Chicken with no legs??

[Serenity Lane]

I have a tiny silver sebright cockerel. He's about 5 months old and weighs less than 2 pounds. Wednesday night I noticed him hiding in a corner in my chicken coop so I picked him up to see what was wrong. I immediately noticed frostbite on the toes of his left foot. I brought him inside then, upon closer inspection, I noticed a break in his right leg, right below where the meat stops. I wrapped his broken leg to splint/support it. Friday, I came home to find that his left leg had broken in the same place. There was no outside trauma I'm sure, because he was in a cat carrier all by himself. The breaks in his legs were so bad last night that I decided it would be best to clip the small piece of skin that was still holding on..

So now my poor guy has no legs! I've been giving metacam for pain and baytril. I don't want to put him down if he can live like this but I don't want to make his life miserable either. I've heard plenty about 1 legged chickens but what about no legged chickens? Is it possible?

FIY - If I do nurse him through this he will be a house chicken. I would never expect him to be outside unattended for fear of him being easy prey.

Any/all advice/input would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Serenity Lane]

Update.. Fred is doing much better with his balance. He actually took his first forward steps tonight. It was very exciting! We've been doing short sessions of physical therapy where I've tried to get him to walk forward to get treats.. He always stretched his neck out but never took a step. Tonight, he was on the floor eating so I sat in the recliner and watched. When he was done eating, he slowly walked toward me.. He wanted me to pick him up. I love seeing him get better and progress!! ((Proud chicken Mama!))

 

[Serenity Lane]

Funny story.. Today somebody came to my house, the dogs barked as they always do when they hear somebody coming to my door, Fred joined them with a very quiet crow. As soon as they saw who it was and stopped barking, Fred stopped crowing. I now have 2 watch dogs and a watch rooster.. LOL

 

[ten chicks]

I have heard of people having house chickens, but what are you going to do when he really starts crowing as he gets bigger?

Contrary to what people may think,when roosters are in the house they actually get on a schedule. I have several roosters in my home at any given time,due to severe cold weather. I have 4 silkie roosters with hens in a mudroom off kitchen turned into a coop/run,with 2 orpington girls. My 2 orpington boys when in the house,sleep on cat trees in my hallway. They never crow until a light is turned on in the morning.,example if someone is up at 6 am they will crow(silkies only,orpington boys crow way less,light goes off they go back to sleep) They may crow periodically during day,but this is primarily when the dogs start barking and then i tell them to be quiet and it works,they all look at me and stop,dogs included. Occasionally they will crow to each other just to check and see where everyone is,but the silkies do most of the crowing,when the orpingtons get tired of hearing them,they let out one crow each and then the silkie roosters are quiet,i have found they crow less in home than outside.

 

[TRChickenRanch]

I had the same thoughts about Frosty and whether I did the right thing saving her and not putting her down. I wondered if it was selfish of me to put her through this but now I have no doubts at all that I did the right thing. She is so happy, healthy and well adjusted I wouldn't change it for anything.
The best part now is seeing her little personality developing as she heals and grows, something we wouldn't see if she was in the coop with the other chickens.
I wouldn't want all the chickens in the house lol but it's been educating and interesting none the less.
Frosty looked just like your guy with his little nubs wrapped. Before you know it he will be healed and won't need his bandages.

Good Job!!!

 

[Serenity Lane]

I think you know he has special needs and have already decided he would be a house pet when he recovers. You won't have to worry about spiders in the house.  From the picture he looks good, a lil pale but I am too after recovering from surgery. As long as you and he are able to handle his new life I don't see a problem. You are giving him a chance to live. 

As for the Vet I have seen them give thumbs down on many animals that live with disabilities. A Roo on stumps can be a happy bird, just getting the healing done is the difficult part. I support you on your choice. So what you name him?

Thank you for your support. I've actually been in a similar situation with one of my cats.. 2 years ago I found him with a broken femur (high break, near his pelvis) and his leg skinned really bad from about 2 inches above his hock to 2 inches below, exposing his joint and tendons/ligaments. He was in BAD shape. It was recommended that I euthanize him but I decided to treat. After his initial 3 day stay in the hospital he was pretty much stable so I brought him home. After 3+ months of him living in a large rabbit cage in my living room, getting medication multiple times daily and us going to the vet every other day to sedate him for bandage changes, enough had healed that I could change his dressing at home with him awake. I had planned to have FHO surgery done but by the time his hock healed, his femur fused back together and surgery was no longer recommended. Today, almost 2 years from his injury, you can hardly tell he had been hurt. I'm sure glad I didn't give up on him!

So yea, there's my answer. I'm going to do what I think is right and not let anyone get in my head!

As far as a name.. My son's been calling him "Little Chicken".. I've just been calling him Fred.

 

[Serenity Lane]

aw, i think he looks great! if he seems chipper to you, i think he'll do just fine as a house pet. we don't put people to sleep just because they're missing legs. tip: get him a diaper when he decides to tumble around the house and avoid accidents, LOL.

He already has a diaper.. It works great and he really doesn't seem to mind it!

 

[Serenity Lane]

Keep trucking cause once he is healed we can figure out how to get him some legs..

Thanks for your support! I was already trying to figure out what I could use as legs for him. Best I came up with was spoons, banged flat and shaped properly to make stable "feet" and the handles bent and shortened to be the part of his legs that he's missing.

 

[Serenity Lane]

Great job on caring for him. The reason most vets recommend euthanizing chickens is b/c they do not view them as pets. Many dogs live with one or two legs missing and have yet to find someone who thinks this is cruel. It is all a matter of perspective,you view your chickens as pets(i view mine as pets also and would have done the exact same thing)so for you this is the right decision.

Best advice,pay no attention to what others say,only matters if the decision you made feels right to you and in your case i believe you have made the right decision for your boy,he looks very content and happy.

Very true. I can't tell you how many times I've heard "he's just a chicken." Yea, but he's a chicken that I've raised since he hatched last August. Whatever.. Some people just can't/won't understand. I have compassion for all living creatures, even if they're "just chickens."

Thanks for your support!

 

[Redriverranchmn]

My FB friends chicken! In a wheel chair!