Taking Care of Swirls, the Wry Neck Silkie

[NubbyRyuu]

What are you giving her now? Any vitamins?

(Copy/Paste from previous reply)
•1 Vitamin E softgel (1×/morning only)
•Vitamin B Complex (4 drops 2x/day)
•Poly-Vi-Sol (4 drops 1x/night)
•maybe half a pinch of Turmeric (all feedings)
•Shaved Brazil Nut (small amounts)
•crushed Roasted Shelled Sunflower Seeds (maybe twice-three times a day, sometimes once a day)
•broken up pieces of Coconut Flakes
•very small amount of Chick Grit (1x/day, usually lunch, sometimes every 2 days to be safe)
•maybe once a day a drop of honey
•only on occasion a small bit of molasses, just to keep things moving

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I would give the Vitamin E (400 IU Daily) and the B Complex.

Give her chick starter and egg - eliminate all those other extras.

As mentioned previously - chick grit can be given free choice - don't mix it in the feed, they will take what they need. They do not eat grit everyday - a few pieces are stored in the gizzard, once those are gone, then they will take some more.

She should really not even need molasses to keep things moving if she is eating regular chick starter and staying hydrated.

 

[NubbyRyuu]

I would give the Vitamin E (400 IU Daily) and the B Complex.

Give her chick starter and egg - eliminate all those other extras.

As mentioned previously - chick grit can be given free choice - don't mix it in the feed, they will take what they need. They do not eat grit everyday - a few pieces are stored in the gizzard, once those are gone, then they will take some more.

She should really not even need molasses to keep things moving if she is eating regular chick starter and staying hydrated.

She is on the chick starter still (I learned from looking at the back of the bag at the store she'll have to go on the next step stuff soon). Should I give more of the two vitamins to help keep future spasms at bay? Or is that a normal thing with wry neck? I'd hate to see it become something worse.

She is nice and hydrated (been offering free choice water and every now and then I see little crumbs at the bottom), and ears very well. I haven't offered much molasses/honey the last while. And now that she's on an antibiotic for about a week, that's the last thing I wanna add. I know there's good stuff in the extras I put in so she gets any missing nutrients that she'd otherwise get from outside. The grass is slow growing, so even my horse and goat still have to wait, haha!

Her food is, I think, at least 90% feed in all feedings. Everything else is a small amount. I need to start giving her eggs again. I'd like to try hardboiled (including the shell). I heard that's really good for them.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

She is on the chick starter still (I learned from looking at the back of the bag at the store she'll have to go on the next step stuff soon). Should I give more of the two vitamins to help keep future spasms at bay? Or is that a normal thing with wry neck? I'd hate to see it become something worse.

I would keep her on chick starter until she actually lays an egg. That's just me, I do not go by what's on those bags. She is sick and needs the protein.
I would give her the Vitamin E and B Complex.

The future spasms may continue no matter what you do. You've been giving vitamin therapy for a good while now and those should not be used indefinitely, it would be a good idea to start tapering her off and see how she does. Her balanced poultry feed should contain all the nutrients she needs.
If the cause was from vitamin deficiency, imho, she would have recovered completely by now. There are many causes of Wry Neck - Silkies seem to be a bit more prone as was discussed previously - it could be Marek's or even some type of genetic/developmental disorder that can not be corrected.

 

[NubbyRyuu]

Hey everyone! Sorry it's been so long since the last update; I've had a lot of crap going on (went to the ER 3 times to find it was a bad muscle strain/spasm).

I don't recall, but I think last we left off was Swirly's bad spasm attack. I took her to the vet who prescribed an antibiotic and a pain killer (only to be used as needed). After a week, Swirly cleared up and hasn't had an attack. Now she just twitches from time to time, but at least it only lasts a couple seconds and she snaps out of it fine.

With the weather improving (and when I have the free time), I've been taking Swirly down to see her siblings. Last two trips instead of using McLovin the Ayam Cemani chick, I've had to use Penelope the Polish Chick alongside the Silkies. While the Silkies seem to just kind of brush her off (save for two, maybe), Penelope showed curiosity and even groomed her a bit! That chick also seems to show some dominant behaviors, keeping an eye out for things and listening for Slim the Rooster.

I also had her free roaming (me staying with her), and a couple adults came by. Boomer, the Red Sex Link, does not like her. She puffed up and harshly pecked at Swirly, so I know I'd need to keep them separate. Another adult, I think a Wyandotte mix, also wasn't thrilled, but didn't go on the offensive (probably because I stopped her). However, the Orpington therapy chicken is quite curious. She didn't puff up or anything, just observed her. So her I know I can trust, but I don't know about the rest of the flock. I know the babies are on the bottom of the pecking order, though Silkies I've read are the lowest in the chain. And with her issue, that makes her lower than her siblings, which is concerning.

There are some pluses I can add, though. It turns out my folks never got rid of the dog and puppy kennels, so I'm starting to use those. Well, I'm using the puppy kennel outside for now, so I can take her with me in the barn on more favorable days. The dog kennel will most likely become her new "home" in my room, though I'd like to modify it so I can open the door on the lengthier side, and have a bottom like a bird cage so she isn't stepping in her own messes. We also plan on building Swirly a pen on the side of the barn (thinking 6x4), so she'll have a protected space to roam. She can't fully free roam as she spins in circles when she starts getting anxious, and her panicked state leads her to confusion, not knowing where to go or what to do.

I know what you're thinking. "Are you keeping her?" I need to talk about that with Cin. While her husband is happy to see Swirly is doing well, he doesn't me keeping her. But I would need Cin's approval before I can fully move forward.

So that's the mondo update, haha! Oh, and I found Swirly has uneven toes! One of the extra ones is longer than the other!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Glad to hear she is making progress! Thank you for the update

 

[NubbyRyuu]

Swirly befriended Turkey!
Yes, that's a turkey chick. Somehow a turkey egg got mixed in with the chickens eggs Cin ordered. It tried to make itself look bigger, but Swirly didn't even notice, haha!

 

[Birds of a Feather]

That’s not a turkey. It looks like a Cornish Cross chicken.

 

[NubbyRyuu]

That’s not a turkey. It looks like a Cornish Cross chicken.

Wait, that's really a chicken? I knew it! It's so big though! I mean, these guys are 2 months, and it's already as big as the Orpington!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Swirly befriended Turkey!
Yes, that's a turkey chick. Somehow a turkey egg got mixed in with the chickens eggs Cin ordered. It tried to make itself look bigger, but Swirly didn't even notice, haha!

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Yes, I agree with @Birds of a Feather that is a chicken and it's a Cornish Cross.
They are meat birds, so...really they are meant to be processed at somewhere around 8-10 weeks.

Some people do keep Cornish Cross as pets and IF the feed is limited and IF they do get exercise they can live for a while. Can't say how long, there's too many variables, some have had a few live 2-3 yrs....BUT Cornish Cross are prone to have heart issues (failure) and leg problems since they gain weight so quickly (this is what they are bred for).

From what I understand they are fairly sweet birds so Swirly may have found herself a friend! Not sure how long it will last, but she seems to be doing o.k. for now