5 month hen injured or illness, stiff swollen leg joint

weshard

Chirping
9 Years
Jun 1, 2010
13
0
75
Milaca, MN
I have two Cochin Austrolop mix hens, sisters about five months old now. An electric fence is around their area only to keep predators away when they were young, I left it up but they fly over it with their brown red Cochin mom whenever they feel the need. Both were healthy when I left for two days, when I returned one mix was only using one leg. She would rest several minutes and then run ten feet or so and rest again.

I placed her in a cage with food and water to keep her inactive so I could observe. She got worse, both legs were paralyzed and she gasp for breath each time she breathed. I felt I needed to put her down so she was not suffering but I read that some people had chickens that did recover form illness so I decided to give her some time.

I placed her outside during the warm part of the day (Minnesota) in a small fence with food and water. She flopped around with her wings then would calm down and eat and drink. One foot out back one in front. No other bird has any issues. They free range and coop up at night.

With a towel on my lap I started holding her and petting her and one evening noticed her toes on the one foot moved. Since then she uses that leg to get around rather poorly but she can manage in the cage and little fence. The other leg is stiff. I move it and massage the upper leg and joints. The joint that would be the bottom of the drum stick is stiff and seems swollen.

She closes her eyes and seems to enjoy the therapy until she has had enough and becomes unsettled and I place her back in the cage. She is not gasping except on rare occasions now, been eleven days. For a week she didn't make chicken noises but now does when I move her from cage to fence.

She eats good, crumples and wild bird food and romaine lettuce. she prefers the food on the ground for some reason, I guess because she has done a lot of free ranging.

I wonder about how I could reduce the stiffness and swelling in the one leg. She has only a few times moved those claws on the stiff leg. Tonight she moved her shoulder when I was messaging it which she hasn't before.

One interesting note. Two days into this I found her standing on both legs for a while but then laid back down.

Advice on reducing swelling in leg joint and ideas of what has happened to her.
 
At five months I would be worried about it being Mareks, paralysis, one leg forward one back are the main symptoms.
 
Seems to have been an injury. She started moving one foot then the leg, breathing normal now. The other legs works now but the foot is turned under. I noticed today she was moving her foot some as well. She can run short distances but is learning to walk with balance with that turned under foot. Had her in the dust bath area and she made the dust fly. I hope to get her back in her coop in a couple weeks.

I had decided against disease because not other bird had any signs. She is a little miracle.
 

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