What's wrong with my hen?

[jgabes]

I have a small flock of 4 feather-legged marins. One of them is incredibly sweet and will run right up to you and follow you around, allows herself to be petted. The others aren't terribly fond of humans. Yesterday I bent to pet the friendly one and another who was standing nearby didn't make her usual move to run away. Ever the hopeful one, I reached out and touched her too...which snapped her back to reality and caused her to run away from me. But the minute she took her first step, I could see something was wrong - she fell over almost immediately, but got up and tried to keep going. She could not keep her balance and was walking like she was very drunk - using her wings to help keep her up. Finally, she settled in a corner and would not move. I picked her up with very little protest (extremely unusual) and examined her legs, but they seemed fine. I noticed when I put her back down that her head was drifting off to the side like she could not quite control it. She doesn't seem to be in pain, but I don't think she is eating or drinking. At first I thought she was egg-bound, but a warm bath and massage didn't seem to have any effect, and it doesn't really feel like there's an egg in there anyway (I was just hoping it would be simple). I separated her from the other hens and gave her food, water, and some yogurt - but I don't think she has touched any of them. She has pooped several times in the new enclosure, and the texture is very inconsistent: one was very runny, a few normal looking ones, some pretty mushy ones. The poop makes me think maybe she is eating after all, but if so it must be a very small amount. I don't really have the funds to take her to the vet, but I don't want her to suffer! Any ideas what might be wrong? All of them are vaccinated and the other three appear to be acting normally so far. Her legs aren't stiff like Marek's and she doesn't seem to have any obvious injuries. When left alone she has spent most of the time sitting down, but I have also seen her standing and even preening a little yesterday. She has moved around the new enclosure several times, but I have not actually seen her walk since I put her there, and I don't want to stress her out by scaring her into it. She is still letting me get too close. Any ideas? Please help!

 

[FlyHigher]

I have a small flock of 4 feather-legged marins. One of them is incredibly sweet and will run right up to you and follow you around, allows herself to be petted. The others aren't terribly fond of humans. Yesterday I bent to pet the friendly one and another who was standing nearby didn't make her usual move to run away. Ever the hopeful one, I reached out and touched her too...which snapped her back to reality and caused her to run away from me. But the minute she took her first step, I could see something was wrong - she fell over almost immediately, but got up and tried to keep going. She could not keep her balance and was walking like she was very drunk - using her wings to help keep her up. Finally, she settled in a corner and would not move. I picked her up with very little protest (extremely unusual) and examined her legs, but they seemed fine. I noticed when I put her back down that her head was drifting off to the side like she could not quite control it. She doesn't seem to be in pain, but I don't think she is eating or drinking. At first I thought she was egg-bound, but a warm bath and massage didn't seem to have any effect, and it doesn't really feel like there's an egg in there anyway (I was just hoping it would be simple). I separated her from the other hens and gave her food, water, and some yogurt - but I don't think she has touched any of them. She has pooped several times in the new enclosure, and the texture is very inconsistent: one was very runny, a few normal looking ones, some pretty mushy ones. The poop makes me think maybe she is eating after all, but if so it must be a very small amount. I don't really have the funds to take her to the vet, but I don't want her to suffer! Any ideas what might be wrong? All of them are vaccinated and the other three appear to be acting normally so far. Her legs aren't stiff like Marek's and she doesn't seem to have any obvious injuries. When left alone she has spent most of the time sitting down, but I have also seen her standing and even preening a little yesterday. She has moved around the new enclosure several times, but I have not actually seen her walk since I put her there, and I don't want to stress her out by scaring her into it. She is still letting me get too close. Any ideas? Please help!

Sounds like Marek's disease to me(sorry to say that, it's nasty).
You can find more info here: http://fowlfacts.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=disease&action=display&thread=126

 

[BuffOrpington88]

It could also be botulism. It causes paralysis. I'm not sure if this is it, but you can research it because if it is, early treatment is essential to recovery.
I hope she's alright!