Roosters stumbling

[RatNC]

I have two 16-week old Cream Legbar roosters. One, Blondie, has been sitting down more than not for a few weeks. Then, in the past couple of weeks, the other one, Dotty, started doing it too. He also occasionally stuck his leg out "funny." I did several joint checks and foot checks but found nothing. Over the past few days, they rarely even came out of the coop. After reviewing several related threads, I did a further check - eyes are clear, no mites or skin lesions, comb is normal color, no abnormal poop, etc. Today, they both have developed an unsteady gait, lose their balance, and Dotty is holding her leg at a very exaggerated angle. I still can feel no dislocation or injury in the legs/feet. What to do next? Just keep watching them? https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mtS_QROK2wb-hmYxJSiX4jI-7nL_-H0C/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mre1q22wzGC78wpFHr75Ty7lBJGy37O5/view?usp=sharing

 

[micstrachan]

Well, shoot. The first thing that comes to mind is Marek’s disease. Do you know if they were vaccinated? If that’s the case, the only thing you can do really us supportive care. Do you have poultry vitamins on hand?

 

[RatNC]

Well, shoot. The first thing that comes to mind is Marek’s disease. Do you know if they were vaccinated? If that’s the case, the only thing you can do really us supportive care. Do you have poultry vitamins on hand?

Oh, no! That is terrible news. Looking at the info on Marek's though, it matches perfectly. These chickens were incubated at home so they did not get vaccinated. I don't have poultry vitamins on hand but I've ordered them to support the other chickens. I know there's close to zero hope of saving any of them but I've got to try. I don't know where they picked it up. We've worked so hard to keep things clean. The only thing I can think of is, I changed from sand to deep litter bedding a week or two before I noticed changes in the roosters so perhaps the in-coop environment changed. Arggghhhhh. Thanks micstrachan for at least pointing me in the right direction.

 

[micstrachan]

It is not a lost cause. Marek’s is VERY common. The best thing you can do is remain calm and try to keep their stress to a minimum. And you don’t know for sure if it’s Marek’s. Is an avian vet an option?

 

[Tonyroo]

I had a Wyandotte rooster behaving that way, so I looked up possible causes and it lead me to Marek. Only thing was my hen wasn't affected and they both were together all the time. It got to the point where he couldn't stand, let alone sit properly. I just made him comfortable till he passed away. Took about a month for all that to happen. He was missed cause I hatched him. I hope you have a better experience than I did.

 

[RatNC]

I had a Wyandotte rooster behaving that way, so I looked up possible causes and it lead me to Marek. Only thing was my hen wasn't affected and they both were together all the time. It got to the point where he couldn't stand, let alone sit properly. I just made him comfortable till he passed away. Took about a month for all that to happen. He was missed cause I hatched him. I hope you have a better experience than I did.

I've separated them from the rest of the flock. Everyone was upset about that. I've cloroxed the coop and replaced the bedding. Now every time one of my other chickens sit down I think "oh no!" The sickies are eating and comfortable until I can figure out how to put them down. Argh!

 

[RatNC]

It is not a lost cause. Marek’s is VERY common. The best thing you can do is remain calm and try to keep their stress to a minimum. And you don’t know for sure if it’s Marek’s. Is an avian vet an option?

They act just like the videos on You Tube show so I'm confident you hit the nail on the head. They have been quarantined away from the other birds. I'm giving Everyone vitamins and crossing my fingers.