- Thread starter
- #61
Mason Farm and Ranch
Songster
Well, it's been six weeks since I started this journey. To date, I've lost one hen who was already seriously ill when I started. All chickens who were exhibiting symptoms are still alive and kicking.
Bea, the now completely blind Red Sexlink is a bit worse for wear, but thriving in her private apartment set up with food and water. She has never stopped laying this entire time. She shares her apartment in the evenings with Sam, my lonely black Silkie rooster. During the day we put her out in different places to explore, but she can never be left unsupervised or unsecured. She is at an appropriate weight and has no signs of the Marek's other that her scarred eye. She is now on the maintenance dosage in the feed.
Maureen, the True Blue Whiting is at weight and looks great. She has not returned to laying. With the heat (100+) and the fact I have zero idea her age or vaccination status, that's really all I have to report on her.
Lucy, the three year old Cinnamon Queen had been laying, but the shells were very weak. She stopped laying around the time I discovered that she had a very hard liver. She is on the maintenance dose of Chinese Skullcap in the feed and 1000mg of Milk Thistle daily. In all honesty, she's had a number of issues in the past, some irreparable. She no longer shows signs of Marek's Disease, and her current status as a live chicken denotes that she is indeed a hearty chicken. Her limp is gone. However, when I discontinue the Milk Thistle, she becomes lethargic and inactive in about 48 hours. I examine her daily. Her liver is no longer inflamed, has softened and reduced size. But I can feel individual round lumps. It is my belief that it may be riddled with tumors. They seem to be reducing, but that could be my optimism messing with me. I will continue to monitor.
Nessa, the 3 year old red hen with the white earlobes whose breed I am ignorant of, still limps but it is decreasing in severity. Her feathers continue to fill in with beautiful new ones and she is slowly putting on weight.
Nessa only received 3 days of intense treatment ( 425 mg 3X daily) followed by a week of bolus treatment (425 mg 1X daily) and has been on the daily maintenance dose in the feed only since. Nessa is not a fan of treatment or supervision. She has been a great candidate for the step down protocal and while recovering slowly, she is indeed, alive and kicking randy rooster booty. At this time, I don't believe Nessa is laying at all.
Henry, the Americauna EE rooster of indeterminate age (he is a Senior) started out with clear neurological issues. He had vertigo to the point we created a ground level apartment for him to stop the incidents of him falling off. He later began presenting with wing paralysis and leg paralysis was setting at the time treatment began. Henry's protocol was 7 days of 425 mg 2X daily in addition to the maintenance dose in his daily feed. He continues on the daily maintenance dose. Currently he has regained his equilibrium, his legs are no longer stiff and about 40% of his wing mobility has returned. Henry has begun jumping from small heights of about 2 feet. We stopped putting him higher, he jumped from 4 feet and landed loudly, I almost had a stroke he scared me so bad. Seriously...I thought he fell until he he did it the second time and I observed him do it. He still has issues with jumping up and/or climbing, which hampers his recent return to attempting to mount hens. (The ultimate sign of improvement.) He has started asserting dominance towards the smaller roosters raised around him and has even gone so far as to puff up his mantle and stomp at his mini-me, an 8 month old Millie Fleur roo.
I'm going to call Henry a success.
Napoleon, a red Silkie roo recently started limping. After a few days it was observed that the limp was getting worse. He does not care to be sequestered, so he was given 3 days of 425 mg. It was then I realized that he only forages and eats scratch grains at which time I realized he wasn't getting the daily maintenance because it is in the feed. I began treating the scratch grain with the Chinese Skullcap as well since the dosage is calculated by the weight of feed. Leo's limp has subsided. While it is still noticeable, it is far less noticeable. More of a hitch in his giddy-up than the heart stopping wobble it was. He had lost weight, but is quickly regaining. I will continue to observe.
And now Shelly. Shelly is one of my originals. A 3 year old Saphire Gem. She was the first chicken to cuddle and request butt rubs. Shelly has shown no indication Marek's Disease. Several days ago she presented with waterbelly. I tried Milk Thistle and had no improvement. It actually got worse. Her poops were normal, no visible injuries, no gleet, no visible parasites and they were recently wormed. I had been closely monitoring the flock due to the 100°+ Temps. I noticed she was panting heavily compared to the rest. She presented with waterbelly the following day. I assumed it was heat stress. But she has continued to balloon. Yesterday I gave her Furosemide (Lasix). This morning, significant reduction in the fluid in her abdomen was noted.
As waterbelly is a symptom of organ failure, I am postulateing that heat stress may have triggered Marek's Disease to develop.
She had only been receiving the daily dose of Chinese Skullcap in the feed. I have begun her on Chinese Skullcap, 425mg 3X daily until I see improvement. I will post the results when appropriate.
