injured guinea hen

[dancindog]

Last week i noticed one of the birds limping. After two days of limping she remained behind in the coop when the flock left in the morning so i caged her with food and water. I thought maybe with rest she would recover but a week later she is almost completely immobile. She eats and drinks but hardly moves around. She seems alert and alway eats when she sees the rest of the birds eating their morning and evening chicken crumbles. All the guineas are around 13 weeks old, if that matters.


This is my first experience with guinea fowl, or any kind of bird. Is there any hope this hen will recover? Could she be employed as a broody hen in a few weeks when the hens are old enough to start laying eggs? Or is it over for this bird?

 

[red horse ranch]

Give her a few weeks to recover before making any decisions about her. I've had guineas and chickens with broken legs and and after some recovery time they get along just fine. My alpha male had a broken leg when a couple of months old and he's now 4 yrs old. And still in charge.

 

[dancindog]

Thank you, I am grateful for your encouragement. Things are not looking good today. Her back toe on her right foot has turned black and rubbery. Even if she lives, she'll lose that toe and probably won't walk again and definitely will never perch again. I'm thinking it would be doing her a favor to end things quick. Reality is harsh. Let me know if there's a hope for her that i can't see.

 

[red horse ranch]

You'd be amazed at what they can do with less than ideal feet or legs. Just losing a toe won't stop it from walking and roosting. What concerns me is why is her toe turning black. Was her foot frostbitten? Have you checked for anything on her feet or leg that may be cutting off the circulation? My guineas are real good about finding strings from the feed bags and getting their feet tangled up in them. Do you have snakes or spiders that may have bitten her?
I'm really at a loss to have any more ideas of possible causes.
It's just my nature to try and save every fowl that I can. But you have to use your own judgment on whether to save her. It's mighty hard to see them suffer.
Let me know how she does.

 

[dancindog]

Thanks for your post. Your optimism is contagious. I will give her more time. There is no obvious reason why her toe has died. No string or frostbite. She may have been stung by an insect or spider or snake, no way to tell. It could have been broken and blood circulation cut off by the way she laid on it. I'm just speculating. Have contacted the vet... we'll see he says about her chances. Will let you know.

 

[Ladies of the Forest]

I, also, have a guinea hen who injured her leg. She just kept up with everybody, hobbling along. I now have her in a crate in the cellar because she stopped going into the coop. She was just hanging out in the pen, underneath the coat. I would have to chase her out because she didn’t want to go out anymore. I picked her up and saw that what started out as just a swollen leg has turned into something horrific! It looks as if her claw is about half off. I now have her in a crate in the cellar because she stopped going into the coop. She was just hanging out in the pen, underneath the coat. I would have to chase her out because she didn’t want to go out anymore. I picked her up and saw that what started out as just a swollen leg has turned into something horrific! It looks as if her claw is about half off. She doesn’t appear to be in any pain, unless she gets up and tries to walk around. She eats like crazy and never appears to be in pain. If that claw falls off, can she still survive? If I thought she was in pain, I wouldn’t even try to make her live another day, but she really acts very normally, except for the limp. Is there hope for her? Guineas are hard!

 

[Ladies of the Forest]

By the way, dictation has its faults, also. She is not under a coat, but under the coop. Silly auto incorrect

 

[red horse ranch]

By the way, dictation has its faults, also. She is not under a coat, but under the coop. Silly auto incorrect

Most guineas and other poultry will do just fine with losing a finger nail or even part of the toe once it heals. I've had them with broken legs and missing toenails. It's a good idea to keep her confined for a few days. Make sure she has plenty to eat and drink. And just let her rest until it starts to heal.

 

[Ladies of the Forest]

Thanks for your optimism! I’m feeling like the foulest of the fowl mothers, right now. I’m so happy to hear that this isn’t the end of my sweet Little Lily. Guineas always seem to be getting hurt from flying straight into things

 

[Sydney65]

Thanks for your optimism! I’m feeling like the foulest of the fowl mothers, right now. I’m so happy to hear that this isn’t the end of my sweet Little Lily. Guineas always seem to be getting hurt from flying straight into things

I, also, have a guinea hen who injured her leg. She just kept up with everybody, hobbling along. I now have her in a crate in the cellar because she stopped going into the coop. She was just hanging out in the pen, underneath the coat. I would have to chase her out because she didn’t want to go out anymore. I picked her up and saw that what started out as just a swollen leg has turned into something horrific! It looks as if her claw is about half off. I now have her in a crate in the cellar because she stopped going into the coop. She was just hanging out in the pen, underneath the coat. I would have to chase her out because she didn’t want to go out anymore. I picked her up and saw that what started out as just a swollen leg has turned into something horrific! It looks as if her claw is about half off. She doesn’t appear to be in any pain, unless she gets up and tries to walk around. She eats like crazy and never appears to be in pain. If that claw falls off, can she still survive? If I thought she was in pain, I wouldn’t even try to make her live another day, but she really acts very normally, except for the limp. Is there hope for her? Guineas are hard!

Heh, how'd this turn out? I came across and wanted you to know I amputated one of my boy's toes, and it never phased him.