Why Is My Rooster Tipping Over?

I have a full grown Bantam rooster who seems otherwise

ok but he has no balance.
He's alert, bright-eyed, bright color, and seems to
have plenty of strength in his body and legs, and very
vocal. But, he can't stand or walk around. You can stand
him up and he just tips over and lays on his chest or side.
Could this be a vitamin deficiency? He is in a protected
place and has not had any injuries.

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by: Sharon

Poor little guy!

Balance is really a complicated mechanism in upright creatures. There can be all kinds of problems in the body leading to poor or no balance: brain issue, ear problem, vision, spinal deformity, leg problems, and on to diseases.

You didn't say if this happened suddenly. If suddenly I would suspect some kind of disease or injury - but you've ruled out injury.

There are several chicken diseases that could lead to this problem, but there are usually other signs like: congestion, discharge, runny eyes, bubbly fluid in eyes.

He could also be weak from parasites internal or external.

Unfortunately taking a chicken to a vet, unless he/she really knows chickens, is often a waste of money. If you can't see what's causing a problem, a vet often can't either. So you'd be looking at blood work, Xrays, and probably some kind of medication that may or may not help.

Because this is often disease related, I would separate him from the flock, possibly give him time to recover, if you believe that is realistic. Chickens are tough creatures and will recover, if they can. Some diseases run their course, create immunity, and that's the last you see of it.

Some diseases can lay dormant until a time of stress, and some chickens can be silent carriers of disease - which they show no signs of, but can pass to others.

Hope that's helpful and not too scary.

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