Wry neck advice

louiseschwieker

Songster
Jul 6, 2016
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I have a 1 year old hen who has severe wry neck. I'm not sure if it's from an injury or what but here's the story..
A little over a week ago I noticed that her eye was closed. It got extremely bad over the next day so I brought her inside. She was scratching it a lot and I honestly think that's how she got wry neck. So I'm treating her for a respiratory infection with vetRX (a couple drops in the mouth per day). I'm also pretty sure she has pink eye so I'm treating that with terramycin and microcyn AH for the itchiness (other eye got bubbly today so I started that one too). And for the wry neck i try to keep her head slightly propped up in what looks like a more comfortable position, and I'm giving her vitamin E softgels (punctured and squeezed into her mouth) with water to wash it down. I'm also giving her a small piece of a selenium tablet to help her absorb the vitamin E. AND Im giving her a baby aspirin once a day. This is her seconds day being on the vitamin E, selenium, and aspirin. She's been on the terramycin and microcyn for a little longer. I have to use a syringe to feed her and give her water. I gently give a drop at a time at the tip of her beak so I don't choke her, then I hold her head up so she can get it down. Is there anything else I can do to make her more comfortable? Do I need to do something different? Anything will help me at this point. I don't know what else to do and I'm very worried about her.

P.S. sorry that there's a lot to read. I'm very worried and I'm trying to give as much detail as I can

This is how she sits now. She can't move her head upright.
20170908_231211.jpg
the swelling in her eye has gone down some but it's still closed.
 

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Poor Girl!

It can take a while for Wry neck to be cured.Keep giving her Vitiman E and Selnium.Consider adding Vitiman B to her diet too.You can offer her Eggs and tuna occasionally for protein.Moving her neck into place may help her recover faster.Can you take a picture of her eye opened?Is there any dirt or cuts?Taking her to the vet would be the best option.

Vet Finder- http://www.aav.org/search/

Wry Neck- https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/wry-neck-treat-or-euthanize-updated-with-great-results.382088/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/wry-neck-causes-treatment-and-prevention.67732/
 
We don't have an avian vet nearby. I can't keep it one hand but when I look at it, her pupil is dilated but her eye itself looks fine from what I can see. I've been trying to give her some "physical therapy" by slowly moving her neck to the correct position. I'm willing to do this for as long as it takes. I just don't want her to suffer or die from starvation or not having enough nutrients. This is my first chicken dealing with this so I'm sure this isn't gonna be easy
 
Poor girl. Chickens can get wry neck from injuries, vitamin B1 (thiamine) or vitamin E deficiency, but other causes can be diseases such as respiratory diseases, Mareks, or leukosis. Be very careful about biosecurity techniques, just in case of it spreading to your flock. I would try to get some testing, but if you should lose her, I would send her refrigerated body off to a state vet or poultry center for a necropsy. Newcastles Disease, fowl cholera, coryza, and others can cause wry neck. Many of the causes are viruses, so antibiotics may not help. Wrapping her in a towel to feed her wet feed with egg and a lot of water several times a day can be a way to keep her eating and drinking. I hope that she recovers, and best wishes.
 
My blue orpington pullet looks exactly the same, we have been giving her scrambled egg with vit e and selenium, along with water mixed with nutri-drench. This has been going on for 2 weeks with no improvement so far. Please let me know if she gets better and what you did. Im open to more suggestions to helping ours.
 
She's the same so far. Her eyes are clearing up but the wry neck isn't improving. I'm gonna keep doing what I'm doing until I feel she has no quality of life left. I'm sorry about your chickens. It's hard having to go through this.
 
So I've been giving her 1 capsule of vitamin E every day, and a small piece of selenium every other day. She can't eat by herself so I made up some baby cockatiel food that I had left over and I'm giving her 1 1/2 syringes full of that. She's also taking a few beak fulls of water a day. As much as she'll drink. I feel as if she's improving. I can hold her head up straight and she'll look around and respond to the cockatiel sounds. She can now move her head a little bit towards the opposite way it's been tilting.
 
Hopefully, you can get enough food and water into her to get better. Most people try for a couple of weeks if possible to see if they improve, but some will get better sooner. Thiamine (vitamin B1() can be important in treating wry neck as well. Thiamine is found in liver, beef, pork, fish or tuna, peas, and sunflower or pumpkin seeds among other foods. For vitamin E, sunflower seeds, nuts, peanut butter, spinach, shrimp, broccoli, and pumpkin are all good sources. Selenium is found in egg, tuna, and nuts and seeds, beef, liver, and others.
 

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