Chicken not walking on leg

[Karissab]

Hello !


So one day last week I noticed my 1.5 yr old Red leghorn was not walking on her leg. After thorough inspection I noticed an area of her leg was inflamed / red and looked infected. I instantly began soaks & applying vetericyn 2x daily. Mind you I am a newbie chicken owner so I am completely thrown off by all this.

The area is now black. Today is the 4th day of treating her and she seems to be moving around (still not putting pressure on her leg unless she needs to) I do clean it up with a qtip after soaking her and I just get some red/orange color stuff on the qtip but not much. I did notice a cut though. I stared putting silvadene creme on after the vetericyn. She is starting to not like me to go near her because of this.

ALSO, I noticed that her comb was being pecked at by the other chickens (speckled sussex (5) and she hides from them when they come near her. I do think she got in a fight with one because one is missing wing feathers and tail feathers and it happened around the same time of the injury. I put peck no more on it but that doesn't seem to work. Today I found her buried under a tree trying to hide from the other girls in their run. I actually had to tear apart my run to get to her.

So I put in my coop some chicken wire to block off her own little section (she just won't get outside time but it's probably for the best right now) and she has her own food/water bowls - she is eating fine!

Any ideas what to do? I do have some pinless peepers on the way. She is one of my best layers and she falls asleep in my arms so culling is not an option.

1. Do you think over time she will walk on her leg again? How long should I be applying the stuff.
2. What do I do about these other girls? It's not just 1 bullying her.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Photos would be nice to see what you are dealing with....is it on the side of the leg or foot pad?

Cuts heal in time, and generally well. Rinsing with Chlorhexiderm or Vetricyn is helpful. Putting some antibiotic ointment on is helpful. Letting it alone to heal is helpful. Air does a lot to help things heal.

However, if this is on the foot pad you may have bumble foot, which does need to be cleaned, and the core removed.

I don't leap to a fight having started it, though that could have been how she was injured, as it is also about the time they molt, so the missing tail and wing feathers could be from molt. If this hen is hazed, she may have ran into something while trying to get away rather than direct pecking. That doesn't create cuts but typically tail feathers removed, nips marks, and such.

I don't know that you need pinless peepers if you haven't had issues before...although you can certainly try them. Those are mainly for caged birds in commercial batteries that are sitting on top of each other to prevent cannibalism.

Any injured bird will typically be picked upon by the other birds due to flock hazing mentality....push off the weak and injured to avoid luring predators. I think putting her in her own area is an excellent idea while she heals.

If you have an overly aggressive hen, I typically deal with that one rather than the submissive one. If all the other hens are hazing her, then you may need to keep her separate permanently if she is timid and on the bottom rung. Sometimes that messes with their heads so much that they never are able to work up from the bottom. Being as she is more pet like, perhaps she simply needs to be more pet.

In my flock, over the years, I have culled out the aggressive types so that my flock is pretty chill. There is no need for blood drawn or aggressive hazing. You will get some normal flock tussles as to who gets to eat first, but nobody should be ostracized terribly.

Post some photos of what you are dealing with as to the cut. Reintroduction may go better once she has healed. If not, then you either need to deal with the aggressor or rethink her place with the flock.

My thoughts.
Lofmc

 

[FarmerGirl101]

Welcome to BYC! Pictures would help

 

[Karissab]

Photos would be nice to see what you are dealing with....is it on the side of the leg or foot pad?

Cuts heal in time, and generally well. Rinsing with Chlorhexiderm or Vetricyn is helpful. Putting some antibiotic ointment on is helpful. Letting it alone to heal is helpful. Air does a lot to help things heal.

However, if this is on the foot pad you may have bumble foot, which does need to be cleaned, and the core removed.

I don't leap to a fight having started it, though that could have been how she was injured, as it is also about the time they molt, so the missing tail and wing feathers could be from molt. If this hen is hazed, she may have ran into something while trying to get away rather than direct pecking. That doesn't create cuts but typically tail feathers removed, nips marks, and such.

I don't know that you need pinless peepers if you haven't had issues before...although you can certainly try them. Those are mainly for caged birds in commercial batteries that are sitting on top of each other to prevent cannibalism.

Any injured bird will typically be picked upon by the other birds due to flock hazing mentality....push off the weak and injured to avoid luring predators. I think putting her in her own area is an excellent idea while she heals.

If you have an overly aggressive hen, I typically deal with that one rather than the submissive one. If all the other hens are hazing her, then you may need to keep her separate permanently if she is timid and on the bottom rung. Sometimes that messes with their heads so much that they never are able to work up from the bottom. Being as she is more pet like, perhaps she simply needs to be more pet.

In my flock, over the years, I have culled out the aggressive types so that my flock is pretty chill. There is no need for blood drawn or aggressive hazing. You will get some normal flock tussles as to who gets to eat first, but nobody should be ostracized terribly.

Post some photos of what you are dealing with as to the cut. Reintroduction may go better once she has healed. If not, then you either need to deal with the aggressor or rethink her place with the flock.

My thoughts.
Lofmc

Do you think she would get lonely if I do separate her but keep her in the coop? I feel like it’s not just one bully picking on her because I watched several girls go up and peck her.

I have attached a photo. This was the first day. It’s now black. I did notice a little crack under the area but it’s hard to get a picture when it’s just me.

 

[Flockandfowl46]

In the photo is that injury the entire circumference of the leg...she almost looks like she had a string or other object embedded in her leg causing infection...i highly recommend a vet to debrade that tissue and see what if anything she has wrapped around there she also could have gotten stuck in something sorry your dealing with this hun

 

[Karissab]

Well the red area is the “injury” I think. I unfortunately have no vets near me that will care for a chicken. I have medical background so I have been debrieding the area myself (as I know that’ll help new tissue heal) and when I do that I get no discharge or such but I did notice a little slice that is clean

 

[Karissab]

The wound is only on the front part of the leg

 

[Lady of McCamley]

It is so hard to try to diagnose through photos second hand, so I can only offer an array of suggestions.

Are you absolutely sure her leg was fine one day and then injured the next? Did it start with a noticeable cut on flat, healthy scales?

If so, then what you are doing is likely to help. And, to me, it looks like something may be embedded in it. If there is infection, you can try getting Fish Moxol (amoxicillin) or oral Tylan. It may be time for antibiotics.

As another poster suggested, it is also possible it could be a sting or bite. (What kind of snakes or spiders do you have in the area?)

If you are not sure that this happened suddenly, have you considered a bad area of scaly leg mites that is now infected? Those will raise up the scales and can cause quite a bit of irritation. To rid scaly leg mites systemically, use Ivermectin (cattle pour on, 5 drops applied to base of neck at skin level or below vent).

Or you can soak the leg in gasoline (I've not tried that but have read it is effective), or apply Vaseline. It can take a few weeks for that to go away with repeated applications of Vaseline.

As to how happy she will be. If she is not happy in the flock, she will be happier elsewhere. Is it possible to choose a mild hen to keep her company? Or if she is more pet, she may be happy hanging out on your porch keeping you company. Chickens are individual creatures. While most like the flock, if they aren't doing well, some are okay being alone. (I had a Silkie hen like that.)

My thoughts.
LofMc

 

[Karissab]

Now I’m wondering if it could be scaly leg mites? This photo

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I have not read the whole thread, but just looking at your photos quickly, it could also be cancer.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/rooster-leg-injury-plus-leg-mites.1215397/