Bea, the now completely blind Red Sexlink is a bit worse for wear, but thriving in her private apartment set up with food and water. She has never stopped laying this entire time. She shares her apartment in the evenings with Sam, my lonely black Silkie rooster. During the day we put her out in different places to explore, but she can never be left unsupervised or unsecured. She is at an appropriate weight and has no signs of the Marek's other that her scarred eye. She is now on the maintenance dosage in the feed.
Maureen, the True Blue Whiting is at weight and looks great. She has not returned to laying. With the heat (100+) and the fact I have zero idea her age or vaccination status, that's really all I have to report on her.
Lucy, the three year old Cinnamon Queen had been laying, but the shells were very weak. She stopped laying around the time I discovered that she had a very hard liver. She is on the maintenance dose of Chinese Skullcap in the feed and 1000mg of Milk Thistle daily. In all honesty, she's had a number of issues in the past, some irreparable. She no longer shows signs of Marek's Disease, and her current status as a live chicken denotes that she is indeed a hearty chicken. Her limp is gone. However, when I discontinue the Milk Thistle, she becomes lethargic and inactive in about 48 hours. I examine her daily. Her liver is no longer inflamed, has softened and reduced size. But I can feel individual round lumps. It is my belief that it may be riddled with tumors. They seem to be reducing, but that could be my optimism messing with me. I will continue to monitor.
Nessa, the 3 year old red hen with the white earlobes whose breed I am ignorant of, still limps but it is decreasing in severity. Her feathers continue to fill in with beautiful new ones and she is slowly putting on weight.
Nessa only received 3 days of intense treatment ( 425 mg 3X daily) followed by a week of bolus treatment (425 mg 1X daily) and has been on the daily maintenance dose in the feed only since. Nessa is not a fan of treatment or supervision. She has been a great candidate for the step down protocal and while recovering slowly, she is indeed, alive and kicking randy rooster booty. At this time, I don't believe Nessa is laying at all.
Henry, the Americauna EE rooster of indeterminate age (he is a Senior) started out with clear neurological issues. He had vertigo to the point we created a ground level apartment for him to stop the incidents of him falling off. He later began presenting with wing paralysis and leg paralysis was setting at the time treatment began. Henry's protocol was 7 days of 425 mg 2X daily in addition to the maintenance dose in his daily feed. He continues on the daily maintenance dose. Currently he has regained his equilibrium, his legs are no longer stiff and about 40% of his wing mobility has returned. Henry has begun jumping from small heights of about 2 feet. We stopped putting him higher, he jumped from 4 feet and landed loudly, I almost had a stroke he scared me so bad. Seriously...I thought he fell until he he did it the second time and I observed him do it. He still has issues with jumping up and/or climbing, which hampers his recent return to attempting to mount hens. (The ultimate sign of improvement.) He has started asserting dominance towards the smaller roosters raised around him and has even gone so far as to puff up his mantle and stomp at his mini-me, an 8 month old Millie Fleur roo.
I'm going to call Henry a success.
Napoleon, a red Silkie roo recently started limping. After a few days it was observed that the limp was getting worse. He does not care to be sequestered, so he was given 3 days of 425 mg. It was then I realized that he only forages and eats scratch grains at which time I realized he wasn't getting the daily maintenance because it is in the feed. I began treating the scratch grain with the Chinese Skullcap as well since the dosage is calculated by the weight of feed. Leo's limp has subsided. While it is still noticeable, it is far less noticeable. More of a hitch in his giddy-up than the heart stopping wobble it was. He had lost weight, but is quickly regaining. I will continue to observe.
And now Shelly. Shelly is one of my originals. A 3 year old Saphire Gem. She was the first chicken to cuddle and request butt rubs. Shelly has shown no indication Marek's Disease. Several days ago she presented with waterbelly. I tried Milk Thistle and had no improvement. It actually got worse. Her poops were normal, no visible injuries, no gleet, no visible parasites and they were recently wormed. I had been closely monitoring the flock due to the 100°+ Temps. I noticed she was panting heavily compared to the rest. She presented with waterbelly the following day. I assumed it was heat stress. But she has continued to balloon. Yesterday I gave her Furosemide (Lasix). This morning, significant reduction in the fluid in her abdomen was noted.
As waterbelly is a symptom of organ failure, I am postulateing that heat stress may have triggered Marek's Disease to develop.
She had only been receiving the daily dose of Chinese Skullcap in the feed. I have begun her on Chinese Skullcap, 425mg 3X daily until I see improvement. I will post the results when appropriate.
Will be giving it to a couple of chronic sick ones to see if things improve—it’s just been soooo hot I don’t want to stress them more.
I have had more chicken health issues than most so it’s worth their time cuz I feel like I’ve seen it all 
