Tough decision time -wry neck silkie

[The Cave]

Hi everyone. Looking for some emotional support here.

we hatched out 26 silkies, they are 10 weeks old now and one developed wry neck.
I have done everything for a week now and little to no improvement
Tubing 2x a day
poly vi sol (no iron)
Vitamin b complex 1/4 tab crushed
Selenium 1/4 tab crushed
Vitamin e full 400Iu

we’ve also added mushed food
Water and scrambled egg

Im worried it’s not vitamin deficiency. Nobody else is showing any signs and I didn’t notice any head trauma to her head area

She’s still chirping away and moves around a bit but willl not uncurl her neck

at what point do you decide to end her suffering of not being able to live a normal life ?
My friend I got a 6 of the silkies from and now two older ones mentioned she’s had no success either with her silkies that have come down with wry neck. Is it possible it’s purely genetic and neurological? Something I cannot fix with vitamins?

 

[Folly's place]

It's definitely possible that nothing will make things better. Is she getting around with her hatchmates? Any slight changes for the better, or for the worse?
Any improvements, however slight, are a hopeful sign. Staying the same for over a week or two, or getting worse, not good at all.
She needs to be able to have a reasonable life in her flock, or it's time to say goodby.
My one wry necked chick, years ago, had a necropsy including a path report. She had a vitamin A deficiency leading to severe brain lesions, not recoverable. I'm glad we euthanized her, and glad to have the diagnosis.
Of dozens of chicks that summer, she was the only one affected, probably a genetic need for exceptional vitamin requirements.
That also ended my practice of dumping the feed into garbage cans, rather than checking every mill date, and storing it in the original bags from the store.
Mary

 

[Eggcessive]

If it were me, I would treat her with the vitamin regimen for at least 2 weeks. Some chickens do not get better. It is possible that the wry neck could be hereditary, but Mareks disease can be a cause of wry neck. Hopefully, she will start to get better, and can learn how to eat on her own.

 

[The Cave]

It's definitely possible that nothing will make things better. Is she getting around with her hatchmates? Any slight changes for the better, or for the worse?
Any improvements, however slight, are a hopeful sign. Staying the same for over a week or two, or getting worse, not good at all.
She needs to be able to have a reasonable life in her flock, or it's time to say goodby.
My one wry necked chick, years ago, had a necropsy including a path report. She had a vitamin A deficiency leading to severe brain lesions, not recoverable. I'm glad we euthanized her, and glad to have the diagnosis.
Of dozens of chicks that summer, she was the only one affected, probably a genetic need for exceptional vitamin requirements.
That also ended my practice of dumping the feed into garbage cans, rather than checking every mill date, and storing it in the original bags from the store.
Mary

We seperated her because she couldn’t get around well at all and didn’t want the stress of the other chicks pushing her around. I was really hoping for improvement by now we said we would give her two weeks but that day is coming and it’s not looking good we don’t want to put her through any suffering.

 

[Folly's place]

The reason that I had my chick necropsied at the university, was because I feared a Marek's diagnosis. Fortunately it was negative!
Mary

 

[The Cave]

Thanks for your replies. We decided to cull last night because she was declining. After over a week of treatment we decided it was not going to make a turn for the better. She became quite somber, breathing started to get laboured, temperature was dropping and we noticed her eyes starting to close slightly. We didn’t want her to suffer any longer, I was really hoping her head would start to come up but it didn’t.

 

[Eggcessive]

Very sorry for your loss. There is a lab for neceopsies and testing at Guelph if you want to look for Mareks. Here is a link:
https://www.uoguelph.ca/ahl/tests?title=&tid_1=9&page=5

 

[Folly's place]

It's hard to make this decision, but you did your best for her. I'm so sorry, and do consider that necropsy.
Mary

 

[The Cave]

It's hard to make this decision, but you did your best for her. I'm so sorry, and do consider that necropsy.
Mary

Is this something you'd do either way, even if none of the other chickens are showing any signs of illness? I just contacted them and I'd have to submit through my clinic and the cost is around $300.

 

[Trevorusn]

Granted, your birds are younger than mine was, but it took me a month to treat wry neck in one of my hatchery JG hens. So, don't get discouraged after a week in the future, keep at it, it may take longer than planned but keep at it. I lost a beautiful bird yesterday, so you're not alone in feeling a loss today.