Treatment that does not involve trip to the vet for pullet w/ marek's?

[Oceanseve]

Orp around 4 months old. Eating and drinking just fine. Not positive she has marek's, no leg sprawl but walking wobbly. I don't want to remove her because she has never been seperated from our other orp. She gets distressed when I even pick up the other orp. What can I feed her to help? I read gaterade type stuff? Someone else said selenium for sick bird in general, I have some of that but how much do you give? Advice?

 

[chickenzoo]

I would give some poly-vi-sol liquid childrens vitamins. She may have a Vit Def. Mareks normally starts with one leg being affected and limping. Yours may be just weak from illness, Vitamin def, heavy parasite load etc.
More info would be helpful,, like how long has it been going on, what do you feed her, is there anything unusual
she has gotten into etc...

 

[horsejody]

If it is Marek's, she will need to be put in a small cage so that she doesn't injure herself trying to get around. If you think she will be distressed, just leave the cage where she can see her friend. Put the food and water right in front of her so it can be easily reached. Time will tell if it is Marek's and if she will survive. When my Mildred came down with it, she was in a cat carrier for 3 weeks in intensive care. My neighbor had one with an even longer recovery time. Mildred did survive and now walks with a limp. Clean the cage every day and keep her comfortable. Vitamins might help too. I hope it's not Marek's and turns out to be something less traumatic. However, Marek's is one of the most common chicken diseases in the world. Once it hit our place, I vowed to never have another unvaccinated bird.
Good Luck,
Jody

 

[Oceanseve]

Day before yesterday so three days. We had a really strong rain and the run flooded. Thats when we first noticed it. Her rear was soaked, so we thought maybe it was cause her backend was heavy, but its dry now. I feed them game feed mixed with scratch + I give them a few slices of bread at night. The feed store guy said game feed/scratch was okay, I have wondered if that was true? You think it is a vit issue? Please say yes

 

[horsejody]

Quote:
It's possible. Only time will tell. I would still separate her. She will be able to rest and recover better if she doesn't have to work to get at the food, injure herself getting around or be picked on by others. Try the poly-visol and hope for the best.

 

[hinkjc]

Marek's would not produce wobbly walking...it produces paralysis (down on the legs). Sounds more like a toxin or poison. Could she have gotten into something?

Jody

 

[DawnSuiter]

Quote:
perhaps also something washed in with the flood water...?

 

[Oceanseve]

That is possible, we are at the end of the street and everyones yard flows to ours. We put them higher than the water usually goes, but it flooded the entire back yard this time. Well, I picked up some of that vit stuff, do I force it down her beak, put it in the water? How much do I give her? Couldn't hurt even if it is a poisin right? I have selenium, wouldn't that help if its a toxin? How much should I give her of that, if I should?

I held her on one hand last night and kinda moved her around, she kept her balance, but on the ground she is still wobbly

 

[kellim]

For the Poly-Vi-Sol put small drops on the side of her beak and see if she will take it in that way. If not, put one drop at a time on the tip of her tongue, DO NOT drop it directly down her throat as chickens can aspirate easily. As for the selenium I have no idea. I would try the vitamins for a few days. As for the dose of vitamins I would do two drops a day, one drop in the morning and one drop in the evening. For about a week.

 

[hinkjc]

If it's a toxin, you need a molasses flush and quick. 4 tbsp of molasses to a quart of water. Leave that as her only drinking water for a day, then change back to plain water and see if she shows improvement.

Jody