Tumor or abscess? I think tumor ...

[Firefoot]

I'm pleased you found someone to end it quickly for her. I know too well how hard it is to make that decision to end the life of a young bird that you have cared for so closely.
I only cull Marek's sick birds when they lose interest in food, although in your pullet's case where there were open weeping tumours, I imagine that would have been an exception to my rule of thumb. I have had some make pretty miraculous recoveries from lameness. The best recoveries seem to occur within a few days when you cannot tell they had ever been incapacitated but I have had some that made remarkable improvement after months of supportive care and went back to free ranging with the flock after being nest bound unable to walk for 6 weeks in one case. The best you can do is a good quality poultry vitamin supplement to support their immune system and probiotics/fermented feed/live yoghurt to support the gut and keep them as happy and stress free as possible. They are actively shedding the disease whilst they are symptomatic and a reservoir of infected material building up in the coop particularly will make it more likely that others will contract it, so it may be beneficial to remove them from the flock whilst symptomatic or some people cull at the first appearance of symptoms once they know they have the disease. A periodic deep clean of the coop with Virkon S which is the only disinfectant I know that is active against Marek's may help to keep the risk of future outbreaks low. All that dust that builds up in the coop is how the virus spreads and birds flapping wings to get up onto roosts etc means the virus infected dander dust becomes airborne and is then inhaled to infect new hosts. Keeping dust levels low and disinfecting routinely or at least after a bird has become symptomatic should help. I find allowing Marek's sick birds out onto grass in gentle sunshine has been one of the most beneficial things but not always possible in many climates and seasons.

Thank you for this. Yes, I am pretty heartbroken about Sylvie. A friend was implying that I should've done the surgery but today, with the second mass, I feel confident that it wouldn't have helped. So my guilt from not being able to heal her has turned into guilt about keeping her alive and suffering too long. :'( Didn't know I could be this devastated from a chicken.

I'll separate the lame hen tonight. She is no where near as tame as Sylvie was but hopefully a little rest will help her. Is Nutri-Drench an appropriate vitamin supp for her or should I look into something else? I also have the Durvet vitamin/electrolyte combo. She is definitely eating and drinking well, just pretty lame. And I don't have yogurt but I do have Probios for horses, can she eat a little bit of that? It'll be a couple days til I can get to the store. And it feels like it's been raining since March but we've had good weather since Friday and looks like another week of sunshine, thank goodness, so hopefully that'll help.

Thank you, everyone, for your help!

 

[Eggcessive]

So sorry that Sylvie’s lesion has turned out to be a tumor, which always seemed ro be a possibility. I am glad that you put her out down to end any suffering, but sorry that it may be Mareks, and now you have another sick. I would try to arrange to get a necropsy in the future to get s diagnosis if posible. Hopefully this hen will get better.

 

[Firefoot]

So I wanted to post a follow-up to this and also ask a question.

Sylvie was put down and I was not able to do a necropsy on her. My Marans pullet, Edie, who became lame, was also put down a week later, after 10-11 days of being lame. She was not recovering well and in her final days seem peppy enough but wouldn't get up to water or feed herself. She could hop pretty well on one leg but spent most of her time sitting. It also seemed like she had nerve damage that was affecting defecation, making her not realize when she was pooping and also not having efficient, healthy passage through the system. It seemed like lots of fecal matter was building up and then just passing with no regularity. She would take one huge shit, then another about 2 minutes later, then nothing for an hour or two. Each time she seemed to be straining a lot.

I did send Edie to the lab and the pathologist has declared her cause of death as Marek's (though presumptive as the actual Marek's test is $100 and has to be done in a different lab). She found neoplasia (tumors/growths?) on her kidneys, oviduct, and ovary, as well as an enlarged spleen and lesions on the left kidney. She suspected nerve damage due to growths caused the irregular defecation. She agreed that especially considering Sylvie's issues, Marek's was the main problem for both birds.

