Very lethargic 2.5 week Barred Rock chick

[PhilipNat4]

We received 16 chicks from a hatchery and all was well until a few days ago. One of our barred rocks began to show signs of sickness a few days ago. Basically, I noticed that she was lying down a lot and had little energy compared to the other chicks. After 2 days it was obvious that she had some disease or illness. We removed her from the rest of the chicks and brought her inside. She's been eating and drinking but can't walk well at all and seems to have no balance. Poop appears normal with no blood. She has no other obvious signs nor symptoms of illness or disease. She's been inside for a few days now and appears to be deteriorating. She can barely walk and her balance is nonexistent. She was given vitamins and electrolytes daily once I noticed the change in her health. Nothing seems to be helping. Anyone experience anything like this? The other chicks seem to be fine. She was vaccinated for Marek's disease at the hatchery. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Eggcessive]

So sorry to hear about your chick. Is she having diarrhea or any blood in her droppings that might be a sign of coccidiosis? Cocci or dehydration can cause some neurological problems with ability to stand, etc. I would be tempted to treat her for ccocciosis with Corid (amprollium) since you don't have much to lose. Mareks usually doesn't strike until later, usually between 3-25 weeks old. The other possible problem could be avian encephalomyelitis, a virus that affects very young chicks under a month old, and causes lameness. I'm not aware if that is very common in a hatchery-raised chick or not. Here is some reading about it:
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/9/avian-encephalomyelitis-epidemic-tremors/
http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/p...itis/overview_of_avian_encephalomyelitis.html