Wyandotte hen can't stand up or balance - video

[Aacre]

I'm a huge fan of exhausting every possible and sensible treatments.. Do you give your birds any vitamins? How are the other birds acting? From what I understand, Marek's is contagious, and so the other ones would be showing signs any time now if it is Marek's. I would first try giving her vitamins before culling her. She could have a vitamin deficiency. I have a baby chick that is a week old and we discovered that she most likely has a riboflavin (vitamin B2) deficiency. I refuse to cull her if it's something that I can fix, especially if they still show a desire to eat and drink still. Is your girl losing any weight?
I would definitely start her on a poultry vitamin pack ASAP.

 

[Cadbury Eggs]

I have been supplementing the water with "Probiotic Egg Boost" once a week, which says it has vitamins, electrolytes and enzymes:

Sodium (min) ............ 1.12%
Sodium (max)............ 1.17%
Potassium (min)......... 0.40%
Vitamin A (min).......... 21,140 IU/gm
Vitamin D3 (min)........ 10,185 IU/gm
Vitamin E (min).......... 8 IU/gm
Vitamin C (min).......... 32 mg/gm
Phytase (A. oryzae).... 4.4x10-10 grams phytate hydrolyzed/min/oz

What 'vitamin pack' do you recommend?

The rest of the flock is acting normal. I had some girls that started molting about a month ago, so when this one started hanging back from the flock I assumed that she was going to molt too.

I am a spreadsheet nerd, so I keep one on the chickens. They were laying 147 eggs/week in January, then production started dropping of little by little each week until mid-March I was getting 105 eggs/week. Production began to increase week by week and I am now back up to 122 eggs/week. I attributed the drop-off to several that looked like they were molting (which is weird because I thought they were supposed to molt in the fall after their first year) and a couple hens that went broody. Last fall most of the flock got a cold, which I was successfully able to treat with an antibiotic, however there was one bird who never fully recovered and I lost her April 5th. Aside from the respiratory issue in the fall, the flock has been happy and healthy. They are active, alert, and friendly. They come running to the gate anytime someone goes out to visit them, which is every few hours.

Thank you for any help or advice!

 

[Branch Chickens]

I wanted to throw my two cents in here.
I just finished reading a book by the author of the Scratch and Peck blog, and she had a hen that exhibited the same symptoms as yours. Her veterinarian friend thought it was Marek's, but they weren't absolutely sure. It sounds like some hens can get it even if they're vaccinated, but it doesn't mean that any others will get it. The blog writer had 3 hens and only one was sick.
She kept hers indoors and gave it lots of special attention, and it eventually recovered so that it could walk (she even brooded a clutch of eggs!), but it she was always quite stiff after that.
My mother also had a hen that exhibited similar symptoms, and they kept her in the house until she recovered. Again, she was never at 100% after that, but she lived a good life and started laying again.
The book I mentioned is called Once Upon a Flock. It, or the author's blog, might be worth taking a look at.
I'm not sure how much time and effort you want/can put into this hen, but I have seen, first-hand, a positive outcome!

 

[casportpony]

I have *many* chickens in my flock, none are vaccinated for Marek's *and* I have had necropsies done by UC Davis that have confirmed that i do have Marek's.

Yes, it's contagious, but that doesn't mean death for all birds in a positive flock.

If she were mine I would dust for bugs, cause she probably has them, I'd weigh her daily and I'd de-worm her with Safeguard liquid or paste. I'd probably also give her a calcium pill just in case she was hypocalcemic.

-Kathy

 

[Cadbury Eggs]

Thank you both. I really don't want to give up on her yet, because she hasn't given up either. I will go get some vitamins and wormer and see if that helps. Right now she is out on the lawn in the shade (protected with the cage that used to be in the coop for chicks) with her food and water. I used rolled towels to help prop her up in a normal chicken position so she can reach both the food and water, which she is eating and drinking on her own.

 

[Aacre]

You are a great chicken parent! I'm not sure where you go for your feed and other chicken needs, but any place that does should sell poultry vitamins that also include other vitamins like B2. Please keep us updated!!

 

[Cadbury Eggs]

1 week update: Goldie still can't stand up, or balance in a normal sitting position. During the day I had been putting her in a cage on the grass with her food and water within reach, and bringing her in at night. After about a week I noticed she was losing weight. I think this was largely because she would flap and kick her self away from the food and I wasn't checking on her often enough.

2 week update: I now check on her every hour or so and make sure she is still able to reach the food and water. I rolled two bath towels and put one on each side to help prop her in a normal sitting position. I also have been offering her greek yogurt mixed with mashed chicken food, an occasional scrambled egg, and a dish with pellet food and grit. I have been supplementing her water alternating between Nutri Drench, ACV (with mother), and vitamin/electrolytes. She eats on her own and is alert. Her poo is still normal. Aside from being unable to stand, she acts like a normal chicken, even trying to catch anything that flies through her cage.

I will keep this post updated with any changes.

 

[casportpony]

Maybe you could make a sling for her?

-Kathy

 

[casportpony]

Sling pictures:
http://www.google.com/search?q=chic...HcoATc_4DYCw&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1024&bih=672

-Kathy

 

[Cadbury Eggs]

Thank you for all your support. Yesterday I decided it was time to cull her. I had thought about it a lot, and know that it was not a good quality of life for her. I think I was hanging on more for my benefit and attachment than hers. It was sad, and hard, because I've never had to do that before. I knew I wouldn't be able to go through with snapping her neck, so I used a rag with ether and she went peacefully. Culling was something I knew I would eventually have to deal with when I got my chickens last spring... but that doesn't make it any easier.