Rooster with mass in neck, possible tumor, thymus response -- Marek's

[NewToFarming]

I am so sorry about trousers. He is a beautiful boy! I am battling many things in my flock right now and one of my young girls was totally paralyzed and 7 weeks later she made a full recovery. I have a rooster that went down overnight. I am not sure if it could be mareks or a stroke or something else but he presented very quickly and the girl became paralyzed over time. But he is almost 100% now and it has been 3 weeks so far for him. I am thinking about another week and he should be as good as new.
For my girl, to help her sit upright, I rolled a towel long ways and then taped the ends to the size I needed to "fit" her and made like a doughnut for her to sit in so she would not be flopped over on her side. You could try that with Trousers to help him to be able to sit upright.
I treated both of them with moistened chicken feed with added vitamins & electrolytes and then I added additional B complex in the mash also to help with healing the nerves. They also got eggs everyday for additional protein.
Even if it is Mareks and the stress of the tumor and surgery brought his immune system down and it surfaced, it doesn't mean a death sentence for him. I honestly thought at one point mine weren't going to make it, but not only did they make it, they made a full recovery.

 

[Nambroth]

I am most concerned about his breathing. He is gaping and throwing his head back just to get air. He can't sleep because the motion keeps him awake.

 

[pdx2phx]

I am most concerned about his breathing. He is gaping and throwing his head back just to get air. He can't sleep because the motion keeps him awake.

Thinking about you and your lovely fluffy boy tonight. Hang in there!

 

[NovaAman]

Well there she is! The lady that I has mentioned!

 

[NewToFarming]

Hey Nova! Rocky is doing really well now.

Nambroth, do you think Trouser could have swelling inside at the surgical site which may be causing his difficulty in breathing? Do you have any VetRx? That might help him to breath easier.

 

[Fluffballs]

I'll be praying for you and Trousers!

 

[drumstick diva]

I was also thinking that he has swelling from the surgery and possibly that is blocking his airway. I wonder if a steroid would help or make things worse

I check back as often as possible but, BYC site has been really wonky most of the day. No matter what I click on, it wouldn't go there. Only parts of a page would be displayed like the logo and then just plain blue. It seems a little better now but it has only been BYC. Every other website comes up fine, maybe BYC is just overwhelmed with heavy traffic???

 

[Eowyn2]

I hope Trousers turns the corner.

I'm not an animal doc, but I'm a human doc. I didn't want to say it earlier but since someone mentioned stroke already, that's kinda what I was thinking. I also wonder about pulmonary embolism - a clot that goes to the lungs. That would explain his breathing. Surgery makes humans more prone to clots; I would assume it does animals as well, but idk. It's possible his drastic heart rate drop with messing with that tumor during surgery caused low enough blood pressure to cause a stroke, and then surgery plus not being able to move well caused a pulmonary embolism. None of which are nice things, and I feel horrible posting this - but I'm sure nowhere near as horrible as you do having to go through this. Armchair diagnoses are usually wrong, if that's any comfort.

 

[Nambroth]

I am leaning toward the clot, as he's shown no other signs of Marek's, and anethsesia surely should not be effecting him still. But, all I can do is speculate. Earlier when I was getting ready to tube feed him he had another purple comb incident... not good. We decided not to stress him with the tube (it really works him up even though I am quick) and I am just giving fluids again for now. He had about 50ml of thick liquid food total earlier, which is better than nothing.

His metacam is an anti-inflamatory in addition to a painkiller. His surgery site is to the side of the neck and does not seem swollen. I won't rule it out though.

Right now I am sitting up with him through the night. When he poos he tries to stand, and his legs have enough power to topple him. Last night he would make a noise when this happened, but tonight he is not and I am scared I'll sleep through it and he will not be able to breathe on his back... given his current struggle it would surely do him in. I am going to call the vet as soon as they open so that we can get him back up and make the best choice we can. My knowledge of avian medicine is no where near hers of course and perhaps there are options.

I know I seem a bit stoic in my posts but I have been trying to keep a cool head and dedicate my efforts to helping him, but in reality we are very emotional over this big guy. I know some would think it's silly because he was just 'an extra rooster' that I decided to adopt and give a chance to. In many households he'd be dinner. I say this not with condemnation but it is the reality. I actually hunt so I know what it is to use an animal for food, and what it involves. It's just much different for me when you know and love the individuals so much. I want him to recover more than anyone and have been weepy about it for the last two days. It is a real blow to have him do so well in surgery, recover, and then topple so hard.

I want my Tibbles (what we call him) to be around for years. But I also know that I can't stay up 24 hours a day for weeks to see if he can recover-- neither can he as he cannot even sleep at this point. If he were able to sit peacefully without labored breathing, and I could leave him for more than 5 minutes without disaster it would be another story.

I will keep you informed! Sorry for the sleep deprived ramble. Trying to keep on topic for now until we know what is going on.

 

[bribre]

So sad... I wish him the best!! He's a stunning rooster!!