Barred rock stopped walking

[DanaMarie]

My 4 year old barred rock hen stopped walking. She had been sitting a little more than usual but I thought it was due to the heat and her larger size. She is eating, drinking, pooping, preening and is very alert. I spoke with someone that thought she might have a vitamin deficiency since her toes are curled at times. She also holds her feet up a bit when sitting. I started giving her Enfamil Polyvisol multivitamin drops last month along with crushed B12 and have been providing more foods that contain B12 and riboflavin. She hasn’t made much progress and can only squat briefly and shimmy a distance of about 6 feet. It has been a month now and I don’t know what else I can do to get her walking again. I’d appreciate any helpful advice that you might have!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

What do the bottom of her feet look like?
Does she lays eggs? When was the last time she laid an egg?
Feel her abdomen for bloat/swelling or fluid. At her age, she may have a reproductive disorder like EYP, cancer, tumors or similar. Sometimes there may be a mass pressing on the nerves of the leg making it difficult to stand.

You can try placing her is a sling to make her more comfortable. If she's not been walking for a month, her hocks are probably pretty sore - it would be good to look at those to see if the tissue is breaking down. I would also look underneath her to make sure she's doesn't have any breast or keel bone blisters.

There are a lot of images on google if you search for chicken sling, but here's an example of one.

 

[ElizaChick]

Have you looked at articles on Bumblefoot yet? Check out symptoms and see if she has the spots on her feet.

 

[DanaMarie]

What do the bottom of her feet look like?
Does she lays eggs? When was the last time she laid an egg?
Feel her abdomen for bloat/swelling or fluid. At her age, she may have a reproductive disorder like EYP, cancer, tumors or similar. Sometimes there may be a mass pressing on the nerves of the leg making it difficult to stand.

You can try placing her is a sling to make her more comfortable. If she's not been walking for a month, her hocks are probably pretty sore - it would be good to look at those to see if the tissue is breaking down. I would also look underneath her to make sure she's doesn't have any breast or keel bone blisters.

There are a lot of images on google if you search for chicken sling, but here's an example of one.

 

[DanaMarie]

Thank you for your reply. The bottoms of her feet look ok. I already soaked her and removed some small scabs last month thinking it was a case of Bumblefoot. She was a decent layer but started slowing down in August which I figured was due to the days getting shorter. She hasn’t laid any eggs in almost 2 months. I will check her underneath some more and look into a sling.
Thank you for your help

 

[DanaMarie]

Have you looked at articles on Bumblefoot yet? Check out symptoms and see if she has the spots on her feet.

Yes, I’ve already assessed her for that by soaking her and removing the small scabs on her feet. I initially thought that was the problem but they weren’t infected so nothing drained from those areas.
Thanks!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you for your reply. The bottoms of her feet look ok. I already soaked her and removed some small scabs last month thinking it was a case of Bumblefoot. She was a decent layer but started slowing down in August which I figured was due to the days getting shorter. She hasn’t laid any eggs in almost 2 months. I will check her underneath some more and look into a sling.
Thank you for your help

If she hasn't laid eggs in a while, then I would suspect a reproductive disorder, which one it would be hard to know unless you lose her and there is a necropsy performed (either by you or your state lab).

Sadly, if she's been immobile for a month or so, then she may not recover. Keeping her comfortable sometimes is all you can do while you evaluate the quality of life that she has.

http://www.theveterinaryexpert.com/backyard-poultry/egg-yolk-peritonitis/

 

[DanaMarie]

If she hasn't laid eggs in a while, then I would suspect a reproductive disorder, which one it would be hard to know unless you lose her and there is a necropsy performed (either by you or your state lab).

Sadly, if she's been immobile for a month or so, then she may not recover. Keeping her comfortable sometimes is all you can do while you evaluate the quality of life that she has.

http://www.theveterinaryexpert.com/backyard-poultry/egg-yolk-peritonitis/

Thank you again. I checked her hocks and one of them seems larger in comparison to the other. I don’t know if that’s due to an injury or something else. I saw her walk a bit today when my other hen was pecking her backside. She has a small bare spot due to molting and probably from sitting so much. I’ve been spraying it with Blue Kote to deter the other hen. Regardless, she will walk briefly and then sit down as soon as she can, often tipping forward on her beak. However, she only relocates herself a couple times a day. Otherwise I’ve been moving her in and out of the coop in the morning and at night.
I’ve been adding half of a crushed Bayer baby aspirin to her Cool Whip container of water on a daily basis. I hope it’s not harmful to her organs.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you again. I checked her hocks and one of them seems larger in comparison to the other. I don’t know if that’s due to an injury or something else. I saw her walk a bit today when my other hen was pecking her backside. She has a small bare spot due to molting and probably from sitting so much. I’ve been spraying it with Blue Kote to deter the other hen. Regardless, she will walk briefly and then sit down as soon as she can, often tipping forward on her beak. However, she only relocates herself a couple times a day. Otherwise I’ve been moving her in and out of the coop in the morning and at night.
I’ve been adding half of a crushed Bayer baby aspirin to her Cool Whip container of water on a daily basis. I hope it’s not harmful to her organs.

The aspirin is fine if she's drinking the water. Sometimes aspirin is bitter and they won't drink. Dosage for aspirin is five 325mg (5grain) aspirin dissolved in 1 gallon of water, so to make a quart I would dissolve at least one 325mg aspirin in a quart of water, see if the dosage makes a difference, you can also sweeten the water a bit with honey to make it more palatable.

If she's got swelling in the hock, putting her in a sling for short periods of time throughout the day may help reduce that if the cause if from laying/putting pressure on the joint since she's not moving as much.

 

[DanaMarie]

Thank you again. I checked her hocks and one of them seems larger in comparison to the other. I don’t know if that’s due to an injury or something else. I saw her walk a bit today when my other hen was pecking her backside. She has a small bare spot due to molting and probably from sitting so much. I’ve been spraying it with Blue Kote to deter the other hen. Regardless, she will walk briefly and then sit down as soon as she can, often tipping forward on her beak. However, she only relocates herself a couple times a day. Otherwise I’ve been moving her in and out of the coop in the morning and at night.
I’ve been adding half of a crushed Bayer baby aspirin to her Cool Whip container of water on a daily basis. I hope it’s not harmful to her organs.

OK

The aspirin is fine if she's drinking the water. Sometimes aspirin is bitter and they won't drink. Dosage for aspirin is five 325mg (5grain) aspirin dissolved in 1 gallon of water, so to make a quart I would dissolve at least one 325mg aspirin in a quart of water, see if the dosage makes a difference, you can also sweeten the water a bit with honey to make it more palatable.

If she's got swelling in the hock, putting her in a sling for short periods of time throughout the day may help reduce that if the cause if from laying/putting pressure on the joint since she's not moving as much.[/