4 weeks, roo still not walking?

[spish]

about 4 weeks ago i wrote about how my small flock of bantams in quarantine got struck down with something which killed all but 2.
one chicken has been left with a slight limp but is back outside enjoying life..but im still left with another that although showing signs of improvement, still has no use of one leg. he was the worst off (except for the ones that died of course) he seemed to have lost all movement (could move wings or legs) he's gotten to the stage where he flaps his wings again and uses them as crutches to get around. one leg has also regained movement but the other still hangs there. if i squeeze the toes on that foot theres no reaction,

he's had 4 weeks of vitamins/electrolytes/high protein foods and daily therapy/massages on his legs. we've gotten to the point that he is back up and moving around (somewhat limping with a dead leg but at least he's mobile again)

what kind of life would a bantam have with one limp leg hanging under him all the time? will it ever get better? (it is not black and not freezing cold, but much colder than the other leg)

 

[CMV]

I am not sure what kind of life a chicken cam have with one working leg and one dead limb. Usually in a case like this vets will amputate the paralyzed limb, but I would not recommend you do that on your own, and I don't know how you feel about spending that much money on a chicken by taking it to a vet to perform an amputation. I think if you want to keep the bird you might consider rigging up some kind of harness to keep the leg tucked up under the body, so the bird can get around easier without having a leg dragging around on the ground. The leg dragging is a serious liability interfering with mobility and at risk for infection from wounds and circulation problems.

I don't think that I personally would keep a bird around like that unless it were a treasured pet. I would probably cull the bird because it wouldn't stand a chance of surviving long term where I am at.

Good luck with him.

 

[spish]

he's not a treasured pet to be honest, i have his surviving brother outside who is identical in looks (with only a minor limp as a result of whatever this illness was)

im wondering though whether to give it another few weeks or not. hes gone from totally imobile to being able to get around in 4 weeks..i wonder if another 4 weeks would help? id feel rally bad putting him to sleep after he's made this much progress, but on the other hand am not willing to spend so much money on getting his limpy leg taken off (sorry if that sounds cruel but with over 100+ other chickens to care for those few hundred euros make a huge dent in the ol' chicken funds)

i still dont know what caused it (infection? botulisim? mareks????? something else? but it killed 8 and paralysed 2 over 3 days) so am unsure how long it takes to 'cure' and heal.

just feel bad for the wee fella, he has such a lust for life but could never live outside like this, he'd be dead meat for sure in hours!

 

[Miss Lydia]

If you can and have the patience why not give him a little more time, just might be taking this wee one a little longer to get back on it's feet.