Help--Look at this pic of chick's hock joint--To cull or not to cull?

Our chick arrived from the hatchery with this problem that looks like a deformity. Its hock joint is very enlarged. It will not use that leg to walk on. Hobbles around using the other foot.

Is there ANY way to fix this? Seems like the bandaid splint technique wouldn't work in this situation. Doesn't seem like a slipped joint.

Chick seems to be a fighter but I don't think it's getting as much food & water as it should. Stays sitting down or lying down most of the time. Hard to get a good pic but hopefully it'll help!

Please let me know if you've seen this before. My kids are now attached to this poor crippled chick!

Here's another picture:

it probably got pulled when in the hatchery brooder or was that way out of the egg shell
you might make a shoe for it like DCT's article says try the hobble brace as it will make the chicks leg come down as it is holding it up
THIS DOES WORK

Here is my friend DCTownsend's help on the matter read the one that fits you best
Orthopedics for Poultry Made Easy for Beginners
ORTHOPEDICS FOR POULTRY MADE EASY FOR BEGINNERS
By D.C. Townsend

These treatments have been tested and proven effective. I developed them for peafowl but they
may be used for any poultry. The key to success is to begin treatment promptly. In some cases delay will kill or cripple the chick

HOBBLE BRACE
ACHILLES TENDON OUT OF THE GROOVE
When the Achilles tendon slips out of the groove on the hock joint, a peachick will not be able to
straighten its leg. The problem needs prompt attention because the struggling peachick will put
its weight on the hock joint which will damage the skin and cause swelling in the joint. The tendon
can be pushed back in place with just one finger or a very gentle squeeze between the thumb and index
finger. Sometimes just one treatment will give a complete cure that seems like a miracle. Other
times several treatments are needed. Stubborn cases require advanced treatment that is too difficult to
explain here. I treated both legs of a peachick for two weeks; She grew up to be a healthy peahen.

CROOKED TOES
Sometimes a peachick hatches with toes rolled into a fist. They may straighten out on their own
in the first day of life. If they do not do so, I make a CHICK SHOE (see illustration below) from
black pipe cleaner available in the crafts department at Wal-Mart. I use black ones because
bright colors are more likely to be pecked by other peachicks. One packet of Westrim Crafts Chenille
stems costs 89 cents and will last for years. Any kind of half inch wide tape can be used to attach the CHICK SHOE to the toes, but I prefer Johnson and Johnson First Aid clear tape. I cut a piece a quarter inch long for the middle toe. I cut another piece the same length and split into two quarter inch-wide pieces for the other toes. Eight hours of treatment is usually enough time to end the problem on a day-old peachick.

CHICK SHOE
Not Actual Size
HALF SHOE
Not Actual Size
In the 1995 hatch, I had a number of peachicks with a kink in the outer toe of one or both feet.
They were well past a week old when I decided that I must do something about it. I made HALF SHOES of black pipe cleaner. I tore off a quarter inch-wide stripe of duck tape several inches long and secured
the HALF SHOE to the middle and the outer toe. Several days of treatment were needed. Some of the
HALF SHOES came off and had to be taped on again, but all treated peachicks had straight toes at the
end of the treatment. There is a young peacock that I missed treating. Now it is too late and he will
always have a kink in his outer toe.

STRADDLE LEGS
This problem can occur even if you take the precaution of having quarter inch hardware cloth
under your peachicks. Sometimes it is caused by the struggles of a chick with its toes rolled into
fists. In that case, both problems must be treated at the same time. I cut a piece of tape four or
five inches long and from the HOBBLE BRACE with the legs far enough apart so that the peachick can walk. The tape must go the whole way around and cover its sticky side so that it does not stick to the
peachick's fuzz when it sits down. Usually 24 hours of treatment is sufficient, but sometimes more is
required. CHICK SHOES and the HOBBLE BRACE can be used at the same time.

Also I would treat the chick for the nervous system also
basically she has some nerve damage need neurolodigal vit E and Vit B complex for nervous disorder

you will however NEED to take a eye dropper to feed the first Vit's to the chick

(1 and feed the chicks water with apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp to pt of water
Do this till after the chicks is better. Should be able to put the ACV water in a small waterer for the chick

(2 immediately give the chick 1000 mg capsule of liquid Vit E by cutting the end of the capsule and taking the vit E capsule and let the oil run into the chickens beak

(3 also need to crush a vit B complex pill in a tbsp and put it into a tsp of water and put it in the chicks beak after it is disolved
Do both Vit's twice today then for 7 days till you see some improvement in the chick

then give twice a week for two weeks should see much improvement

(4 generally the shock of a event like having a bad time coming out of the egg or in the brooder will cause chicks to have this nerve damage

(5 after today I would see if the chick will eat a fix half of this tonight and see if the chick will eat it i 20-30 minutes

You will need to be patient and help the chick eat the wet mash and vitamins

natural probiotic wet mash
2 tsp of dry crumbles
4 tsp of milk sweet, sour or buttermilk
1 tbsp of non flavored yogurt
mix good and put the
vit E liquid as directed in the wet mash
and crumble the Vit B complex tablet in a tabsp and add to the wet mash

(6 Do this twice a day for 7 days to see if the chicken is better
then do this once a day for another week then once a week for a while
this should give the nervous system some stability

(7
you can email by PM for more information and include this inf so I remember what is happening

I called a local chicken farmer I know of and she said she kept a chicken with this problem and although she lived for a while (more than a year), she walked on her hocks the whole time and eventually got gangreen in her legs & she had her put to sleep. She said she does not attempt to keep the crippled ones anymore and recommended culling.

Our chick's leg also twitches more than the other one. That makes me think nerve damage which I believe is irreparable. Chick also feels thinner than the others.

Hello,
I have a keet that has one bad leg. I have tried the hobbles (for over a week) with no success. So I looked further on this site and came across your post, I sure wish I saw it sooner. It looks like my baby has it's Achilles tendon out of the groove. I can actually see it. I tried to put it back but have not been able to do so. The keet is coming up on 3 weeks old is it too late to fix it???? If it's not too late, I would appreciate any help you could give me.
Thank you in advance for any help,
Marija

Quote:
If anyone can help with this, that would be super. I think our chick had a different problem than yours. We decided to cull. Maybe you could start a new topic with a picture? That would probably get you the most help. Good luck to you!

Thanks... I was hoping that "Glenda L Heywood
Chicken Obsessed " who had posted some of the remedies would be able to point me in the right direction. I will try to get some photos on.
Thanks again,
Marija

This sounds like my chick that is now perfectly fine. Please see the thread here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=201834

Here are the photos.