Stargazing pullet

[SourRoses]

We've been treating this pullet for 4 days with B complex (including B1) but she has not improved.
She is eating and drinking, we have her separated so she can take her time with the feed.
I was surprised when I initially found her in the coop showing the signs. At 3 1/2 months old I couldn't figure out why except that perhaps she had less access to the feed for social reasons(?).
It's been incredibly hot (95F+ with lows overnight around 80) and the day I found her like that was the hottest.
Besides her tilted head, she's also clenching her feet (into fists) when she lifts her legs. But her feet flatten like normal when she's standing on them, and seems to be able to stand for a while.
Her balance is somewhat affected, she does not take the most direct path when moving around.

I'm concerned about the lack of improvement, what else can I do?

 

[coach723]

I would add some vitamin E and a bit of sunflower seeds or canned tuna for some selenium to help with the uptake of the E. Stargazing is a form of wry neck and it's often an E deficiency. It also can be disease based or from head injury, but vitamins are the first thing to try. You can continue the B supplements, those are very safe.
More on wry neck here:
https://www.raising-happy-chickens.com/wry-neck.html

​

 

[SourRoses]

She's already getting E & Selenium. 4 days now.

 

[coach723]

It can take longer than that, it's pretty variable. I would give it a bit longer, sometimes it may seem to get worse before it gets better. Hopefully you will start to see improvement.

 

[PolloGal]

Hi. I am going through the same thing right now with my 4 month old turkey. He is such an angel…but is really affected at ‘bedtime’ only it seems. I wanted to know if what you are doing helped your little one? Thanks.

 

[SourRoses]

Hi. I am going through the same thing right now with my 4 month old turkey. He is such an angel…but is really affected at ‘bedtime’ only it seems. I wanted to know if what you are doing helped your little one? Thanks.

Yes, she's improving a lot. I hope your turkey gets better!
I'm still giving her a B vitamin mash (w/ regular feed) every day along with B vitamin water. It took longer than I expected to make a difference, but now she's getting around without a problem and is living with some younger juveniles. Her head went from bending around almost to her wing, to now tilting to the side only a very slight degree, kind of like she's asking a question.

As she was getting better, one of her hatch mates started showing signs. His is a leg problem. It is SO frustrating because I'd started adding B complex and E to their water too, as a precaution, but somehow it was still too late to avoid the issue. I've been giving him the same Vitamin mash every day for 10 days, but his leg problem still progressed until he was walking on his hocks and his toes curled up. I finally brought him up to the porch brooder yesterday so I can watch him eat & drink and try to get more B complex into him.

I don't know how this one pen came down with this issue when I have 6 other pens of chickens on the same feed that are fine. I can only assume there was some feed bullying involved.
Or maybe because it's the sunniest pen, the sun rays in this record setting hot summer are just burning the vitamins out of the food??
Not knowing why has been driving me to the crazy.

 

[coach723]

It could be a deficiency that started in the egg, could have been from the parent stock. It's very hard to say why. Glad your one is looking better, hope the hatch mate improves also.
I have had a much higher rate of feed spoilage from the hot humid summer, I've tossed more feed than usual, so am buying smaller amounts more often to try to help prevent having to toss so much. I tend to be very cautious, if it looks or smells even a little off, I won't feed it to them.

 

[SourRoses]

It could be a deficiency that started in the egg, could have been from the parent stock. It's very hard to say why. Glad your one is looking better, hope the hatch mate improves also.
I have had a much higher rate of feed spoilage from the hot humid summer, I've tossed more feed than usual, so am buying smaller amounts more often to try to help prevent having to toss so much. I tend to be very cautious, if it looks or smells even a little off, I won't feed it to them.

I'm with you there. We have a small car and 60 ish chickens so I go to get feed every week, put one in the laundry and one in the feed bin on the covered back porch. All the bags I've been getting are dated from June, since June, which seems to be how my T.S.C (or the hub?) stocks feed in general, with the same date for a long time.

It's weird because this batch didn't show any issues from hatch until they were 3 months old. Now they're almost 4 months old. Do you think a deficiency could linger for that long?

