Pip's battle with botulism

[MacTech]

Pip is a 6-7 week old Wyandotte pullet, yesterday morning she looked a bit unsteady and wobbly, when I got home from work that evening, she had lost a good deal of mobility, due to her right foot being partially paralyzed, on a scale of 1-10, she'd be around a 3.5, she could walk, but only in short amounts, but her appetite was good and she was still interactive and inquisitive

I brought her into the house, set up a quarantine box in the bathroom, gave her some water and moist/soggy bread, she loves the bread, and the water in the bread helps keep her hydrated

I also have a bottle of old amoxicillin capsules, so, I've been sprinkling that on her bread to help knock down the botulism bacterium....

Has it worked, you ask?

Well, let me just say that less than 12 hours later, I'm happy to say her mobility is up to 8.5! There are still some balance issues, but she has been walking up a storm....

Needless to say, I discovered this fact in a very surprising way, let me set the scene....

This morning, Pip was a solid 5 on mobility, better than last night, but still very wobbly and unstable, she sat most of the time

Tonight, I check on her, her box, empty, I fear the worst....

.... Until she *walks* out from behind the shower curtain, chirping happily to see me! I pick her up, she climbs up my arm and perches happily on my right shoulder! Purring contentedly

I'm sure the amoxicillin was a big factor in her rapid improvement, that, and catching the symptoms early

I'll keep her quarantined for the next couple days, if she continues this rate of improvement, she can rejoin her flock very soon

I'm glad I held on to that old bottle of amoxicillin....

 

[Eggcessive]

Botulism is a deadly disease that usually will cause ascending paralysis of both legs, then wings, and neck. It is caused by eating the toxin found in decaying animal matter or vegetation, especially if they have been buried or without air. Amoxicillin or any other antibiotic won't treat it. Hopefully, your chick has just had some temporary problem, and not showing early signs of possible Mareks disease. There are other diseases that can look like Mareks. It's good that she has improved. I would probably treat her with vitamins in the water, and you may want to read some information on Mareks, just in case: https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq

 

[MacTech]

Moldy food confirmed...

The feeder had a decent chunk of Grower feed with dry blue-gray mold on it, hidden away in the corner, I have disposed of the contaminated food in the stack of old tires that construct the majority of my backyard rimfire range, there is *no* way the hens can discover the contaminated feed while free ranging, the feeder has been cleaned and sterilized

No other hens show signs of botulism

Upon further inspection, there is a small leak in the roof of the barn, directly over where the feeder hangs, I will construct a cover for the feeder and relocate it to an area without a leak

 

[MacTech]

Tonight's update;

I come home, open the door to the bathroom and Pip's running around like a crazy bird, good balance, and she's fast too, she sees me, and immediately starts her "Pick Me Up!!" Chirping, I oblige her, as soon as her feet hit my t-shirt, she climbs up to my shoulder and starts preening my hair, purring all the while...

I'd say a 95-98% recovery now...

So, with her perched on my shoulder, I go downstairs, and walk outside towards the chicken barn, as soon as she spies her other four sisters, she jumps off my shoulder, flies down, and runs over to them, eager to get in some dust bathing time....

They then wander off into the woods, she trails behind, occasionally looking my way to make sure I'm still there, after about 5 minutes, she leaves her sisters and runs back to me, stopping to follow my dog Cooper for a short while, then back to me, again wanting some quality shoulder-perching time....

A bit later, we're back in the chicken yard, she's dust bathing again, when I see her start to get wobbly and her feet clenching up again...

I pick her up, she springs back to life and climbs up to perch on my shoulder again, this time haughtily looking down on *ALL* the other chickens, as if to say "I'm the Alpha now! Bow before me puny poultry peasants, or I'll have my human pick you up, I know you hate that, I'm the Alpha NOW!....

Yep, she's back, beaten the disease, and is nearly 100%, the only Wobblies is a tiny bit when scratching for food in the dirt, but that's fading fast

 

[h2oratt]

How did you diagnosist as botulism?

 

[MacTech]

To be honest, I'm not 100% sure it is botulism, but based on my data it's a possibility

Data point 1; moldy food
Data point 2: disease progression started with wobbliness
Data point 3: progression advanced to partial leg paralysis
Data point 4; wing droop just barely started before I caught and quarantined her
Data point 5; disease responded rapidly to exposure to amoxicillin, within 36 hours she was cured

It may not be botulism, but the end result is the same, she's beaten whatever it was

 

[h2oratt]

Congrats on curing your bird