Bertha is hurt!!!!

[oesdog]

When I went out this morning to let my girls out there was a lot of flapping going on inside the coop.
Once I opend up they all came trotting out as usual except my Bertha who was hobbling !!!! I can;t see anything wrong with her leg. She puts it to the ground and tried to walk on it. Its fine for a bit but then she just lays down. I tried to have a good look at it and felt all round. IT seems to be paining her a lot because when I did that her little beak came open and she was panting like mad. I brought her out into the yard with me and she got yogurt and banana bread for a treat and she got vitamins in her water.
Tonight she couldn;t get on to perch and so she is sleeping in a nest box. - It was really cute because Florrance was sleeping in the nest box beside her and wouldn;t leave her to go roost! I am worried DH says its not broke or she wouldn;t stand on it at all. He said the foot looks a bit swollen. What is best to do with her????????


Oesdog - Bertha is my best girl!

 

[dawg53]

Most likely Bertha has jumped down from a high roost or some other high place and has sprained or pulled a tendon or ligament, maybe a bruise of some sort. In any case she should be seperated and placed in a cage/crate in view of your other chickens. She needs plenty of rest and relation and kept off her injured leg giving it time to heal. Allowing her to try and walk on it could possibly injure it worse. These types of injuries take time to heal. I've seen them heal within a weeks time, several months, or never. I had a Black Star hen that never healed, but was able to hobble around on one leg and even lay an egg. I had to keep her away from the other chickens because they picked on her relentlessly. I kept her in a seperate pen and she was as happy as could be. You can purchase vitamin B complex and crush a few pills into powder and sprinkle it on her feed, it might help her heal quicker. Do this for 5 days then check for any improvement. If there isnt any, repeat for another 5 days then stop completely. If there is any abnormal poop...diarhhea, stop the Vitamin B complex and discontinue. When you cage/crate her, ensure she has her feed and water with her. Good luck.

 

[Yay Chicks!]

Since your DH mentioned that her foot looked swollen, I'm wondering if you checked the bottom for bumblefoot?

 

[LeezyBeezy]

I had a 12 week old pullet (last year) who got hurt when the wire top of the mini-coop fell on her. She was limping, and wuld just sit down and look miserable. I crushed a baby aspirin in water, and gave her a few drops three times a day. It seemed to make her more comfortable, and in about 10 days she stopped limping.