a few hours she jumped out of her box! Well, I placed her in a little holding pen inside my main pen with food and water and she stayed up on her feet and continued to feed/drink. Her little feathers are a little ruffled like she doesn't feel but throughout the day she stayed right on her feet.

Last night she roosted in some hay. And now she is following me around extra close like she is expecting some more special treatment.

Yesterday I saw the neighbor had a visitor at his house- The Cook's Pest Control truck. Last night my Husband told the neighbor about Juliet being so sick and he (neighbor) said that he had the pest control people out a month ago and they placed some type of devise in the ground to control...something (bugs or rats...no sure what). I called Juliet and a few others from his property the day before she got sick.

Sooooo, now we all know what will happen when chickens get into pestisides. I'm glad I didn't give up too quickly, and I hope this gives inspiration for anyone that may find themselves in my situation in the future.

Claudia

 

[beakkeeper]

Stupid pesticides! I am SO glad your chicken is getting better! Have faith and keep fighting!

 

[Lobzi]

Thanks for the update. Im so glad she survived and we all now can be aware when our chickens roam out of our own yards, to watch them closely.

 

[BeckyLa]

I am so very glad to hear she is recovering!! I'd say it's time to put up a fence between properties since they use pest control.

 

[Attack Chicken]

YAY!!

 

[LAChick]

Let us all be this patience with our critters!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Reinbeau]

Pesticides - oh dear, she was poisoned. That's awful. We lost a beehive two years ago due to pesticide poisoning. I won't use them on anything I own, but of course we can't control what others do.

 

[redhen]

Quote:
i just read this!..awesome!..i'm so glad she is recovering!......see..i bet i would have culled her..in a panic..all freaked out that she was suffering....i'm so glad that you didnt!...

...and, it taught me something also,..try to be patient..and see how things develope!..thanks, Wendy

 

[birdlover]

"...try to be patient..and see how things develop"

I couldn't agree more!! SO SO happy she's making a speedy recovery. And, even though she didn't have a spinal injury, I think this thread encouraged some who do have that type of problem.

 

[hybridizer]

I am new on BYC but I have been keeping chickens etc. for 50+years. I still only know one or two things for sure.
From Stroud's Digest on the Diseases of Birds p.169 regarding fowl paralysis under etiology: (paraphrased) So far as has been learned the cause of fowl paralysis is believed to be caused by a protozoan parasite that either attacks the nerve of the neck directly or, multiplying in the digestive tract, elaborates a poison which has a selective action on the nerve of the neck similar to how wood alcohol attacks the optic nerve.
I cannot say that this is what you have but consider it if you have more birds coming down in a similar way. There is no cure, the birds waste away primarily because they cannot move well enough to care for themselves. Nursing it will not help if you do have this problem. This problem exists in my yard and the only solution for me is to keep the birds indoors (in a fresh clean pen after having them on wire for a few days first so they don't carry the disease to the pen in their litter, not bring greens to them from the contaminated ground. Older birds (yr or more) seem not to get the disease. It can also affect a wing that will droop or thigh muscles fail. In severe cases the bird may have a have convulsive fit or it may develop slowly. There is no yard clean up short of replacing topsoil and it can remain for years. It is world wide. It can be as severe as Newcastle disease or a bird might be so mildly affected that it goes unnoticed and contaminates all it travel on. I believe there is a term, Leuckosis complex: see Merk's Veterinary Manual.
Remember, I could be totally wrong regarding your bird. As soon as I see symptoms, I look for the axe.