For coccidiosis prevention, since we have a really virulent strain in our rainy & sandy environment, instead of medicated feed or Corid in the water all of the time, I do the strong treatment dose for 5 days when they are about 2 weeks old and again when they go out in the coop around 4-5 weeks. The rest of the time without.
I've had more success doing it this way, theoretically because it may offer a more aggressive knockdown. I've tried regular dosing in past years and still lost chicks.
(People don't always seem to believe me about this mean strain, thinking conditions must be dirty, but I'm a diagnosed germaphobe so keeping clean water is especially important to me). I'd love to be able to send a sample for testing somewhere because I honestly feel like it must be unusual. Sorry I digress...
Point being, I wonder if my Corid approach could have affected these birds, except that they had been finished with their second round for 6 weeks before the first showed symptoms... and the 8 other batches of chicks we've raised this year with the same method have grown up fine. Maybe it was just one factor??

 

[coach723]

Since you seem to have a more virulent strain, you might consider keeping toltrazuril on hand for treatment. Some feel that it's more effective than Corid. You can get the liquid here:
https://www.allthingsbunnies.com/Toltrazuril-5-Suspension-for-Coccidiosis-p/med132.htm
I haven't had an outbreak in many years, I start giving them (brooder raised chicks) dirt from my yard (not the chicken run) every day starting in their first few days, to scratch and dig and dust bathe in. I just use a large plastic plant saucer, it's easy to dump and clean which I do daily. I gradually start mixing in a tiny amount of soil from the chicken run. The intent is to gradually expose them while they are young and their immune systems are developing, to all the microbes in the soil. Give them a chance to develop some immunity without being overwhelmed. Same as if they were outside being raised by a broody hen. Before doing that I had outbreaks seemingly every time chicks went outside from the brooder, since starting, I have not had a single one. Doesn't mean I won't ever, I do keep the meds on hand. I've had batches of chicks that just seemed to have weaker immune systems, no obvious reason why. There are so many variables, parental stock (which is a mystery if you buy chicks), incubation or hatch variables, genetics, that we can't possibly know everything. The only way they can develop any resistance is by being exposed. The theory with medicated feed is to keep the coccidia numbers low enough to let that happen, but the medicated feed only works for that if they are exposed to coccidia while on it. If they are not exposed, then no resistance can develop. And it's not a guarantee, you can still have an outbreak. I don't use medicated feed for the very reason that I don't want to cause a deficiency, or make one worse, and I don't like treating unless I know it's necessary. Thus my system above, which has worked really well for me. It's always best to have meds on hand so you can treat when needed, the sooner the better. No matter how clean things are, you cannot eradicate the coccidia, it's just there, everywhere.

 

[PolloGal]

Yes, she's improving a lot. I hope your turkey gets better!
I'm still giving her a B vitamin mash (w/ regular feed) every day along with B vitamin water. It took longer than I expected to make a difference, but now she's getting around without a problem and is living with some younger juveniles. Her head went from bending around almost to her wing, to now tilting to the side only a very slight degree, kind of like she's asking a question.

As she was getting better, one of her hatch mates started showing signs. His is a leg problem. It is SO frustrating because I'd started adding B complex and E to their water too, as a precaution, but somehow it was still too late to avoid the issue. I've been giving him the same Vitamin mash every day for 10 days, but his leg problem still progressed until he was walking on his hocks and his toes curled up. I finally brought him up to the porch brooder yesterday so I can watch him eat & drink and try to get more B complex into him.

I don't know how this one pen came down with this issue when I have 6 other pens of chickens on the same feed that are fine. I can only assume there was some feed bullying involved.
Or maybe because it's the sunniest pen, the sun rays in this record setting hot summer are just burning the vitamins out of the food??
Not knowing why has been driving me to the crazy.

Thanks for your reply. So glad your little one is doing better. I have been doing the B (along with the E ad Poultry cell, sunflower seeds, Brazil nuts) for about 2 weeks now. Hoping I will see some improvement soon. It just seems only at night that his head and neck stretch all the way onto his back. He seems to have a little control, but it is so sad to see that it happens to him. I usually stay and hold him until he is ‘sleepy’ so I can leave the pen when he lays down to sleep. I have a camera where he sleeps and check it often during the night (i keep it by my bed) and never see where he is wakes up or is up at night at all with it happening. Just praying it goes away for him. I will continue his treatment and continue to look for ways to help him if this doesn’t have any effect in about the next 2 weeks or so. Thanks again.