Meat birds going on 5 weeks and one is lame

[steveo]

Not sure if lame is the word I am looking for but one of my meat birds has had issues walking pretty much since I got them. This one bird still eats but is always laying down and only walks when it has to. The bird is probably only 2.5 to 3 pounds. I am not sure what to do with it. I don't know if I should let it be and see if it makes it to butcher day or butcher it now before it dies. The bird really does have a hard time walking and is really mellow. When I pick up any of the other birds they flap and squawk like crazy. When I pick up this one it just sits in my hands and looks at me and doesn't make a peep. What would you do?

 

[Daycare Mom]

I have one that has a bad leg, kind of the same thing. It is smaller and it only gets up to eat and drink. I am just going to let it be and see if I can get it to butcher day. I don't think it will die, because it is still eating and drinking on its own. If mine gets worse I will butcher it, although at this point it is so small it will only be a snack!

 

[dadof4]

I had this problem with mine this year. I processed a few of them out early, but I had two that were real weird. Their legs were stiff out if front of them. For a couple days they wouldn't walk and I had to make them drink. I moved them, put them on a lower protein food and watched them. In a week the were moving better and in two they were running(enter Forest Gump giggle). So I have seen it work either way. To be honest though I had planned on processing them out early too. I think they just got lucky.

Now if it just quit raining I could process some more. Good Luck.

 

[Big George]

I've got twenty cornish rocks for the first time this year. Mine are inside garage in a pen and they don't care to walk much either. This is why I din't move them a]out to the run as I thought I would. I 've kept the litter fresh and they are doing well. If bird is not in pain I'd say let him grow. If he can stay dry he might be fine. I processed 24 quail today and really wanted to do a meat bird too, but tomarrow is another....I've gone to Maine for the last fifteen summers and then I got chickens. Wish I was there.

 

[jaku]

Of my 53, I had one that would just lay around. When I went to move the pen, it would just let the PVC pieces run it over, then squawk when they did. It would also just let me pick it up, and wasn't grooming itself. I culled it. I figured, if it was sick, I didn't want to lose more to possibly save the one.