8 year old limping on one leg

[Yimyette]

Hey one of our old brown leghorn hens has developed a limp that has become more noticeable over the course of the past few months. Bumblefoot and mites are ruled out and she still has a normal appetite and droppings, but she is definitely in pain because nowadays she sits down alot on the ground or in the coop, to not use the leg I'm guessing (but still gives no second thought to chasing treat tossings)

I'm thinking its very possibly an injury? Or could it be infection? Because sometimes her tail is down too, but not all the time. I don't think these older ones got enough calcium when they were laying a lot, because despite having been fed layer feed and oyster shells on the side, they never ate the oyster shells and their egg shells were often thin-ish/not that strong.. and I only just discovered a year ago that apparently it had something to do with the oyster shell brand for why they never ate it, because I swapped to a different popular brand and these old hens for the first time ever were gobbling it D: Alas it was a late discovery because they rarely lay anymore. I atleast want to alleviate the pain if it is injury. Probably doesn't help that the coop they use is an elevated high-jump type, where the ramp steps up are kind of useless in design (its that stereotypical tractor supply coop) She's so old I'm also worried about how stressed she'd get from a trip to the vet

Appreciate your time and any reply ^^

 

[azygous]

Could you make a video of her walking? Post to YouTube first, copy the URL and paste it here.

Have you inspected her legs for telltale faint green bruising? If she has slate legs it won't show up. How about swelling? Compare to the other leg.

It's possible for a heavy chicken to injure their legs when hopping off a too high perch. For this reason, many of us provide a perch just a few inches off the floor for those that really would rather not engage in gymnastics. Even two of my half-pints prefer the low perch.

Older chickens can develop arthritis as they grow older. A vet might be able to help with pain relief.

 

[texsuze]

She could also be showing arthritic symptoms from a Mycoplasma synoviae (?sp) infection. Been there, done that. If so, the mobility will likely get worse. You can have her tested for MG and MS, but right now I'd try to help her by providing places where she is safe (both from flock mates and predators), where she has easy ground-level access to food and water, and sleeping/living arrangements that Do Not involve jumping/climbing. For my mobility-challenged seniors and arthritic hens I've had to make modifications to both coops over time.