diamondsilkies
Songster
In the past couple months I've had three of my seramas get sick or die, which is unusual for them. I had one (Lola) who had something really bad that temporarily made her loose her balance and paralyzed her legs for a couple weeks. She was the first one to get sick, but is now back with the flock. It took several weeks for her to get better, and some physical therapy to get her walking again. She is now completely fine except for the occasional stumble. She also can't fly very high anymore, and has taken a break from laying. Other than that, it's like nothing ever happened. It struck her very suddenly, the only warning being that she kept to herself starting about a week before, but I didn't think much of it since she has always been lower on the serama pecking order.
The second one to get sick was one of my roosters (Sammy). He has always been the least dominant rooster, and about three weeks ago I noticed he was keeping to himself. His tail drooped, and his face became pale. He still eats and drinks, and his feathers look healthy, as do his eyes. He keeps to himself during the day, or hangs around with Lola. They sleep together on a low perch that's easy to get to without much flying. He still has not recovered, which I found strange because chickens usually get better or die really quickly. But his symptoms have remained the same and have not worsened or gotten better.
Finally, I went out of town this past week, just for a few days. Before I left, my one hen, Athena, looked like the absolute picture of health. Her feathers were healthy, she was hanging out with her rooster and two friends, no sneezing or pale face, no droopy wings or tail, nothing. Actually, before I left I let them out to free range and was thinking how healthy she looked. My neighbors were taking care of my chickens while I was gone, and when I got back I went to check on them. I couldn't find her anywhere, and when I asked my neighbors, they said that she had died. They put her in a cage behind the coop since they knew I was coming back soon and might want to examine her. There was no sign of injury or anything. She was less than a year old, so it couldn't have been old age.
The common symptoms seem to be keeping to themselves, inability to fly very high, taking a long time to recover, and that the sickness strikes very quickly.
What could this be? Maybe Athena had something different, since what happened to her seems to vary a bit? I know seramas can die of stress, so maybe that's what happened to her? But what about the other two? My remaining seramas all seem very healthy and happy, but I'm worried they might get sick too. Is there anything I should do for Sammy, since he's still sick? I've been letting him stay because he doesn't really come in contact with the rest of the flock, and it stresses him out to leave. He's also eating and drinking fine. Has anyone had a similar experience? It's only happening to my seramas, even though they live with three silkies and a polish.
The second one to get sick was one of my roosters (Sammy). He has always been the least dominant rooster, and about three weeks ago I noticed he was keeping to himself. His tail drooped, and his face became pale. He still eats and drinks, and his feathers look healthy, as do his eyes. He keeps to himself during the day, or hangs around with Lola. They sleep together on a low perch that's easy to get to without much flying. He still has not recovered, which I found strange because chickens usually get better or die really quickly. But his symptoms have remained the same and have not worsened or gotten better.
Finally, I went out of town this past week, just for a few days. Before I left, my one hen, Athena, looked like the absolute picture of health. Her feathers were healthy, she was hanging out with her rooster and two friends, no sneezing or pale face, no droopy wings or tail, nothing. Actually, before I left I let them out to free range and was thinking how healthy she looked. My neighbors were taking care of my chickens while I was gone, and when I got back I went to check on them. I couldn't find her anywhere, and when I asked my neighbors, they said that she had died. They put her in a cage behind the coop since they knew I was coming back soon and might want to examine her. There was no sign of injury or anything. She was less than a year old, so it couldn't have been old age.
The common symptoms seem to be keeping to themselves, inability to fly very high, taking a long time to recover, and that the sickness strikes very quickly.
What could this be? Maybe Athena had something different, since what happened to her seems to vary a bit? I know seramas can die of stress, so maybe that's what happened to her? But what about the other two? My remaining seramas all seem very healthy and happy, but I'm worried they might get sick too. Is there anything I should do for Sammy, since he's still sick? I've been letting him stay because he doesn't really come in contact with the rest of the flock, and it stresses him out to leave. He's also eating and drinking fine. Has anyone had a similar experience? It's only happening to my seramas, even though they live with three silkies and a polish.
