Unsteady Silkie....

[rbc-bow-chicka]

About 1.5 weeks ago, I discovered my roughly 5 yo silkie/frazzle propped up against the wire in her run. Moved her so I could see the movements that resulted in her winding up there. She was unable to get her legs up underneath her. So I brought her into the hospital cage. Next day, observed a lot of head shaking and this noise which wasn't quite a "sneeze"... more like she was trying to shake something loose or dislodge. This contributed to her tipping over. Gave vites, electrolytes, treated for mites/lice and worms. She has improved....but still not 100%. She can get her legs up underneath her, but still topples forward in order to ambulate. She is alert and talkative. She is no longer shaking her head and making the odd noise. She is not acting "sick." Of note though, her poops are few and far between and very dry. She is drinking and eating. Her nails are very overgrown, so I will be trying to trim those back a little. Does anyone have any idea of what I can try next? Does this sound respiratory in any fashion?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Nothing inside her beak like canker or lesions?
No infection in the ears?
Can she see well? (Facial feathers need trimming?)

You gave electrolytes and vits, but what Vits did you give and how much?

For neurological symptoms I would give 400IU Vitamin E and 1/4 tablet B-Complex daily along with some egg to help with the uptake of E.
See that her crop is emptying overnight too.

Did she have lice/mites or you just treated as a precaution?

If you have photos you wish to share, that would be good.

 

[rbc-bow-chicka]

Nothing inside her beak like canker or lesions?
No infection in the ears?
Can she see well? (Facial feathers need trimming?)

You gave electrolytes and vits, but what Vits did you give and how much?

For neurological symptoms I would give 400IU Vitamin E and 1/4 tablet B-Complex daily along with some egg to help with the uptake of E.
See that her crop is emptying overnight too.

Did she have lice/mites or you just treated as a precaution?

If you have photos you wish to share, that would be good.

Thank you so much for your thorough follow up questions. Exactly what I was hoping for!

I have not be able to look in her beak as she fights and flails... and I am honestly scared of giving her a heart attack.

Also... I realized I forgot to mention... that when I pick her up, she "sounds" congested... like raspy... and when I put her down, it stops. I do not know if I am just pressing on her in an uncomfortable spot, but she fights hard if I hold her for too long. There are no bubbles in her eyes or nare drainage...she is eating and drinking and engaging...and other than the weird sneeze/cough noise in the very beginning... nothing that would have made me suspect respiratory. ???

Because of the head shaking, I had treated dabbed some ivermectin in and around her ears. I saw no infection...but that means nothing as I'm not exactly sure what that would like like. Outside of that, I saw nothing obviously amiss. See below for mites/lice answer.

She sees fine.... because of her odd feathering, she is currently half naked. Eyes are clear.

In terms of vites, I have given the following, Vit E 450 mg Selenium 200 mcg and liquid B-12 (that from rooster booster). These were dissolved and mixed into her waterer base, so she was getting those pretty much full strength as the water was going down in her jar. In the water I have been adding rooster booster vitamins and electrolytes w lacto bacillus and nutridrench. No specific measurement with those, but the RB is 1/3 tsp per gallon and Ive been mixing into a pint jar, so 'a heavy sprinkle' is the amount I've added. I also gave her a molasses flush to maybe help her poop loosen up a bit. Didn't work.

I have not given her eggs since I brought her up. I will restart those.

I treated for lice/mites as I saw a couple of red creepies running around. Like, there was no infestation by any stretch, but I figured I had a great opportunity to preventatively treat.

I will see if I can get some pics or video today.

Thank you so much for your reply.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Vit E 450 mg Selenium 200 mcg and liquid B-12 (that from rooster booster). These were dissolved and mixed into her waterer base, so she was getting those pretty much full strength as the water was going down in her jar.

I would give the Vitamin E gel cap orally, just pop it in her beak and let her swallow.

200mcg of Selenium is too much, 25mcg is the normal "daily allowance" so I'd omit that. Egg and tuna are good sources of selenium.

B-12 only contains B-12 (Cobalamin), so she's not getting any other extra B Vitamins with that. For neurological symptoms, B1 (Thiamine) is usually added, so if you give B-Complex, this contains 8 B Vitamins including B1 and B12.

It's good she's drinking.
I see if her crop is emptying overnight. The wheezing/congestion sound when being picked up could be from the crop, but I've also ran into this when a hen had fluid in the abdomen due to a reproductive problem. Organ failure is another cause of fluid in the abdomen.
If her crop is not emptying overnight, then let us know, but I'd start treating the crop as well. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

How did you treat the mites? When a hen is not well, they often can get mites or lice since they aren't active, preening, dust bathing...just overall not well, parasites can just take hold quickly. I'd re-check her for those again. Mites can weaken a bird, so you want those gone.

Do what you can to keep her hydrated and eating. Struggling with constipation, try giving her 1tsp of coconut oil 1-2 times a day. Coconut oil is good for slow crops too. I put it in the fridge to harden it up and offer little bite size pieces. Once one of my ladies gets a taste of it, she will gobble it up.

 

[rbc-bow-chicka]

I would give the Vitamin E gel cap orally, just pop it in her beak and let her swallow.

200mcg of Selenium is too much, 25mcg is the normal "daily allowance" so I'd omit that. Egg and tuna are good sources of selenium.

B-12 only contains B-12 (Cobalamin), so she's not getting any other extra B Vitamins with that. For neurological symptoms, B1 (Thiamine) is usually added, so if you give B-Complex, this contains 8 B Vitamins including B1 and B12.

It's good she's drinking.
I see if her crop is emptying overnight. The wheezing/congestion sound when being picked up could be from the crop, but I've also ran into this when a hen had fluid in the abdomen due to a reproductive problem. Organ failure is another cause of fluid in the abdomen.
If her crop is not emptying overnight, then let us know, but I'd start treating the crop as well. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/

How did you treat the mites? When a hen is not well, they often can get mites or lice since they aren't active, preening, dust bathing...just overall not well, parasites can just take hold quickly. I'd re-check her for those again. Mites can weaken a bird, so you want those gone.

Do what you can to keep her hydrated and eating. Struggling with constipation, try giving her 1tsp of coconut oil 1-2 times a day. Coconut oil is good for slow crops too. I put it in the fridge to harden it up and offer little bite size pieces. Once one of my ladies gets a taste of it, she will gobble it up.

Excellent. Thank you so much.

I actually just put her outside in her hospital cage where she spends the day on the back porch.

I scrambled her an egg and crumbled a B complex and squeezed the E over the top.... I laughed... because these are HUGE pills... like bigger than her head. So I went with squeezing. She dove into them ...so when those are gone, I may be cooking up another.

The mites I treated with a few drops of ivermectin under wings, top of head, near vent. I will check her over again today. Luckily her lack of feathers helps me see things pretty clearly.

I will take a look at the article on crops when I come in from garden... I actually was just looking at that for another chicken about a month ago. Go figure.

Speaking of wheezing... I had a hen with canker that wheezed... and a roo with what I believe was heart failure that also wheezed. So I'm sensitive to wheezing when it is not something obviously respiratory.

Also.... apparently the molasses finally worked its way out... as that greeted me this morning from the cat kennel inside. Yikes.

So THANK YOU for following up with me. I really appreciate it.