Mareks? Vet says Coccidia.

[lauriefishies]

7 month old hen suddenly paralyzed both legs now for four days with no improvement. We have had a bad storm come through so everything is wet. Vet says fecal has overload of coccidia. She never had allot of diarrhea and Hen is eating great and is alert but have to give her water with dropper. She is on corrid, electrolytes, and vitamins plus B complex. Built her a hammock so she can eat herself and get off those legs. My question is could it still be Mareks even though vet says no? And can a chicken get her legs back if it is Mareks and she survives this? I did a body check and only found this little dark red hard thing on corner of mouth. I have read allot about the disease but not sure if it is due to Vets opinion.

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry about your sick pullet. I think it very well could be both coccidiosis and Mareks. Time will tell. Glad that you had her checked for coccidosis and now are medicating her. What dosage of Corid are you using? If giving the liquid, put 10 ml (2 tsp) of Corid into each gallon of water. The powder dosage is 1 1/2 tsp per gallon and given for 5-7 days. Do not give B vitamins while on Corid because Corid works as a thiamine inhibitor. Restart the vitamins as soon as the Corid is finished.

Mareks is a disease that causes a lack of immunity to common diseases, but it also can cause paralyzed legs or wings, and tumors in organs, on the skin, and on the nerves, including the eyes. Do you know if she was vaccinated?

It looks like you have her in a sling which can keep her upright and in front of food and water. Is she eating and drinking? The little skin lesion could be a small tumor.

 

[Eggcessive]

If you should lose her someday, I would contact your state vet to get a necropsy and testing. There is also a lab that will test blood serum while the chicken is alive. Here are some good articles about Mareks to read:
https://extension.umd.edu/sites/extension.umd.edu/files/_docs/programs/poultry/FS-1007 Recognizing and Preventing Mareks Disease in Small Flocks.pdf

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq.66077/

 

[lauriefishies]

Vet said 5ml corrid per 1 gal for 5 days then 2.5 ml for 10 days after that. She is eating on her own but not drinking. I use a dropper to drop the medicated water at the front of her beak. I dont want her to aspirate the water. Her poops are normal. Im pretty sure she isn't vaccinated. All my birds are owner surrenders to a farm rescue I volunteer at. I have 6 all together. No one else is showing sickness but I am medicating the water with corrid just in case. Do you know if chickens can come back from being paralyzed from Mareks?

 

[Eggcessive]

On rare occasions, a chicken with Mareks might exhibit transient paralysis, where they lose balance and have trouble walking for several days, but then suddenly seem to recover. But later the symptoms return and most die. Some develop tumors internally. Here is some reading about that:
https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/neoplasms/marek-disease-in-poultry

More often, they lose feeling and ability to use one leg, and it does not bet better. Each chicken may show different possible symptoms. Can you look at her eyes and see if the color is the same in both, and that both pupils are round?

I would increase the Corid to 10 ml (2 tsp) per gallon. Give the severe outbreak dosage for 5-7 days. Also give her undiluted Corid 0.1 ml per pound twice a day orally. Try offering her the medicated water up to her beak in a small scoop or cup. Here is the best dosage chart for Corid:

 

[lauriefishies]

Thank You Eggcessive!

 

[Lizzy733]

What kind of vet is this? I'd trust any vet for identifying cocci, but unless they're an avian or livestock vet that has experience with chickens, I'd not rule out Marek's.
Does she have any feeling in the toes at all? If you pinch, does she react? Guessing the vet saw no signs of possible injury during a physical inspection?

 

[lauriefishies]

The vet does see farm animals and small animal. She said not many people bring in chickens for health problems. They usually just cull them if there is a problem. No injuries. They did a really cool detailed xray and nothing looked out of place. She asked about my rooster but I told her he is half her size and really doesn't mate the girls. I do have a silver laced wyandotte hen that's a jerk but I would think there would be an injury. Her legs and feet feel cool to me. One leg is totally paralyzed and the other is 98% paralyzed. That one she pulls away very weakly. I have been exercising her legs and soaking her bottom half in warm water with no improvement. Im hoping its not Marek because im worried about the others. So far they look great. Nobody has the dark red hard bump lany where on their bodies like the sick one has on her mouth.

 

[Eggcessive]

Can you check to see if both eyes look the same tomorrow? Hopefully, it is not Mareks, but if it is an injury, it seems very serious.

 

[lauriefishies]

before I put her to bed in the hutch I checked her eyes. They both are the same and are clear. Basically the only thing wrong with her is her legs and that thing on the side of her mouth. She laid an egg the first day of being paralyzed. It wasnt a big egg. maybe something happened with that. Who knows, wish I had a camera in the coop. If something happened it must be nerve damage that doesn't show on xray. Im going support her as long as she remains the same. Just cant imagine she would thrive being paralyzed for the rest of her life. Praying for a miracle but also being realistic about the situation. Thank you for your help.