Wry neck, cull or not?

[Darlingoo]

Hi so about 6 days ago, I found one of my silkies with severe wry neck, happened overnight. She's around 24 weeks. I think this is caused by head trauma rather then deficiency as I give sunflower seeds often to all my chickens.

Anyway she won't stop walking backwards and flailing her legs and wings about with her head dragging on the floor, results in kicking herself in the head and neck. her neck seems to be twisting around more since last Sunday. She can eat though drinking makes her neck spasm back to curling up.

I wrap her up when I'm not there in a towel to stop her legs flailing and her kicking herself in the head, which she continues to break free from. I've noticed she's sliced the skin off her neck this morning. Now it looks treatable, I've cut the feathers off round the wound cleaned and disinfected it. It doesn't effect her eating or drinking. I have been giving her sunflower seeds, scrambled eggs with turmeric and vitamin E and selenium.

It all leads to my question of your opinion would it be kinder to put her down? I know it seems silly to ask this but I'm at a crossroads where I want to give her a chance but obviously don't want her to suffer anymore. can wry neck this severe be treatable?

The reason I'm having trouble deciding is because when you lift her head up she's very bright eyed, eager for food and water and showing she wants to look around.
Anywho, sorry this is a bit of an essay, if there's any information I've missed out please let me know.

 

[50-45-1]

Dont give up.
She may recover yet. Sounds like you are doing everything right.
Good luck! I hope she makes it!

 

[rebrascora]

You might want to consider what is causing the wry neck and since you have ruled out a vitamin deficiency, then Marek's Disease is highly likely, especially when you take into consideration her age and breed..... solkies are particularly susceptible to Marek's. If I am right. she will be shedding the virus whilst she is symptomatic and many people would cull for that reason alone. I have had some chickens with Marek's, recover from an attack as quickly as they came down with it and so I don't euthanize as long as they are interested in food, but clearly with this bird's disability her quality of life is debatable. Personally I can't give up on them when they are still bright eyed like that but I'm not there seeing her so incapacitated, so it will really come down to your own call of conscience. You are the person that loves and cares for this bird and therefore only you can make that decision. Perhaps give it a few more days. Maybe try a chicken sling and see if that helps to make her more comfortable. Frantically backing up can be an indication of going blind. Is she able to locate food and water on her own or do you have to out it right under her beak?
Below is an example of a chicken sling that can be made from everyday items.... You may need a wider strip of fabric for her if she is very unstable or maybe even cover the whole box and cut a another hole for poop to drop through.

I wish you luck with her. I know how heart breaking it is to be in this situation.

 

[Hyper_Chicken05]

If she's still eager to live, Let her live.

 

[rebrascora]

Oops! I forgot to post the photo.....

 

[Eggcessive]

I would also give her other foods primarily, such as wet chicken feed, scrambled eggs, since you don’t need to go overboard with the vitamin E supplements. Too much of any kind of food is not good if less chicken feed is taken. Also I would give a little B complex, such as half a tablet daily crushed over her food. Thiamine or vitamin B1 is also important in treating wry neck.

Rebrascora may be right about Mareks, but you will have to do what is best for the pullet. I would give it more time while she is acting alert and eating well. It would be so good if she would start getting better.

 

[Darlingoo]

As heart breaking as it was I made the decision to dispatch. The wound she caused on her neck started to bleed out as her crop expanded. I didn't want her to be in any more discomfort or pain. I did what I thought was best at the time

Thank you all for taking the time to read and respond, you have no idea how much it is appreciated! Hopefully the information given will help someone in the future.

I did think of mareks at the beginning but figured since no other bird has come down with anything similar, I ruled it out. Am I wrong in that thought?

 

[Eggcessive]

It would be worth knowing if you would get a necropsy through your state vet or poultry lab. If something other than Mareks shows up, that can also be helpful if something else needs to be treated. Here is a good link with contact info, but the body needs to be kept refrigerated:
http://www.metzerfarms.com/PoultryLabs.cfm

 

[rebrascora]

I am so sorry but impressed that you made that difficult decision. It is so easy to shy away from facing that fact with a sick bird. Total respect that you did what you felt was right for the bird.

I did think of mareks at the beginning but figured since no other bird has come down with anything similar, I ruled it out. Am I wrong in that thought?

Unfortunately that is not an accurate assumption. Marek's has dormant phases like cold sores in humans (both are Herpes viruses) and an outbreak is usually triggered by stress. What stresses one bird may not stress another. There is a minimum 3 week dormant period between infection and an outbreak and they actively shed the virus when they are symptomatic, again like cold sores. So depending upon circumstances, if this is Marek's, this pullet could have been harbouring it for quite a while and other members of the flock may contracted it at the same time she did or they may have become infected as a result of her being symptomatic and shedding the virus so you may see other symptomatic bird(s) in 3+ weeks. This is one of the reasons why Marek's is so difficult to diagnose and understand. Some more aggressive strains of the virus will cause an outbreak in multiple birds at once and some will die pretty quickly..... these tend to be the cases where a necropsy is performed and Marek's is formally diagnosed, but it can also cause just one or two birds to be affected every now and then and an outbreak can be as innocuous as the bird being unable to keep one eye lid fully open or as dramatic as you have seen in your poor little bird and everything in between. I have had some birds floundering on their side with it in "classic Marek's splits" posture unable to get up and a couple of days later they were up and about again and totally normal and miraculously recovered as quickly as they took ill. Others take weeks or months of supportive care to make a limited or full recovery and others decline and die. There are just no hard and fast rules with it. You can go months or years between outbreaks. Keeping stress levels low is key to keeping outbreaks low.

