12 day old CX with stiff leg. what to expect?

[NorthwoodsChick]

just shy of 2 weeks old in with 30 others-lots of space. I noticed today he was walking with limp, one leg held stiffly out to side about 15-20 degrees, knee a little swollen. No resistance to passive movement and knee bends so doesn’t seem to hurt. He can stand and moves but hobbles slow to and from feed-waterers.

Is this the type of leg problems cornish cross can get or could this be injury from jumping off brooder plates, zinging across the floor?
If I can get some weight on him and keep him otherwise healthy I may cull him for a cornish game size, unless others have different advice.

 

[AidKD]

I dealt with this with a few of my meat birds. I soaked their legs in epsom salt water about once a day, gave arnica in their food for swelling, a tincture for swollen and sore joints, and rubbed a joint and muscle soother on their legs a couple times a day. After a couple weeks of doing that, they made a full recovery!

 

[NorthwoodsChick]

I dealt with this with a few of my meat birds. I soaked their legs in epsom salt water about once a day, gave arnica in their food for swelling, a tincture for swollen and sore joints, and rubbed a joint and muscle soother on their legs a couple times a day. After a couple weeks of doing that, they made a full recovery!

Thanks. I will consider that. They are getting feed 24/7 still. Do you think its too early to switch to 12 on/ 12 off feed- if it will help prevent others from leg injury? They do stand to eat and drink.

 

[AidKD]

Thanks. I will consider that. They are getting feed 24/7 still. Do you think its too early to switch to 12 on/ 12 off feed- if it will help prevent others from leg injury? They do stand to eat and drink.

I don't think it would make a difference, honestly. I believe it to be just how meat birds are with how they're bred to grow so fast and produce so much meat in such a short time. I think mine were just at 2 weeks when it started happening to them.

 

[NorthwoodsChick]

I don't think it would make a difference, honestly. I believe it to be just how meat birds are with how they're bred to grow so fast and produce so much meat in such a short time. I think mine were just at 2 weeks when it started happening to them.

oh boy. Ok- I’ll keep an eye out for this now that I know what to look for. thanks!!

 

[HenriettaPizzaNolan]

This is not a scientifically-informed post because I don't know why it works, but I've heard of some people curing lameness/leg issues with vitamin B12 supplements. You can get the liquid form at the farm store. It's worth a shot since it won't harm them even if it doesn't fix the leg problem. Just make sure you follow the directions on the bottle. I actually supplemented my last batch of CX with a small amount of B12 in their water every other day just as a preventative measure and they did well.

 

[FunClucks]

If you want to try the B12, you can get human B Complex from the store and crush up the tablet, and put it in the water. You can't overdose, they just eliminate any they don't use. It also won't hurt the other chickens if they drink the water too. It takes about a month to work if you do this, and you'd need to change the water frequently (every day?).

There's other ways to treat with B12, but that's the one I'm familiar with.

Sounds like your CX injured its leg somehow. I'd put it in look-no-touch isolation if you can (large wire dog crate in covered run) for a week or so to keep it from being jostled and having to compete with other chickens for food and water. Or you can put it somewhere else to isolate if needed - at 2-3 weeks reintroduction for CX shouldn't be so bad maybe?

CX leg issues usually present as them not being able to stand, laying on their hocks, not standing up on their feet, and the one I've seen happened around 7 weeks. From your description sounds like a sprained joint, slipped tendon, or injured/bruised leg/joint. Pics might help us narrow it down?

 

[Isadora]

I don't think it would make a difference, honestly. I believe it to be just how meat birds are with how they're bred to grow so fast and produce so much meat in such a short time. I think mine were just at 2 weeks when it started happening to them.

I disagree with this.
OP, This sounds far more like a leg injury than it does due to overfeeding or "just how Cornish crosses are". I have raised several batches of meat birds and done the limited quantity method and have never had one that had leg issues like some people describe, i.e. Cornish cross are just so massive and eat so much that they must certainly have leg problems due to genetics.
Not saying we had the most athletic birds ever or anything, but certainly reducing their feeds that are not getting food all the time can help prevent mobility issues.

 

[NorthwoodsChick]

This is not a scientifically-informed post because I don't know why it works, but I've heard of some people curing lameness/leg issues with vitamin B12 supplements. You can get the liquid form at the farm store. It's worth a shot since it won't harm them even if it doesn't fix the leg problem. Just make sure you follow the directions on the bottle. I actually supplemented my last batch of CX with a small amount of B12 in their water every other day just as a preventative measure and they did well.

I think your post was scientific, even if you didn’t realize it. B12 deficiency leads to neuropathy and thus weakness. I added vitamins to their water for the first week. I will add some today. The chick is doing better so most likely strain injury but the B12 won’t hurt. Thank you so much for the reminder to use it

 

[NorthwoodsChick]

I disagree with this.
OP, This sounds far more like a leg injury than it does due to overfeeding or "just how Cornish crosses are". I have raised several batches of meat birds and done the limited quantity method and have never had one that had leg issues like some people describe, i.e. Cornish cross are just so massive and eat so much that they must certainly have leg problems due to genetics.
Not saying we had the most athletic birds ever or anything, but certainly reducing their feeds that are not getting food all the time can help prevent mobility issues.

I have had them on a 12 hr feed schedule for about 3 days now. Chick is doing better.

They are growing so fast!!! I am amazed.
thx for your help—these lil guys are fun