Pullet with a Limp

[Hayduke27]

I have a little pullet, not even sure what she is other than a bantam breed of some sort. She's probably about 8 weeks old. She was just fine for weeks, then one day I noticed her having trouble getting around. She had one leg that, when she tried to use it, would straighten out in front of her, and the toes were curling and wouldn't grasp my finger. I separated her from her flockmates, they are too rambunctious these days. I put her in with some younger hatchlings who are more her speed. She's been relaxing with them for 3 or 4 days now. I have fed her some scrambled eggs, but other than that, I'm just letting her rest.

She acts normally, and is eating and drinking just fine. The leg does not appear crooked, so I don't think it's a slipped tendon, plus she can both straighten the leg and bend it. There is no obvious swelling, and there is no break in the bone. Over the past couple of days, I think I have noticed some improvement in her mobility. She seems to be using the leg for support more, without it shooting straight forward and out from under her. She has good coordination, and can get to food and water, as well as scootch out of the way when other chicks are getting crazy. She just seems to have some pain in that leg still, as she prefers to minimize her use of it, and lays down the majority of the time.

Is there anything else I can do to help her out? Does anybody recognize these symptoms? Could it just be that she twisted it, and it's going to heal okay?

 

[Eggcessive]

Some of her symptoms sound a little like Mareks disease, but an injury or a vitamin deficiency might be the problem. Sometimes there can be transient symptoms of Mareks that get better, then later other symptoms such as tumors can show up. I would definitely put her on poultry vitamins in her water for now and do some reading about Mareks disease..

 

[Hayduke27]

I have read a bit about Mareks, and it has been in the back of my mind the whole time. I got this chick from a Tractor Supply Company, and I thought that they were vaccinated, but I don't know that for sure.

Tonight she was able to stand, but when she gets excited her legs split, one goes back and one goes forward. When she's calm, she can sort of walk, but she's pretty weak.

She is the smallest of 12 bantams I bought. All of the other chickens are acting perfectly normally.

From what I've read on Marek's, it's not that common, and there are quite a few other things that can present similar symptoms. I gave her more scrambled eggs tonight, and will look into vitamins tomorrow.

Thanks for the reply! Any other thoughts or advice are greatly appreciated!

 

[Hayduke27]

I just did a little more reading up on Mareks, and it sounds like "the splits" is a common symptom.

I also see that my assumption that chicks from the big local farm store would come vaccinated was unfounded. I guess it's pretty rare that stores vaccinate their chicks.

I guess if this chick has Mareks, it's too late to quarantine it from all the other chicks, as they have all been exposed at this point. Unfortunately, those chicks have been out in my yard, and thus I think I broke quarantine as well. If this little chick has Mareks, my yard and flock are probably already contaminated.

I'll keep an eye on this little bugger. Man I hope this chick isn't the bringer of bad news for all of my chickens...

On that note, should this end up being Mareks, should I try to spread work around my community? I know a lot of people bought chickens from our local store this year, could there be an epidemic?

 

[Hayduke27]

The chick hasn't changed much today, and she seems awfully drowsy when she is laying down. She doesn't appear as active as she was. I am thinking about culling her, though I know this will not stop the spread of Mareks, if that is what she has...

 

[Hayduke27]

After a long night of thinking about it, I decided culling her today wasn't the best option. She's actually very aware, not as drowsy as I thought. She can stand without much problem, but just has trouble walking right now, though she can get around. She's just moving slowly. I put Sav-A-Chick Electrolytes and Probiotics in her water, made her some scrambled egg, and she's just relaxing in seclusion at the moment. I'm hoping to see signs of recovery. If she gets worse, I'll probably cull her and have a necropsy done, so I know what's going on.

 

[BantamLover21]

Unfortunately, it does sound like she has Marek's Disease. If that is the case, there is no real treatment--most birds either recover quickly or slowly die. Some people have had success treating their Marek's birds with hypericum/st.johns wort and colloidal silver, though, so you might want to try one or more of those. Here is a link on the st. johns wort: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/135247/st-johns-wort

 

[Eggcessive]

I just did a little more reading up on Mareks, and it sounds like "the splits" is a common symptom.

I also see that my assumption that chicks from the big local farm store would come vaccinated was unfounded. I guess it's pretty rare that stores vaccinate their chicks.

I guess if this chick has Mareks, it's too late to quarantine it from all the other chicks, as they have all been exposed at this point. Unfortunately, those chicks have been out in my yard, and thus I think I broke quarantine as well. If this little chick has Mareks, my yard and flock are probably already contaminated.

I'll keep an eye on this little bugger. Man I hope this chick isn't the bringer of bad news for all of my chickens...

On that note, should this end up being Mareks, should I try to spread work around my community? I know a lot of people bought chickens from our local store this year, could there be an epidemic?

The Mareks if that is what she has didn't come from the farm store necessarily, it just means that she was exposed somewhere, maybe even in your home or on your property. When chicks are vaccinated as day olds, they must be kept away from the disease for 2-3 weeks to build up immunity. It can last in the environment for up to 7 years, and maybe longer. Hopefully she will respond to the vitamins, and it won't be Mareks. Here are some links about Mareks that I like:
http://partnersah.vet.cornell.edu/avian-atlas/search/disease/502
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq
http://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource000791_Rep813.pdf