If you’re a silkie owner then you likely love the bird very much and want the best for it, so if you notice your bird behaving oddly you’d be right to be worried.
This article looks into why your silkie chicken is not walking.
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Silkie chicken not walking:
Silkies are pretty birds but they can unfortunately become ill and can suffer from a variety of conditions. If your bird isn’t walking then it is likely paralysed.
Here are reasons why this may be happening with your bird:
Botulism:
Botulism is a bacterial disease caused by the bacteria Clostridium botulinum and it may be the reason why your bird is suddenly not walking.
Your bird may have contracted this condition by eating food or drinking water that contains the toxin that the bacteria Clostridium botulinum produces.
Birds who suffer from this condition will have symptoms including being floppy and weak, not being able to hold their heads up, not being able to stand, will be drowsy, and will be reluctant to move.
What to do:
Unfortunately, there is no treatment for botulism in chickens, many of the birds who contract this disease die of it.
What you can do is do your best to prevent botulism in your birds before they get it, do this by keeping your bird’s environment clean and making sure that the birds only have access to clean and fresh food and water.
This will keep the bacteria, and thus the toxin produced by the bacteria, at bay.
Mareks disease:
Mareks is one of the viral diseases that birds can get, and unfortunately, silkies are very susceptible to this condition.
This condition causes tumors to develop in your bird’s body, these tumors can push on your bird’s nerves and this is what causes your bird to develop paralysis and stop walking.
Other signs of mareks in your bird, other than the paralysis, include greying eyes, weight loss, a collapsed crop, paralysis of the wings and neck, irregular pupil shape, and blindness in your bird’s eyes,
In addition, a bird who is suffering from this condition will develop a compromised immune system and will be more susceptible to becoming infected with another illness.
The condition is transmitted very easily, it is transmitted when a healthy bird inhales the dander or poultry dust of another chicken.
What to do:
Unfortunately, there is no cure for this condition but if you think that your silkie does have Mareks then you should quickly isolate the bird as the disease is very contagious.
It is also recommended that you contact your local vet for advice on further steps for your silkie.
Note:
Regardless of why your bird isn’t walking or moving it is advised that you isolate your bird while it is sick.
If the other birds in your flock pick up that one of your silkie chickens is sick then they will peck at the defenseless bird and may even kill it.
This is a survival instinct that the birds have. In the wild, weak and sick members of the flock were easy targets for predators and would thus draw predators to the rest of the flock.
To keep this from happening the rest of the flock would kill the sick or weak bird before predators came around.
If you don’t want the other flock members killing your sick silkie then isolate the bird. Keep it in a pet carrier or something enclosed, and give it its own food and water.
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other bird related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Silkie Chicken Walking Backwards, Silkie Chicken Not Walking Or Moving, Silkie Chicken Not Walking And Shaking, Silkie Not Walking Or Eating