Of course it may not be Marek's and it is always helpful to know one way or another, so I would encourage you to get a necropsy if you can afford it...... some state fees are very cheap for the service, others are more expensive but still cheaper and more knowledgeable that going to a private veterinary practice. Or there is the option to open her up yourself and take a look. Not guaranteed to find the cause be from my experience you can do so surprisingly often, even with no medical training.... Having experience of processing chickens for meat helps to understand the layout andrecognise what is abnormal though.

Anyway I am wrong and it is not Marek's and you don't have to deal with anything so disheartening again.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

You might want to consider what is causing the wry neck and since you have ruled out a vitamin deficiency, then Marek's Disease is highly likely, especially when you take into consideration her age and breed.

Ugh... I literally just logged on to post if some of the more experienced peeps... believed wry neck I found yesterday in a 14 week old Silkie to be Marek's?! As I think it MAY be.

I NEVER diminish feed with treats. Usually feed purina flock raiser with 20% protein. This past week started using gamebird feed (26% protein), unfortunately discovered when I got it home was 6 MONTHS past mill date. Been giving it fermented in the mornings with multiple other feeders available so bullying is NOT an issue. And on top of that recently feeding out some boiled egg once a week the past few weeks.

Breeding is important to me... so I decided I would cull whether a deficit or not instead of attempting to treat as weak genetics is not welcome. No signs of external parasite AT ALL.

Was considering sending for testing or doing a personal necropsy with BYC help... But when I returned to the box I had her in for quarantine... she had already been taken by a predator. (that's to myself for not KNOWING better). Mind you I stupidly lost my other Lavender female Silkie chick to drowning in a bucket of water last week (my first drowning in 9+ years). Now I've got plenty of boys. (again kicking myself)

Reading this thread... I can already assess y'all's agreement with my suspicion. Regarding Marek's, culling immediately is my selected method of containment anyways... but I am totally open to thoughts and ideas.

Dear OP... Sorry you faced this and for your your loss. Also for piggy backing on your thread. I also would not have ruled out Marek's in your case... I saw 2 cases present with limping 2 years ago... no other signs and no one in my flock of 82+ at the time displayed ANY symptoms then or since. Since the state vet told me they figured it was Marek's and it is in EVERY poultry environment, I didn't get a necropsy back then to confirm. Was even hopeful since I haven't seen it again, maybe that wasn't it. The first case was totally alert and consumed plenty of food. I cared for it for 3 weeks in quarantine before deciding it wasn't deficit and culled. At the end of that 3 weeks, a second chick started limping and I culled immediately. Not all immune systems are working equally and illness will therefor possibly present differently in each individual or NOT present at all. With NO reason like excess treats or inappropriate feed or bullying to cause the issue... unfortunately I do unfortunately agree with Marek's a being a possible reason for torticollis.

I will state... that I do believe myself to be breeding for resistance to Marek's or at least attempting to and there was one gene identified that provides that. The chick who had the torticollis yesterday... unvaccinated (vaccinated not welcome), hatchery stock... broody raised... working to bring the Lavender color into my Silkie stock.

She's around 24 weeks. I think this is caused by head trauma rather then deficiency as I give sunflower seeds often to all my chickens.

A thought about the OP... I'm not sure how giving sunflower seeds rules out vitamin deficit... I would think what else you feed would heavily impact that... maybe I missed the q & A? Were they standard seeds or BOSS? What else was fed on a regular basis including treats and supplements? Any bullying issues?

Also... I don't consider it giving up on them even if they are bright eyed and wanna eat... I would consider it giving up on the rest of my flock... if I allowed it (Marek's) to knowingly proliferate. Not judging anybody else's choice, here! It is a very personal AND difficult choice... EVERY time... even though I know where I stand, the heart still hurts when I have to make the decision. I was almost relieved not to have to cull last night, but somewhat dismayed that I don't have the opportunity to get confirmation even though I know deep inside I obviously don't want it.... without confirmation it is easy to be hopeful. Still for me a difficult truth is better than not knowing. Even though I raise and dispatch/help process cockerels regularly... I still think doing a necropsy on a pet or dispatching them is very difficult!

If it isn't too late... here are links to help get a necropsy should you choose to...
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-to-send-a-bird-for-a-necropsy-pictures.799747/

https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/nahln/downloads/all_nahln_lab_list.pdf

So glad to have a supportive and knowledgeable, experienced community.