Stumbling Cockerel--What could be wrong besides Marek's?

[chickengeorgeto]

One living virus or even a hand full may or may not spread Mareks. The dandruff produced from new feather growth definitely will because it is associated with pinfeathers and contains a lot of dried chicken blood and this dandruff is loaded with Mareks viruses and will pass Mareks to nearby chickens as a dust. Mere exposure is not the problem however the way that exposure occurs can be devastating. Close range isolation is ineffective at stopping Mareks because it is spread on the breezes or zephyrs. That is why I would never bring a Mareks carrier or "gander eyed" bird onto my property, it is just inviting future problems that I don't need. So is treating or keeping and treating a Mareks infected bird because you are only setting up a Mareks nursery with each and every bird whose symptoms you LOL succeed(?) in curing.

 

[casportpony]

Mareks as Kassandra discovered is basically cancer. It is caused by a herpes virus so antibiotics are worthless except for preventing secondary or opportunistic infections in birds already infected with Mareks. Any chicken infected with Mareks that survives, remains a Mareks carrier for life. So you are dooming future chicks to a horrible death by treating birds sick with Mareks so who in their right mind would treat for Mareks? Mareks vaccinations may or may not protect your birds because the Mareks vaccine is so fragile that any improper handling of the vaccine can ruin its effectiveness.

Since the tumors caused by Mareks grow on nerve tissue as well as on every organ in a chickens body there can be all kinds of different symptoms caused by Mareks (a.k.a. range paralysis) depending on which nerves, organs, or combination of nerves and organs are affected by the tumors. This causes all kinds of symptoms confusing most people about what is really wrong with their birds. In fact Mareks is so confusing that it is the most often diagnosed disease (by university poultry labs) of back yard poultry. This shows that most backyarders don't recognize Mareks in its many forms.

Mareks is also called "range paralysis" or sometimes "Gray Eye" or "Gander Eye" because a chicken's iris should be red or orange and chickens living with Mareks have a gray iris often with a misshapen pupil. If you "rescue" buy, or are given any chickens with a gray iris, RUN don't just walk away from the deal. You and your chickens have everything to loose and absolutely nothing to gain.

Run if their eye looks strange in *any* way, lol.




Normal eye in center

 

[LavendarFeather]

One living virus or even a hand full may or may not spread Mareks. The dandruff produced from new feather growth definitely will because it is associated with pinfeathers and contains a lot of dried chicken blood and this dandruff is loaded with Mareks viruses and will pass Mareks to nearby chickens as a dust. Mere exposure is not the problem however the way that exposure occurs can be devastating. Close range isolation is ineffective at stopping Mareks because it is spread on the breezes or zephyrs. That is why I would never bring a Mareks carrier or "gander eyed" bird onto my property, it is just inviting future problems that I don't need. So is treating or keeping and treating a Mareks infected bird because you are only setting up a Mareks nursery with each and every bird whose symptoms you LOL succeed(?) in curing.

Thank you so much for this thorough explanation. I have always wondered about that.

 

[PoultryPedia]

Have you had a chance to look tonight & see if his tendons seem they're in the correct places? If they've slipped, you'll want to treat ASAP for easiest treatment & to maximize chances of correction.

 

[LavendarFeather]

Have you had a chance to look tonight & see if his tendons seem they're in the correct places? If they've slipped, you'll want to treat ASAP for easiest treatment & to maximize chances of correction.

Yes, thank you, they seem to be okay. And his legs bend easily and do not appear to cause him pain when I manipulate them. BUT, I discovered some feather lice on him--YUCK. So treated for that yesterday, and checked all the birds he lives with--one had the same problem, but she is still feisty and active, and lays huge eggs (she's a Delaware, about 1.5 years old). His other eight flock mates were completely clean--no bugs or nits anywhere. The cockerel seemed to be feeling better yesterday morning, though definitely not back to normal. He's not really stumbling now, unless he has to change direction quickly for some imaginary chicken reason. But he still walks awkwardly, and prefers not to roost. Seems perkier though. I've never dealt with bugs on chickens before, so not sure what effects they have. Maybe they weakened him, and he then injured himself getting down from his perch? That's what I'm hoping, because that I can help with. Thanks again for your input, I really appreciate it.

 

[casportpony]

I have found that birds that aren't feeling well don't dust bathe and tend to have more lice and mites. Of course blood sucking bugs can cause them to get sick, so it's hard to say which came first.

-Kathy

 

[LavendarFeather]

I have found that birds that aren't feeling well don't dust bathe and tend to have more lice and mites. Of course blood sucking bugs can cause them to get sick, so it's hard to say which came first.

-Kathy

That makes sense, thank you. I will add some fresh DE to their pen. He's always been a very gentle, odd cockerel. Definitely not dominant. But the affected hens the exact opposite. Bossy, noisy, pushy. If I throw treats to 20 hens, she'll grab 19 of them. In fact she is so much like a little (and dearly loved/missed) Rat Terrier I used to have that I now call her "Cricket," after that dog.

I treated those two with Frontline last night. Should I go ahead and treat them all? I'm most concerned about the lice. My coops are converted dog runs, with none of the hiding places mites like to live in. And should I deworm them all just in case? I can run a fecal down to my vet, but do I need a special vet or can a regular small animal vet find chicken worms? Ugh, I am itchy just talking about this stuff!

 

[loveourbirds]

Quote: DE wont do much for you. it has been highly over-rated as far as its use with chickens.

if your organic and just doing this for prevention, wood ash will probably work better for you. if you find bugs and are treating a problem go with a pyretherin spray. remember to treat again in 10 days.

if your not organic, put some seven (5%) dust in a trash bag. put the chicken in the bag, closing the bag around its neck (head out). shake the bag around the chicken's body to saturate it with dust. - treat again in 10 days.

 

[Kassaundra]

That makes sense, thank you. I will add some fresh DE to their pen. He's always been a very gentle, odd cockerel. Definitely not dominant. But the affected hens the exact opposite. Bossy, noisy, pushy. If I throw treats to 20 hens, she'll grab 19 of them. In fact she is so much like a little (and dearly loved/missed) Rat Terrier I used to have that I now call her "Cricket," after that dog.

I treated those two with Frontline last night. Should I go ahead and treat them all? I'm most concerned about the lice. My coops are converted dog runs, with none of the hiding places mites like to live in. And should I deworm them all just in case? I can run a fecal down to my vet, but do I need a special vet or can a regular small animal vet find chicken worms? Ugh, I am itchy just talking about this stuff!

A regular small vet can find "chicken worms" they are the same worms in almost any animal. I would definitely have a fecal test done before worming any animal, especially a sick or injured one.

 

[PoultryPedia]

Very glad to hear his tendons look okay & he seems to be improving. And I'm glad you were able to spot the lice!

I think it's generally a good idea to deworm chickens periodically if they have access to the out-of-doors. Safeguard goat dewormer (fenbendazole) is a very broad-spectrum, effective & inexpensive dewormer I like to use for cats & chickens.

I don't know if there are any contraindications for combining certain dewormers with Frontline treatment. I would hope not since Frontline is distributed via the oil gland system while dewormers go through the digestive system & possibly the bloodstream.