2.5 Week chick with Broken leg

[jma6004]

I currently have 23 Cornish X that are 18 days old. One is having some sort of leg issue. You can tell its hard to walk for her. She does get around to the feed and water. They currently have 4 sq ft per bird so space is not a problem. They also have two waterers and two big feeders. My point is she shouldn't have to fight for space. Will the leg improve if left alone? She's not big enough to butcher yet. I don't want to be cruel and let her suffer but she is eating and drinking well. I would try to separate her but I just can't see that doing any good considering how much space she has. The one with the leg problem is a smaller one of the bunch. I think maybe she just got injured by a bigger bird. I don't think it's a typical "too big for their legs" problem.

Also, I have one chick that is way way way smaller than the rest. Maybe about 25% the size. It appears fairly healthy. It fights for feeder space and eats and drinks. Any idea why it could SOOO small?

 

[sourland]

Very sadly, leg problems are part of raising cornish X. As long as she is getting around, eating, and drinking, I would not intervene just yet. Since the smaller chick appears to be healthy, is there any possibility that it is a different breed? Hatcheries/suppliers do sometimes mess up orders.

 

[jma6004]

The smaller one looks a lot like the Cornish X except smaller. I ordered from Welp I think they said they would not put a different breed but I guess it could happen.

For the leg injury I will just wait and see. I started with 26 and have lost 3 already. I'm just trying to keep my loses low. It's my first time so I don't know if I'm doing well or not. I will try to watch the leg closely.