Rooster Can’t Stand Up No Obvious Injury

[ChelseaJo]

Hey guys! I am really worried about my rooster. He’s about 14 weeks old or so and he has been totally healthy. They have a coop but they free range the yard every day. On the 4th of July we noticed he was limping but otherwise doing fine. Two days later I went to let the birds out of the coop and he was unable to stand at all. It’s been 6 days and now his comb is lightening up probably because he isn’t getting the normal amount of nutrients. He had a beautiful red comb and is a really healthy looking bird but he simply cannot stand up. He can move his legs and wings but he can’t stand up. I don’t know what happened to him. We took him to the vet and she did X-rays but couldn’t see anything wrong. She put him on meloxicam once a day. I’m totally at a loss and I’m really considering having him euthanized if he doesn’t get better. I would totally take care of a paralyzed rooster but I don’t feel right about allowing him to live a life of suffering. He’s been in the house with us since the 6th and we wash his butt off all throughout the day. He eats fine and drinks fine and is alert. He just can’t stand and because he’s on his stomach all the time I was looking and noticed these red marks in the attached photo. If you guys have any ideas I’m desperate. He’s our big boy and we love him so much

 

[Wyorp Rock]

14 weeks old or so and he has been totally healthy.

4th of July we noticed he was limping but otherwise doing fine.

Two days later I went to let the birds out of the coop and he was unable to stand at all. It’s been 6 days and now his comb is lightening up probably because he isn’t getting the normal amount of nutrients.

He had a beautiful red comb and is a really healthy looking bird but he simply cannot stand up. He can move his legs and wings but he can’t stand up. I don’t know what happened to him. We took him to the vet and she did X-rays but couldn’t see anything wrong. She put him on meloxicam once a day.

I'm sorry to hear about your cockerel.

Do you know if he was vaccinated for Marek's?

You could try giving B2(Riboflavin) either by giving a poultry vitamin like Poultry Cell or giving him human B-Complex (1/4 tablet) daily for a week.

With sudden onset leg dysfunction I would consider Marek's as the cause, but it would be hard to know unless you lose him and have testing performed.

While you are making your decision about how to move forward, you can try placing him in sling for short periods of time to see if that helps keep him cleaner and a bit more comfortable. Below is just one example of a sling - there are many images on google and videos as well to give you some creative ideas.

Marek's Information
http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq

State Lab/Testing Facilities
https://www.metzerfarms.com/PoultryLabs.cfm

 

[ChelseaJo]

Thank you for your response! It’s been so long and I never did make it back here to check on the post.