Deformed toes

[BarnGoddess01]

I have an Easter Egger hen with deformed toes. She was fine at birth. I first noticed them "curling" at one month of age. They were severely curled at 2 months. She is now a year old and I've hatched two of her eggs. I'm wondering if she's likely to pass this on. Is there something congenital that can cause this or did she get injured and I missed it? Anybody have any opinions or experience with something like this? She was never lame. She is active, vigourous, and apparently healthy. Always has been. (I'm am fighting a constant battle with bumblefoot in the knuckle in one of those bad toes now. Don't know if that's related or not. And that foot is TOUGH to bandage!)

One month old

Two months old (and pretty much how it looks now at one year)

 

[Equilibrium]

I can't answer your question however I have one chick that's a few days old that has two curved toes on one foot. They're not straightening out but... they're not curling any more and I've been taking photos for comparison. The chick seems to get around as well, if not better, than the other chicks that are about the same age. It was a large chick. I suspect those toes got curled in the egg somehow. I have two questions for you if you have a spare moment; does your hen seem to suffer any discomfort from her deformed toes and is she able to get around well enough? Thank you if you can answer those questions for me.

 

[BarnGoddess01]

Quote:
I don't mind answering at all. "Meg" is just over a year old now and gets around absolutely fine. Always has. No issues with roosting or getting up into our VERY high nest boxes either. She LOVES to run as well. And she's an awesome layer. The only issue I have with her bent toes is that she seems to be susceptible to "bumblefoot" in that knuckle. It isn't meant to take all the weight of that leg but I think it does and as a free-ranging hen, that toe gets a workout on the ground. It's also a REALLY tough foot to bandage because of the bent toes. She doesn't seem to have passed it on either. Her two chicks are now 5 weeks old and they have perfect toes.

Funny thing with Meg, her toes were perfect for the first two weeks. They didn't start curling until well into her third week. I've heard that some folks with chicks as young as yours will often splint the foot to force the toes to straighten out. I believe they use bandaids. You might want to look into that.

 

[Equilibrium]

Oh thank you so much for letting me know she gets around just fine and doesn't seem to be in any pain. I noticed the toes the minute the chick was dried off and fluffy and I took a photo right then and there. I've been taking photos in the morning and at night to compare and they're not getting any worse. I did a search for deformed toes after I found your thread and found a fantastic how-to thread on splinting the toes complete with excellent step-by-step photos. I'm definitely going to try it. Lord knows I have all the materials here on hand. I'm going to try it tomorrow when there's good light. Right now the sun is setting and their feet are so darn little I'd rather wait.
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Thanks so much for taking the time to let me know Meg is perfectly fine except for a little "cosmetic" issue.