Something's wrong w/ chicken's neck.

[RubiaSexy]

Does anyone know what could be wrong with his neck and how I can help him? He woke up like this today. I'm really, really worried about him. I tried uploading a video to show u but for some reason it didn't work so I'll just describe...every time he tries to eat he ends up pecking at his belly almost as if he didn't have control over his neck.

 

[All4Eggz]

Looks like wry neck?

@Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock @MysteryChicken

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I agree, it looks like Wry Neck.
Try vitamin therapy, give 400IU Vitamin E and 1/4 tablet B-Complex daily. Give him a little egg as a treat, this helps with the uptake of E.

See that he's staying hydrated, if you need to, hold his water cup up to his beak or even tube fluids into him.
His normal feed should be fine to give if he's able to manage it.

 

[RubiaSexy]

I agree, it looks like Wry Neck.
Try vitamin therapy, give 400IU Vitamin E and 1/4 tablet B-Complex daily. Give him a little egg as a treat, this helps with the uptake of E.

See that he's staying hydrated, if you need to, hold his water cup up to his beak or even tube fluids into him.
His normal feed should be fine to give if he's able to manage it.

Thanks for the advice. So, just to be clear, this isn't life-threatening? Important for me to know what causes this to happen and if it's contagious being that I have other chickens. How long do u predict after I start treatment that he should start to get better? As for now, I am hand-feeding him his food and water and have him propped up on a comfy pillow just so that he's not rolling around on the floor where he could potentially get hurt. Anything else I could do for him to make him comfortable or anything else I could feed him in the meantime until I get the vitamins from Amazon? Again, thank u for ur help.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Wry Neck is a neurological symptom, so there's no way to know if it's life-threatening or not - it depends on what caused it. Some recover and others don't.
A few common causes are disease like Marek's, head trauma, vitamin deficiency and/or genetics.
The only way to know would be if you lose him and have testing/necropsy to find out more.

With symptoms like this it can take days to months for recovery. Sorry to be so vague, but again...it all depends. There's been folks like @Swbertrand1 that invested months to help a bird recovery, while others have reported a short recovery time.

As for feeding him, his normal feed, some egg or tuna would be good. Sunflower seeds may be helpful with E, but may be difficult for a bird to process when they are not well.

 

[RubiaSexy]

Wry Neck is a neurological symptom, so there's no way to know if it's life-threatening or not - it depends on what caused it. Some recover and others don't.
A few common causes are disease like Marek's, head trauma, vitamin deficiency and/or genetics.
The only way to know would be if you lose him and have testing/necropsy to find out more.

With symptoms like this it can take days to months for recovery. Sorry to be so vague, but again...it all depends. There's been folks like @Swbertrand1 that invested months to help a bird recovery, while others have reported a short recovery time.

As for feeding him, his normal feed, some egg or tuna would be good. Sunflower seeds may be helpful with E, but may be difficult for a bird to process when they are not well.

Awesome advice. Appreciate it.

 

[Swbertrand1]

Most definitely looks like Wry Neck, and he appears to be a Silkie... Silkies are more prone to vitamin deficiencies. You've gotten excellent advice above. Vit-E seems to be the key as it's an essential vitamin for neurological development and function.

 

[Swbertrand1]

So, just to be clear, this isn't life-threatening? Important for me to know what causes this to happen and if it's contagious being that I have other chickens. How long do u predict after I start treatment that he should start to get better? As for now, I am hand-feeding him his food and water and have him propped up on a comfy pillow just so that he's not rolling around on the floor where he could potentially get hurt. Anything else I could do for him to make him comfortable or anything else I could feed him in the meantime until I get the vitamins from Amazon? Again, thank u for ur help.

Glad to hear you have him propped up. We've kept Silkies we are treating inside in a cat bed if necessary to keep them from rolling around or falling and hurting themselves.

How old is he? What was his daily routine like before he was found like this? I'm asking what are the other birds like; do they treat him well, or does he get bullied; does he mix well with his flock mates? What does his diet consist of; does he eat a healthy amount of food, etc?

I wanted to provide a little more info than I gave before, and also say that I recommend veterinary care if possible. With that said, to answer your questions above,

Is it life-threatening? ANS: Wry Neck is not contagious, but it can be life-threatening to the extent the bird may not be able to eat/drink - seems you have that covered though. Diseases such as Mareks, which might present symptoms like this, are contagious, but you're likely going to have flock issues if that's the case. Wry Neck seems more likely if he's the only only one acting odd. Silkies are more prone to Wry Neck too, so I'd start there.

