My 9 month old Rhode Island Red hen (Ruby) went down about 9 days ago. When I say "went down" I mean she suddenly stopped being capable of standing or walking...paralysis. I brought her inside immediately (as it is either freezing or below here in Missouri and thankfully got to her before the rest of my flock could start picking on her). I put her in a box and started doing extensive research on what the problem could be. I checked for broken bones, injuries, etc., nothing... and from what I can see she is not experiencing any pain. Then I treated her as being possibly egg-bound (warm bathes, feeling around stomach for lodged egg, olive oil around her vent, even went the extra mile and lubed up a gloved finger and checked the inside of her vent...ewww). Mareks is a possibility, but none of my other birds have any issues and from what I understand it mainly occurs in chicks 8wks and younger . I am currently treating her for a Vit B deficiency as her symptoms are paralysis of the legs/feet (one foot all toes try and stay curled) and she is "star gazing" constantly. I have been giving her 2 Vit B Complex tablets a day for 4 days now. She seems to have more mobility but not enough. Only one of her legs is stable at this point and she is closing her eyes and making "Stevie Wonder" movements with her head, slowly back and forth. I was giving her yogurt through a dropper up until 2 days ago at which point she has basically refused to eat and only drinks when I put the bowl directly in front of her. I have spoken with 2 veterinarians and employees at my local farm store as well as researching BYC threads. No one has any idea as to what this could be. I was told that it's probably "just one of those things". Unless Ruby shows some major improvement within the next 48 hours I will have to have my husband humanly cull her as this is no life for her.
