Wry neck and curled toe paralysis

[AmyJane725]

I just think that since the toes are curling under for a neurological reason, it is probably painful to her to have to wear shoes with her toes taped. If it is riboflavin deficiency, the toes should improve soon. If it is Mareks, they may not. Since this has been a symptom for awhile, the riboflavin might not help. Since there is some weakness in her left leg, and she is sitting on her hocks, along with wry neck, it points to symptoms of Mareks. I would leave the chick shoes off if it were me.

You’re probably right but I hope you’re wrong.

 

[Eggcessive]

I don’t want to be right, and hope that I am wrong, too.

 

[ChickNanny13]

 

[Kiki]

How old is she? What do you feed her normally? How's her poop? Could you post some pictures of her and her feet? Have you added any new birds recently?

She's a year old. I feed her fruits and veggies in the morning, layer crumble is always available, another sunflower and corn mixture on the ground at dusk as a snack, plenty of clean fresh water everywhere. Everything is organic. Coop is super clean, as we are still in warm weather, and we burn the hay poop every 2 weeks. Her poop is runny (it was awful with the antibiotic...we were both getting baths daily after breakfast) and is green due to the fact that I am feeding her spinach and avocado and banana smoothies. She is starting to snap at bugs again when she is on the ground. She actually caught a gnat flying around her head (we cheered). No new birds, and I've raised all 22 birds by hand since 2 days old. All of them very spoiled and tame.

This particular barred rock hen (Squeaker) has a sister, Z. They look different. Z looks like a regular ole chicken. Squeaker has always looked like her head was wider, flatter, if you will. Her whole body has always looked like somebody stepped on her and she spread out. We use to joke that she had special needs, but she may actually be disabled.

I will post pictures of her feet tomorrow. I just put on the shoes and want her toes to stay straight for a night.

Would this type of showing wait until now for a break down in the immunity to show it's ugly head? I don't want to put her to sleep. She's very much a pet in the house. She's the chicken that runs to us when the car pulls in the driveway.

I am sorry your hen is sick.


I too think Marek's disease is what you might be dealing with.

I noticed you feed a lot of treats so it is possible she hasn't been getting a balanced diet and it could be a deficiency.

I would recommend stopping all treats and feed only a complete crumble or pelleted poultry feed to your entire flock.

 

[Wyndi Fosh]

We just hit week 3 of syringe feeding and supplementing with vitamin E selenium gel, high-potency vitamin B complex, poly-vi-sol, and a wonderful milkshake of avocado, banana, spinach, and egg. There are a few signs of progress. Her toes have all but uncurled. We made her a chicken wheelchair which I use as a break from laying down. I've also used it to reintroduce her back into walking. For the last two days we have ditched the wheelchair for me just holding her while she walks. She is getting very determined to stand but she can't keep her balance yet and still falls over. She has also started making chicken noises again, and is trying to self feed but still cannot connect with the food.
I'm trying for at least two more weeks to save her.

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry that she has not recovered, but has made some progress. It is difficult to care for a disabled chicken for such a long time. Hopefully she will get better. Does she have much strength in her legs? I have treated a hen for 5 weeks who could not maintain her balance upright. She always had good leg strength and a normal appetite. though. Finally, she started walking normally again and regained her balance. After 2 more weeks of pretty normal activity, her flock has rejected her and attacks her.

Have you thought about getting some testing for Mareks if she doesn’t survive? I would discuss it with your state vet pathologist about a necropsy and how they do testing for Mareks. Many state poultry labs send Mareks specimens off to other national labs.

 

[Wyndi Fosh]

]Sorry that she has not recovered, but has made some progress. It is difficult to care for a disabled chicken for such a long time.

Yes I teach fulltime and employ a sitter to feed her lunch. Thankyou for your kind words.

Does she have much strength in her legs?
Yes she does. Gets stronger weekly. I think thats why shes getting aggravated.

After 2 more weeks of pretty normal activity, her flock has rejected her and attacks her.

Oh my. What finally happened?

Have you thought about getting some testing for Mareks if she doesn’t survive? Absolutely but its so expensive here.

 

[Eggcessive]

When I checked with my state vet, I was shocked that they perform more inexpensive necropsies on backyard chickens. They only charge extra for an specific test that you want done. Some labs in the past only charged $30 for it. Things tend to get more expensive if you have to go through a local vet. So I would take to your state vet and explain what you need. In California and a few other states with lots of poultry, they have $20 necropsies. Most pathologists can see evidence of Mareks either tumors or sciatic nerve enlargement.

 

[Wyndi Fosh]

This is going to sound stupid. How do I find my state vet?

 

[Kiki]

This is going to sound stupid. How do I find my state vet?

Should be listed here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/necropsy-and-disease-testing-lab-info.1236884/