3 month old rooster - is he weird?

[JenniMcChick]

Wow thanks for the insight! They certainly look a lot more like your cochin-of-sorts chicks than my other orps! The male is still VERY clumsy and worn out a lot. He still gets hoarse every afternoon and loses his voice. He spends much of his time laying down (and he still goes down face-first), I'm assuming because it's so tiring to keep his legs coordinated. He just looks so worn out - I hope he grows out of it, but I'm worried that his body won't be able to keep up and he'll just conk-out one day in the not-too-distant future.

Me, too!

May try giving him a little bit of R&R in a small "See but No Touch" space where he can stand up & turn around if need be, but not much else & see if it helps any. At this point, I figure it can't hurt.

The first day I put an old sheet over the wire dog crate & left about 6-8 inches open at the bottom so air could still flow through, but visually was pretty shielded from the others so didn't have to worry about what they were up to or protecting himself & could just rest for the remainder of that day through the following morning.

The following morning I completely exposed the side with the divider and opened the side door. That's when his sisters would climb in and lay in the crate with him, but he was still shielded by the divider.
Again, not sure it'll help, but pretty sure it won't hurt & might be worth a try. If for nothing else than to give him a bit of rest.

Wishing you & him the best!

 

[JenniMcChick]

Me, too!

May try giving him a little bit of R&R in a small "See but No Touch" space where he can stand up & turn around if need be, but not much else & see if it helps any. At this point, I figure it can't hurt.

The first day I put an old sheet over the wire dog crate & left about 6-8 inches open at the bottom so air could still flow through, but visually was pretty shielded from the others so didn't have to worry about what they were up to or protecting himself & could just rest for the remainder of that day through the following morning.

The following morning I completely exposed the side with the divider and opened the side door. That's when his sisters would climb in and lay in the crate with him, but he was still shielded by the divider.
Again, not sure it'll help, but pretty sure it won't hurt & might be worth a try. If for nothing else than to give him a bit of rest.

Wishing you & him the best!

Oh, and I'm sure you already know this, but: of course, make sure & place the crate in a shaded part of your run & that he has constant access to water. I wasn't nearly as concerned about food access so I put a small dish of feed in there a couple times a day & removed it when he lost interest so he didn't have to deal with pests (ants, etc).

Good luck!

 

[AnneCanne]

Update - I was watching his (still larger) feet closely yesterday while he was moving around on uneven ground and realized his toes don’t curl… at all. So when he takes a step, his toes stay completely straight and unengaged… which is why he is wearing flippers and why he still sleeps on the ground and why I’ve never seen him perch on anything. So I picked him up and put my finger under his foot to see if he would reflexively curl his toes around it. Zero response. So not sure if that’s going to resolve by “growing into his feet” like I had hoped.

 

[JenniMcChick]

I'm so sorry. I've never seen that & had no clue what it could be. So, of course, I googled it.

Obviously, I have NO idea if this is what is going on with your little guy, but at least it may serve as a starting point as you continue to try and find a way to help him.

A rooster's toes not curling could indicate a problem, particularly if they are meant to curl for perching or grasping. While some chickens may have naturally straighter toes, a lack of curling could be a sign of curled toe paralysis, often caused by riboflavin (vitamin B2) deficiency.