Hi all,
In march we added 2 Wyandotte bantams to our flock (born december&january). 1 of the chicks (called Dotje) was always a bit different - she looked at you with 1 eye but was otherwise healthy. Until 2 weeks ago - it started with trouble jumping down, then her head started to turn (wry neck?). It's not constant, she has it in waves. We also noticed that her earlobe started turning white - it's not powdery, it really looks like the color is draining from her earlobe.
We went to the vet and he thinks it's some kind of ear infection. We're on day 9 of antibiotics and we called again today because she is not improving. We can pick up a new antibiotic in an hour, but he told us the prognosis is not good. Some more details about symptoms and what she gets are below. Do you guys have any suggestions on stuff we can try to help her get over this? We're not ready to give up on her yet.
Medicine:
- Antibiotics: 0.5ml 2 x day orally (bottle doesn't have a name, just "parakuur 10%" - we're going to ask the name when we pick up the new one)
- Painkiller/anti-inflammatory: Novacam 0.3ml 1x day orally
Symptoms
See video: https://streamable.com/g6o9k5 and picture of earlobe: https://ibb.co/0nfCTFd
- Earlobe turning white
- Head shaking/scratching
- Sometimes violent head shaking, where she staggers backwards - this started in the last week
- Sometimes after head shaking she lies down with her head upside down, eyes closed
- Problem is worse when it's dark of when she is trying to look up
- Progression: head shaking and staggering is more frequent (but duration seems shorter)
- Eating something also triggers the head shaking
- Eats less
- Drinks less
- She is way quieter than normal
- Still laying eggs, but less frequent (2-3 days between eggs) and eggs are smaller - it takes her longer in the coop to lay an egg
- Goes to bed earlier and doesn't perch anymore (she'd fall off if she tried, she already fell out of the nestbox)
Update:
- We picked up doxycycline, 2x 0.5ml per day oral and she just had her first dose
- The 'parakuur' we had previously is 'Trim sulfa', it's a combination that they mix themselves (they have a lab)
- If we don't see results by monday we can discuss analysing droppings or a swab (can you swab the ear of a bantam? I don't think anything fits in there!)
- We hid some crushed garlic inside some cucumber - she ate some of it, hope that helps as well
Details I forgot to add:
- She's vaccinated for Mareks and Coccidiosis, but the vet said that sometimes that might not be enough to prevent an infection
- Droppings look normal, but are smaller than normal. They were runny the first few days we started the antibiotics, but returned to normal consistency after a few days.
In march we added 2 Wyandotte bantams to our flock (born december&january). 1 of the chicks (called Dotje) was always a bit different - she looked at you with 1 eye but was otherwise healthy. Until 2 weeks ago - it started with trouble jumping down, then her head started to turn (wry neck?). It's not constant, she has it in waves. We also noticed that her earlobe started turning white - it's not powdery, it really looks like the color is draining from her earlobe.
We went to the vet and he thinks it's some kind of ear infection. We're on day 9 of antibiotics and we called again today because she is not improving. We can pick up a new antibiotic in an hour, but he told us the prognosis is not good. Some more details about symptoms and what she gets are below. Do you guys have any suggestions on stuff we can try to help her get over this? We're not ready to give up on her yet.
Medicine:
- Antibiotics: 0.5ml 2 x day orally (bottle doesn't have a name, just "parakuur 10%" - we're going to ask the name when we pick up the new one)
- Painkiller/anti-inflammatory: Novacam 0.3ml 1x day orally
Symptoms
See video: https://streamable.com/g6o9k5 and picture of earlobe: https://ibb.co/0nfCTFd
- Earlobe turning white
- Head shaking/scratching
- Sometimes violent head shaking, where she staggers backwards - this started in the last week
- Sometimes after head shaking she lies down with her head upside down, eyes closed
- Problem is worse when it's dark of when she is trying to look up
- Progression: head shaking and staggering is more frequent (but duration seems shorter)
- Eating something also triggers the head shaking
- Eats less
- Drinks less
- She is way quieter than normal
- Still laying eggs, but less frequent (2-3 days between eggs) and eggs are smaller - it takes her longer in the coop to lay an egg
- Goes to bed earlier and doesn't perch anymore (she'd fall off if she tried, she already fell out of the nestbox)
Update:
- We picked up doxycycline, 2x 0.5ml per day oral and she just had her first dose
- The 'parakuur' we had previously is 'Trim sulfa', it's a combination that they mix themselves (they have a lab)
- If we don't see results by monday we can discuss analysing droppings or a swab (can you swab the ear of a bantam? I don't think anything fits in there!)
- We hid some crushed garlic inside some cucumber - she ate some of it, hope that helps as well
Details I forgot to add:
- She's vaccinated for Mareks and Coccidiosis, but the vet said that sometimes that might not be enough to prevent an infection
- Droppings look normal, but are smaller than normal. They were runny the first few days we started the antibiotics, but returned to normal consistency after a few days.
Last edited: