Silkie twisting head completely around upside down HELP

[saveacivic]

I have a 5-6 month old Silkie who is the family favorite that started twisting her head/ neck. She is walking backwards and twisting her head completely upside down and kinda wiping her face on the ground or burying her face down. She has me so confused. I am reading so much on the wry neck but it just doesn't seem to fit. I also was thinking sour crop because she seemed to have a water like crop but that is going down. Just can't figure it out. I did find a feather in her eye when I first picked her up. I cleared that and trimmed her hair around her eyes but she is still doing it. I found a reply to another post that mentioned a head/ brain injury on a Silkie would do this? Anyone have more info on that. Thanks

 

[ChickenCanoe]

My first guess is wry neck or possibly a head injury - common with silkies.

 

[saveacivic]

Update : Vanellope the Silkie is doing ok. She spent the weekend at the vet and it turns out she has a fracture on the side of her beak and that is what they are thinking caused all this. We are giving her a pain/ anti inflammatory medicine along with the polyvisol vitamins and just waiting it out. I moved her and her bestie to a pack and play and they are living in my bathroom. There is tons of bad info on the internet about wry neck. It is very rare for a chicken on commercial feed to have a vitamin deficiency that causes wry neck. Very glad we saw a vet.She is still twisting around and having some trouble controlling her neck spasms but is able to eat for about 10 min. Drinking is much harder.. throws her into a fit just about every time. She is still sleeping with her head on the floor upside down.

 

[LeafBlade12345]

Oh...poor baby, hope she gets better...

 

[marneypoo]

Silkies are very prone for wry neck. It is not only caused by a vitamin deficiency. Neurological damage or some type of brain injury is another cause for wry neck - silkies are prone to this because due to their vaulted skull which means brain injuries are more frequent than with other breeds. The anti-inflammatory she is getting should be helpful if it is from an injury.
And I hate to say it, but most vets don't know the first thing about treating chickens. Hopefully you have one that does. Good luck, let me know if you want more help with your pullet. I hope she makes a full recovery..

 

[marneypoo]

Also, silkies have more trouble absorbing vitamin E. This is where the vitamin deficiency comes from that can cause wry neck. Drinking water will stress them more. What I do is wet a small container of the feed with water to make a very wet mash. That way the bird gets food and water at the same time. I add any vitamins, etc to this. Kind of like oatmeal. You may have to hold the dish up to their face at first to feed them. Once they start to get better control over their head, you can set the container up at neck level so it makes it easier for them to eat. I either hang it on the cage or sit the dish on an overturned coffee can. Whatever makes it the right height for them to eat. Scrambled or boiled eggs are also good for them. Just be sure they are eating. With the wry neck, they can starve or dehydrate very quickly without your help. Some birds make a full recovery, some don't. The sooner the treatment, the better the chances of them getting over this.

 

[Eggcessive]

It is good advice to give some egg (raw or chopped) along with the vitamins since they contain selenium which helps to absorb vitamin E. Poultry Vitamins are better, and are put in the water, which then can be drunk or used to wet the feed. Here are some good links to read:
http://www.browneggblueegg.com/Article/Crookneck/Crookneck.html

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/97121/lets-talk-wry-neck-crook-neck

 

[CathrynK]

Help, help! I have a Silkie Rooster who is suffering from what I believe is Wry neck. I believe it started this past summer. He would seem to get better for a bit and then it would start back up. Back in the middle of November I had a Frizzle hen get attacked by a hawk. My Silkie Rooster was having trouble at that time. I had just put him in the garage because I had seen a hawk and he was like a sitting duck in the backyard. Unfortunately, I was just housing him. My focus was on the Frizzle. I spent 3 weeks on the hen. It wasn’t until after that that I started to try to work with my Rooster. I’m still trying to save him. I feed him wet food, usually with egg, turmeric, cumin, E, B-1, selenium, some chopped greens (such as clover or dandelion). He’s not getting better. In fact, lately he’s much worse. I’m thinking that he needs a muscle relaxer, but I don’t know. There is no Vet here that will treat a chicken. I am contemplating putting him down, but that truly hurts my soul. I also can’t stand to see him suffer. Please help, because I am at a loss.