Don't discount the possibility of head trauma from a fall, running into something, getting pecked by another bird, etc. Make sure to examine his head carefully to see if you can see any signs of trauma (blood, broken skin, etc).

How long might this take? ANS: Like Wyorp Rock said, it can vary. Most of the cases we've dealt with show improvement in as little as 48-72 hours, with some showing improvement the same day. In our most extreme case, it took 2 months. I even know of another user here on BYC that I coached through a Wry Neck case that almost gave up after something like 3 weeks of treatment, when suddenly the Silkie being treated finally responded. The short answer: IT VARIES... :-\

When we're treating Wry Neck, we give lots of healthy treats too (grains, mealworms, tomatoes) since the bird is usually not eating nearly as much as it would normally eat. The more you can get the bird to eat, the better. We usually make a mash of moist Feed mixed with Yogurt, Vit-E, and Fried Egg mixed to moist, easy to eat and tasty servings. An alternative to Vit-E/Fried Egg to achieve Vit-E uptake, Selenium and Vitamin E for Goats comes in a gel from TSC stores and is super-easy to mix into moist feed if you think that might be easier for you - it works well for us...

Good luck with your boy! Keep us updated

 

[RubiaSexy]

Glad to hear you have him propped up. We've kept Silkies we are treating inside in a cat bed if necessary to keep them from rolling around or falling and hurting themselves.

How old is he? What was his daily routine like before he was found like this? I'm asking what are the other birds like; do they treat him well, or does he get bullied; does he mix well with his flock mates? What does his diet consist of; does he eat a healthy amount of food, etc?

I wanted to provide a little more info than I gave before, and also say that I recommend veterinary care if possible. With that said, to answer your questions above,

Is it life-threatening? ANS: Wry Neck is not contagious, but it can be life-threatening to the extent the bird may not be able to eat/drink - seems you have that covered though. Diseases such as Mareks, which might present symptoms like this, are contagious, but you're likely going to have flock issues if that's the case. Wry Neck seems more likely if he's the only only one acting odd. Silkies are more prone to Wry Neck too, so I'd start there.

Don't discount the possibility of head trauma from a fall, running into something, getting pecked by another bird, etc. Make sure to examine his head carefully to see if you can see any signs of trauma (blood, broken skin, etc).

How long might this take? ANS: Like Wyorp Rock said, it can vary. Most of the cases we've dealt with show improvement in as little as 48-72 hours, with some showing improvement the same day. In our most extreme case, it took 2 months. I even know of another user here on BYC that I coached through a Wry Neck case that almost gave up after something like 3 weeks of treatment, when suddenly the Silkie being treated finally responded. The short answer: IT VARIES... :-\

When we're treating Wry Neck, we give lots of healthy treats too (grains, mealworms, tomatoes) since the bird is usually not eating nearly as much as it would normally eat. The more you can get the bird to eat, the better. We usually make a mash of moist Feed mixed with Yogurt, Vit-E, and Fried Egg mixed to moist, easy to eat and tasty servings. An alternative to Vit-E/Fried Egg to achieve Vit-E uptake, Selenium and Vitamin E for Goats comes in a gel from TSC stores and is super-easy to mix into moist feed if you think that might be easier for you - it works well for us...

Good luck with your boy! Keep us updated

First off, thank u so much for taking time out to help me with this issue. I truly, truly appreciate it. So, he's 3 months old. His diet consists mainly of Manapro game feed. Also, applesauce, rice, eggs, corn and some greens. I have seen him get pecked in the head on a couple of occasions by another male. I try to the best of my ability to keep an eye on them and separate them when I notice any type of bullying but I can't always be there. So, it's a bit tricky 'cause I'm not sure if this is a vitamin deficiency thing going on or a head trauma issue. Anyway, he is able to hold his head at times but for the most part it's either down or between his legs. I have to constantly keep untucking it from underneath him scared that he won't be able to breathe properly. Now, something happened the night before he woke up like this which I think is indicative to his condition now that I think about it. He was acting a bit lethargic and had what I suspect was a fever. I thought he was just hot so I cranked up the a.c. for him. Just thought I'd mention that in case that helps. So, 4 days in, I'm observing that his neck might be a little more crooked. This has me extremely concerned. I will definitely take ur advice and try out some of the stuff u mentioned.

Thank u again. I will be keeping u posted also.

 

[Swbertrand1]

I'm not sure what's in the game feed, but we feed chicken feed because, well, we're feeding chickens, not game birds.

You may be dealing with a nutrition issue depending on the makeup of the feed (protein, fat, vitamins, etc).