Bow legged with inward feet

Dontlickthechicks

In the Brooder
8 Years
May 15, 2011
50
0
31
Candia, NH
I have a 5 week old chick and recently I have noticed him/her having trouble walking/balancing. It's legs have grown kind of bowed and her feet point in. She can move around but it's slow, fumbles and trips over her own feet. Is it too late for me to try and fix this problem and how would I go about crafting something? She seemed to just recently develope this disability, she has a hard time balancing and I feel just awful for her.
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How long have you noticed her being like that? Leg bone deformities such as varus-valgus deformity can cause bow-legged (varus)or knock-kneed (valgus) appearance of one or both legs. Later as the chick grows the condition worsens sometimes resulting in a ruptured hock tendon. That is sad since there are no real treatments that are usually successful. Many people try to splint the legs, and I would give it a try. I would also treat with some poultry vitamins that contain trace minerals such as poultry Nutri-drench or Poultry Cell 1-3 ml daily. There are other conditions causing leg problems as well, and here are some links to read that may help you decide on what is going on:
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/articles/1051/leg-health-in-large-broilers/
http://www.researchgate.net/publica..._of_the_intertarsal_joint_in_broiler_chickens
 
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Sorry,....Just saw the reply, I didn't think anyone had answer me. I had really just started noticing it a few days prior to the post. It has gotten much worse, with the right leg being the worse. Both feet turn inwards and she has a difficult time with balance and she trips over her own toes. I have tried to help correct it with Popsicle sticks, gauze, and medical tape but she seems distressed (panting etc) so I undid it. One of her feet almost seems to turn in sideways
 
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If there is an inward bowing of the bones in the toes, it's called metatarsis adductus, I know that because I have it myself and yes, it does make the subject have balance problems. In human children they use splints to help correct the curvature. For adults, they use arch supports neither really applicable to chickens.

I have a rooster with bowed legs. You can actually see his hock joints slip when he walks. I had the breeder check him out and we finally concluded that he had been injured by two roosters who are no longer around to injure other birds. He gets around fine and the handicap hasn't stopped him from rising to the lofty statis of Alpha Rooster.

Your bird's right leg is noticeably bowed under the hock, however. The first thing that pops into my mind is Rickets.

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/123/rickets-hypocalcaemic/

Wouldn't hurt to try some Poly Vi Sol vitamins with your bird. I think they recommend vitamin D3 for Rickets in chickens. Worth a try. I honestly don't know if splinting would help those legs at this point in time. However, somewhere on BYC I remember reading a thread about a member that made hinged splints for their bird's hock joint using a pair of children's sissors.
 
I have a 5 week old chick and recently I have noticed him/her having trouble walking/balancing. It's legs have grown kind of bowed and her feet point in. She can move around but it's slow, fumbles and trips over her own feet. Is it too late for me to try and fix this problem and how would I go about crafting something? She seemed to just recently develope this disability, she has a hard time balancing and I feel just awful for her.
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Whatever happened to your chick? The same exact thing is happening to mine.
 
Whatever happened to your chick? The same exact thing is happening to mine.
You can start a new thread of your own and post some pictures. If it is a leg bone deformity, those can affect one or both legs and there is no cure, unfortunately. Some chickens may get along enough to get around and take enough food and water. Some may be too disabled to get around, especially if a tendon becomes ruptured.
 

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