Roosters Weak Walking

[QuackersGoose]

I have a gold Sebright roo that suddenly became very weak. He curls his toes when he walks. Stumbles a lot, and in general, walks poorly. No apparent injuries. Don’t see bumblefoot. We brought him in the house, today. He’s eating and drinking, seems alert, and chatty. About a month ago, we lost a silkie roo to the same issue. He lost all control of his legs. He seemed out of it, and eventually after nursing him for days, we had to put him out of his misery. In his case, he became lethargic and didn’t want to eat or drink. It was obvious he was suffering. With Pop Eye, our Sebright, he’s very alert and seems to be doing well except for having issues with his legs/feet. Any advice is greatly appreciated. None of our other birds seem to have any issues.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I have a gold Sebright roo that suddenly became very weak. He curls his toes when he walks. Stumbles a lot, and in general, walks poorly. No apparent injuries. Don’t see bumblefoot. We brought him in the house, today. He’s eating and drinking, seems alert, and chatty. About a month ago, we lost a silkie roo to the same issue. He lost all control of his legs. He seemed out of it, and eventually after nursing him for days, we had to put him out of his misery. In his case, he became lethargic and didn’t want to eat or drink. It was obvious he was suffering. With Pop Eye, our Sebright, he’s very alert and seems to be doing well except for having issues with his legs/feet. Any advice is greatly appreciated. None of our other birds seem to have any issues.

I'm sorry he's not doing well.

How old is he?
Was he vaccinated for Marek's?
What type of food/treats do you feed?

Hard to know what's going on there, if no signs of injury/swelling of the joints, it could be disease like Marek's.
I would try B-Complex to see if that makes a difference.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would agree that I would try some riboflavin (vitamin B 2) which is in most poultry vitamins, human B complex tablets, and in liver, beef, chopped almonds, and plain yogurt. Seabrights along with slikies seem to be a breed that is prone to Mareks disease unfortunately. Hopefully, it is just an injury or vitamin B 2 deficiency. But if you should lose him one day, it would be good to seek a necropsy by the state vet to look for what was wrong. Having another die similarly, Mareks might be a possiblilty.

 

[QuackersGoose]

Thank you for this information. He’s about a year old. I got him from a reputable feed store, and was told all the chicks we got were vaccinated. I will supplement his diet as you both suggested. We feed the higher protein crumble, as well as dog food kibble. Yes, dog food, as most of our hens love it, and we’ve had better health in our flock for years feeding them the brand we do. Saw a decline in hen health when we took it away. Anyway, I also feed scraps, such as greens and cabbage, mixed vegetables, egg shells, etc.

 

[QuackersGoose]

Update: Pop Eye is slowing getting better. Thanks to the b vitamin info, he’s standing again and walking a little now!

 

[Eggcessive]

Glad to hear that he has improved some. Let us know how he gets along.