3 day old chick with a bad leg - photos

If someone can help I'd really appreciate it.

I have 4 baby chicks. They're 2 days old. I noticed this morning that one of them has a problem with his leg. From attempting to feather sex I believe he is a male.

Anyway, he can't seem to put any pressure on it. He hobbles around but can't keep up with the others. He is eating and drinking well though.

From searching around online I've read all kinds of advice. Everything from using pipe cleaners to splint his leg to that he needs to be humanely put down.

Please take a look at the pics and let me know what you think I should do.

If its eating and drinking good I would give it a chance. You could try splinting the leg (I hope someone else can tell you how bc I sure don't though, lol) I would definitely start adding some baby polyvisol vitamins in the water, or a poultry vitamin to help make him stronger. Good luck!

Maybe a slipped tendon. This may help: https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/poultry-podiatry

Harborgirl, I believe that's a curled or club foot. I had a little female chick last year with the same problem. I found lots of advice on this site but I'm not sure where! Yes, some people said to euthanize and they may have been looking down the road. The problem may be genetic - and passed on if you breed or let this chick mate and raise young. I went the other way. I put a children's vitamin supplement, PolyVisol (without iron) in the drinking water and tried a foot boot. (Somewhere on the site there are pictures of just how to do it). My Curly Foo (short for "curled foot!) made it just fine but her toes never straightened out. Today she is one of my favorite hens. She doesn't limp, she's a very good layer and she's one of the most personable chickens I own. I suppose the extra time I spent on her and all the handling paid off in a way! I'm glad I didn't put her down. I did everything that was suggested but nothing seemed to help. If you don't have extra time to spend on one chick, then consider culling. I just couldn't do it - my flock is small and I had time to spend on her. Be aware that your affected chick may never get better. That means that it will have a handicap the rest of it's life. Perching/roosting at night may be difficult for it. It may need constant attention. Most people don't want a handicapped chick, especially if it's a rooster so finding a new home may be hard. My Curly Foo lives a good life and she seems happy. Unless you really looked for it, you would never know that her toes curl on one foot. She can run just as fast as any hen! I think the world of her! My flock came from eggs I hatched and they all grew up together so she was never picked on. Sometimes the more dominant chickens will target a lesser member and make it's life miserable so you need to watch out for that when your chicks reach maturity, around 5 - 6 months. You have a lot to consider. I can't tell you what you should do, only tell you that in my case, euthanizing was not right for me and today I think I made the right choice. If you do a search on the site you'll find lots of advice about the problem. It comes down to how you feel about culling and what you feel is the best thing to do. Be sure you don't use anything with iron. I think chickens can't handle extra iron and it makes them sick or something. Good luck whatever you choose.

Yes! I think you're right. From the pics I found it does look like a slipped tendon.

Oh boy, it seems I have my work cut out for me trying to help this little guy.

Thank you Phyrst. I will look into club foot.

I really don't want to put him down. I plan on doing what I can to help him.

UPDATE

This morning we straightened little guys leg - gently but firmly and then splinted it.

He's eating well and drinking and has a little sibling in with him.

I also went to our vet and got some antibiotics because his leg was all raw from him laying on it.

Once the splint was on, his toes straightened out just fine.

So is he standing and/or walking?

He stands and walks a bit. I think the splint is going to take some getting used to

Wow! I'm glad to hear that! When I had a chick with a slipped tendon, she couldn't walk at all or really stand up. She just scooted herself along.