She also found a worm load. It has basically been raining here since March so I guess I'm not surprised but everyone looks good and has good poops so I wasn't really expecting it. I saw a wormy looking poop from my baby rooster in mid-August so I did a round of ivermectin pour-on and also sprayed the area and dusted the birds with permethrin as I saw a mite on one bird (not on any others though). The pathologist found roundworms and eimeria (coccidia). What would be the most effective treatment using this bird as a representative fecal for the flock?

She also reported that the bird tested positive for Mycoplasma synoviae, but did not report any swelling or other disease in the legs, joints, etc. (which I think are usually present with this?). Are there concerns about this diagnosis for the rest of the flock? I am very unfamiliar with this disease (though reading up on it).

I appreciate your continued help.

 

[Kiki]

I am so sorry.
Worms can be fixed with Safe-Guard. (Goat liquid or horse paste)
I do not believe Ivermectin works for internal worms anymore.
Coccidia with Corid.
MS and Marek's are both lifetimers.

How many birds do you have?

 

[Firefoot]

Perfect, I have fenbendazole paste. What do you recommend for dosage? I tried to put it in their water once but it didn't dissolve and instead just settled on the bottom. It was then that I resorted to ivermec. Very interesting to hear it's not working anymore. Is that a personal finding or is there a consensus on that? I wouldn't be surprised (though disappointed). It's been a go-to in so many animals for so long. Can I treat them with the fenbendazole and Corid at the same time? I have eight birds now; three are about 18 months and having their first molt, and the other five are 20-30 weeks.

I am so sorry.
Worms can be fixed with Safe-Guard. (Goat liquid or horse paste)
I do not believe Ivermectin works for internal worms anymore.
Coccidia with Corid.
MS and Marek's are both lifetimers.

How many birds do you have?

 

[Kiki]

For the worming...you must dose each bird straight to the beak.
Can you get a good weight on them? If not guesstimate their weight.
Febendazole dose is .23ml per each pound of bird.
Worming Chickens—Medicines and Dosing Information

Corid can be mixed in the water...wormers can not.
Do you have the liquid or powder Corid?
Dosing for each is here:
Treating Coccidiosis with Corid, Amprol, AmproMed - The Correct Amprolium Dose


Just a reminder...
You should keep a closed flock, do not sell or rehome any birds.

 

[Firefoot]

I can guesstimate their weight. I think fenbendazole is pretty safe, right? And thanks for the dosage. I'd rather dose it directly but read an old post on here about putting it in their water.

I don't have Corid but I'll get it tomorrow.

I definitely don't plan to sell or rehome anyone, but does a closed flock prohibit me from getting new birds in the spring (POL pullets vaccinated against Marek's)?

 

[Kiki]

I can guesstimate their weight. I think fenbendazole is pretty safe, right? And thanks for the dosage. I'd rather dose it directly but read an old post on here about putting it in their water.

I don't have Corid but I'll get it tomorrow.

I definitely don't plan to sell or rehome anyone, but does a closed flock prohibit me from getting new birds in the spring (POL pullets vaccinated against Marek's)?

Well...with the MS I am not sure if that is a good idea.
You might want to wait until all of your current birds pass.

 

[Kiki]

Puttiing worm medicine in water is never a good idea, unless it is made for putting in water which Safe-guard is not.
You will never know who drank enough water to get the correct dose.
There is a new water soluble wormer out but it is very very expensive if you want to try that one.
I would think it would be worth the savings to just dose each one straight tot he beak.
It is also better to give them slightly more then it would be to under dose them.
Under dosing is almost just the same as not even dosing them at all.

 

[Firefoot]

Puttiing worm medicine in water is never a good idea, unless it is made for putting in water which Safe-guard is not.
You will never know who drank enough water to get the correct dose.
There is a new water soluble wormer out but it is very very expensive if you want to try that one.
I would think it would be worth the savings to just dose each one straight tot he beak.
It is also better to give them slightly more then it would be to under dose them.
Under dosing is almost just the same as not even dosing them at all.

Thanks for this, my thoughts exactly! No I will dose them directly, much prefer to know they got what they needed.