RIR Roo with injured leg

ForestChilde

In the Brooder
Mar 6, 2016
10
0
22
Virginia
Hi,

This is my first post after joining when I got some pullets several weeks ago. This site has been great for info! But to the topic at hand. I just acquired a RIR roo this past weekend after my neighbor went to her coop and found a dead hen and an injured roo. She asked me if I wanted to take him for my flock (although I really never planned to get roos) mainly because his coop-mates (about
2 dozen hens and 1 roo) were attacking and picking on him to the point that he could not access the food or water. He was in pretty sad shape when she found him. He will not/cannot use his right leg. Upon examination (he's a pretty gentle roo that I've taken quite a liking too!) his foot is swollen, slightly red between the toes. It's almost like the toes are drawn together too. It does not, at least at this point, look like bumble-foot. I can't seem to find any open wounds at all. There is that one dark spot on the pad that I wonder about, though it's hard to tell if it's open. Our thought is that it's a break or sprain/strain and I can't tell if there is any injury further up from the foot. He does always hold his foot tucked up into his body. I did see him trying to scratch with it yesterday and this morning though.

So he's isolated in a crate with a small moveable coop that I let him come out in during the day. He's eating and drinking fine. I did start him on a supplement (from Rooster Booster) just because of the stress he experienced and have been giving him 1/2 baby aspirin a day (which he takes like the best patient!) I soaked his foot (ok...used a wet warm compress because it was kind of hard to get him to hold his foot down in the container) with epsom salts and warm water yesterday. He seems to have perked up in the several days he's been at my home and even his crow is more robust this morning than it was two days ago. He's been enjoying some dandelion greens along with his food. He has some feather damage on his tail and possibly his wings.

My questions: How long should it take before this heals? If it doesn't and he does not regain the use of his leg (he's hopping on one leg right now) what can I expect? Can I introduce him to my flock or should I keep him separate? I just want to do what's best for him. How do you know if a chicken is in pain or miserable?

Here he is and some images of his foot, his chicken selfie, and him.







 
Noticed this evening that he's trying to use his leg to scratch at his food and the ground. He wasn't doing this before. Hoping he's on the mend.
 
Hard to tell but two things come to mind, either a puncture wound to the main pad or maybe he got the toe caught somewhere. Soaking it in epsom salts sure isn't going to hurt him any nor is the rooster booster. Could be that the other rooster just gave him a good thumping and he came out a bit worse for the wear. If he is improving with rest and tlc then I would just carry on and keep an eye on him if he was my roo. Sounds like he got lucky and found himself a good home and a loving owner. Good job!
 
Thanks microchick. That's kind of my thought too. I'll continue to assess the pad for bumble foot and will try to soak again tomorrow. I let home free range for about 15-20 minutes today and he really enjoyed it. He's my first roo ever after hearing my mom tell horror stories over the years about the mean toys she grew up with. I'm glad he isn't living to up that stereotype. :)
 
this sounds very similar to my RIR with what i eventually diagnosed with a broken toe. it took a full 2 weeks to heal. after daily soaks with epson salts and a regimen of baby aspirin she eventually started using her foot again after a week but the flock could still see she was injured. so i kept her separate for another week and after 2 weeks she was barely limping. only i noticed it .. the flock accepted her right back with no problems this time! check out the thread leg warm to the touch for pics on my girls leg. there was no bumble foot or any other signs. is the injured leg warm to the touch?
 
Hi Chicks4fun. Yes, his foot is warm to the touch. He's moving the leg a bit more today but the foot is still pretty immobile. I let him free range again while I did some work and he followed me around. So sweet! I'll see if I can find that thread and keep doing what I'm doing.
 
sounds like you doing all the right things! it will just take time. make sure he gets rest thats super important too . the leg needs to heal so limiting his space might speed up the healing process a bit! also you don't want him to use his leg if he doesn't need to. He may try to act normal to prevent the others from picking on him. this could cause him to work his leg to hard slowing down the healingl and possibly injuring it more. just my 2 cents :)
 
He's confined to a small cage (2x4ish) overnight and most of the day (with shavings, food, water)I let him out for about 1/2 hour each day to get some greens and sun. So he spends most of his time resting. I have a larger pen (3x5.5ish) that I put over his cage so he can come out at will during daylight if he wants. He has mostly stayed in the cage until today. At night I make sure she's secured well. He's not with any other chickens. My chicks are only 4weeks old. :)
 
After nearly 2 weeks post injury I'm not seeing much improvement other than him trying to scratch but unable to do. I'm wondering if his leg is injured further up as he seems to be unable to put it down/straighten it. Foot is still swollen. Still restricting his activity, giving aspirin, vitamins etc. I also thing he may have been frostbit at some point over the winter.

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