Rooster with Leg Strength Issues.

[fudo]

I have a 30 week old Brabanter Rooster. He has been generally healthy until last night. I noticed when I went into the coop to close up for the evening, that he was roosting on the floor next to the hens and not up on the bars as he typically does. This morning, he was still there but with his head in the corner. I picked him up and brought him into the house to confine him. This morning I took him to the vet. She is not familiar with poultry but saw us anyways. She told me to go to the Veterinary school near us for their opinion - they have told us that it is $100 to get in the door and will likely end up costing us over $600 if they do any testing or treatment. So, i am looking for some help/advice from the brains here.

This is what I have for info at this point:
1. Free ranges
2. Has had a Corid treatment in the last 30 days
3. 16 hens and 1 rooster
3a. there are no other birds who appear to be affected.
4. There is no nasal discharge
5. His comb is red
6. He is alert, eating, drinking and crowing
7. His eyes are clear and his pupils are reactive
8. We have not had any additions to our flock.
8a. A couple weeks ago we had a juvenile bird die with totally different set of symptoms.
9. There is no sign of trauma, no sign of injury.
10. He has been vaccinated for Merek's.
11. He is doing a bit of open mouth breathing but it seems to coincide with him trying to walk or move around. or being stressed by the car ride to the vet's.
12. No signs of lice or mite infestation.


Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated.

I can upload a video or images if it would be helpful.

thanks in advance!!

 

[Kelsie2290]

You might try putting up some pictures or video to see if that would help with ideas. Does he try to walk at all, what is he doing with his legs, is it one leg, both legs, equally? If you poke and prod on him does anything seem to hurt? Have you had Mareks on the property that you know of?

 

[fudo]

All chickens onsite are vaccinated for mareks. He tries to walk if he is pushed. Will liik again in the morning for signs of anything visible. will post video tomorrow morning.

 

[HomeSnail]

Hi! I have encountered this before with my flock actually this has quite a few times.

-My reasoning-
1) My hens jump off their roosting areas and sometimes do not land properly and in return sprain the joint on the leg or legs.
2) Check the bottom of the foot for any type of objects that might be stuck or accumulated (dirt, rotting material, food)
3) If the foot is curled check the hip joint, and lower joint (joint before foot) it should feel hot if it is injured.
4) Check the Crop for unusual weight, watery- ness, or solidity.
5) Check Joints on wings.
6) Lightly tap on the side to see if he will fall over try pushing on both left and right sides.
7) if you can see what he is eating, and what his stool is like.

I would stay away from Vets. I have noticed that even farm vets or specialized avian vets don't know how to cure problematic chicken ailments. I have actually had a vet kill my first chicken from stress which was very hard for me. They don't know how to do it, but they surely know how to rack up a 600-800 dollar bill to come up with some BS answer.

I wouldn't worry about the panting/mouth opening when visiting the vet. Which is common due to stress. I do not believe this is any type of disease either as it would have completely shut down the chickens normal activity.

What to do:
Set him up in a small cage in your home, give him a nice little cup of food and water and let him rest it out. The longer he's out by himself he will need to move and strain to get food, drink, and find a resting spot.

If you have more questions feel free to PM me.

-Malik

 

[fudo]

Malik -
thank you for your advice. Our boy is in a cat carrier with food and water. keeping his world as small as possible. i will go in and check him in a little bit for the points you have outlined.

 

[fudo]

this is the link to a couple photos and a video of him this morning:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/174fmipinsw9l4v/796TgV1Hrn

 

[fudo]

Malik -
1) I don't see any signs of trauma or swelling in his legs.
2) feet look clean and free of any kind of foreign objects.
3) He feels warm overall
4) crop is normal and full.
5) Joints of the wings seem fine.
6) He does push with both sides
7) his stool is normal.

 

[cheeperchick]

Sorry to crash this post but I think my 15wk old Delaware roo also has some leg issues. It lies down alot. He has a case of dry pox & I dusted him for lice on Monday. He eats n drinks normally and sleeps on the lowest roost @night too. His poo is a brown/orange color and mushy to almost runny. He's also vaccinated for mereks. He does get up when I try to touch him and takes a few steps around but as soon as I turn my back he's lying down again..any clue why he does that?

 

[HomeSnail]

Ok, I gotta say he has a cute face.

So, the next thing we could discuss is if you are able to find any types of dangerous weeds or plants since they free range. Search the free range area for anything weird or suspected of dangerous. He could be poisoned. Or have a stomach virus.

 

[R.M.Qureshi]

I have a 30 week old Brabanter Rooster. He has been generally healthy until last night. I noticed when I went into the coop to close up for the evening, that he was roosting on the floor next to the hens and not up on the bars as he typically does. This morning, he was still there but with his head in the corner. I picked him up and brought him into the house to confine him. This morning I took him to the vet. She is not familiar with poultry but saw us anyways. She told me to go to the Veterinary school near us for their opinion - they have told us that it is $100 to get in the door and will likely end up costing us over $600 if they do any testing or treatment. So, i am looking for some help/advice from the brains here.

This is what I have for info at this point:
1. Free ranges
2. Has had a Corid treatment in the last 30 days
3. 16 hens and 1 rooster
3a. there are no other birds who appear to be affected.
4. There is no nasal discharge
5. His comb is red
6. He is alert, eating, drinking and crowing
7. His eyes are clear and his pupils are reactive
8. We have not had any additions to our flock.
8a. A couple weeks ago we had a juvenile bird die with totally different set of symptoms.
9. There is no sign of trauma, no sign of injury.
10. He has been vaccinated for Merek's.
11. He is doing a bit of open mouth breathing but it seems to coincide with him trying to walk or move around. or being stressed by the car ride to the vet's.
12. No signs of lice or mite infestation.


Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated.

I can upload a video or images if it would be helpful.

thanks in advance!!

From the symptoms above i suspect GOUT. Please try Nsaid drugs.