Walking issues

[lulabulla]

Hi- so i have a 14 week old bantam. She has been absolutely great and never had any problems. I had 2 chickens recently pass away with out warning. I know it was not heat but i dont know if they fell ill without warning signs (i spend a lot of time with them everyday since i stay home) . So my 14 week old bantam started walking like she is drunk. Wobbeling & when standing she would sway. Very unusual. She eats drinks and acts fine besides her walking. She would also do this her army crawl if that makes sense.. Like she wouldnt fully stand but do a waddle walk... She is now in the house just so i can keep a good eye on her and maybe take some stress off of her from roaming the yard so much. Does anyone have any idea what this could be or what i could do to help her. I really dont want to loose another one of my girls. Im already devistated over the other 2. The other 3 hens i still have seem to be perfectly fine. Oh i also do believe my banty has worms. Which i need to treat her. Any good info on worming would also be appriciated!!
Thank you so much for any advice or suggestions - i really need them.

 

[GitaBooks]

I'm really sorry to hear that.

The worms could be weakening them, but it sounds like it could be related to something like musty food, a virus like marek's, or the like. Trouble walking can also be due to nutritional deficiency.

Best of luck! Feed her vitamins, keep her warm and hydrated, and hopefully she will heal up.

 

[lulabulla]

Thanks GitaBooks. I will get vitamins in the morning and start those. Thanks for the suggestions

 

[lulabulla]

Ive been giving her vitamins the last 3 days. Yesterday she seemed to be doing a lot better when getting up & trying to get to her food & water. It almost looked like one leg was much better. Today she is at her worst. As soon as she tries to stand her legs try to do a split. . She eats well but i do have to make sure she drinks as i dont see her drinking. She does take the drops i offer her but doesnt drink when i give her the bowl.
Does anyone have any other suggestion? I was thinking of maybe binding her feet together. By binding i mean possibly use the strechy wrap put it around one leg then leave a space and then on her other leg. To prevent the splitting? Not sure if thats a good idea, so if anyone has input on that please let me know. Thanks

 

[GitaBooks]

My bantam pullet suffered the same symptoms and never got better. Binding (putting a hobble on) simply made her fall over and scream. You could try the sling method, so that her legs hang down in the natural position and may heal this way. Mine couldn't balance to drink on her own and needed my help. We had to put the poor thing down.

It is partial paralysis, and can effect one or both legs, one or both wings, the neck, or all of the above.

 

[lulabulla]

Im so sorry to hear that GitaBooks. Thats very sad. I hope this isnt worst case senerio for her as well. I did bind her legs (so they dont spread further apart then the natural position) & she seems to be doing good with it. I do spend a lot of time with her & even take her out so she can still take dirt baths & she likes to mess around in the dirt even tho she can only move her legs to a certain point. I was going to take it off tomorrow & see how she does with out them just to see if there is any progress. She is still eating and drinking good and i also still give her the vitamins each day. I have to say luckily nothing but her legs are affected.
Just wondering, but was there a cause for the paralysis (sickness, disease, lack of calcium, etc?) that you know of?

 

[GitaBooks]

Sorry it took so long to respond. We've been busy here.

Causes for paralysis include:

Genetic
Injuries
Not enough vitamins
Calcium deficiency in laying hens
Marek's
Poisoning

This mentions a few others: https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq