Chick injured her leg and can’t stand

[Jingles000]

Hi,

I have a chick that has injured her leg. The leg just sits out and she doesn’t seem to move it. It happened when I was filling the feed, she got a fright and ran but her leg looked like it got caught on the fence. It has been 4 days now and it has not improved. Other than her leg she seems content but obviously she can’t live like this forever. Does anyone know what she has done and is it something that can be fixed?

Thanks

 

[DLA]

I'm sorry your chick is having trouble!
I found a few other posts that may give you some help. Maybe someone more experienced can also chime in with advice @Wyorp Rock @coach723 @azygous @Eggcessive
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/broken-leg-sprain-how-to-tell.1602325/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/pullet-hurt-leg-or-hip-can’t-lay-down-nor-stand-up-right.1598617/

 

[Lovingmychooks]

Hi,

I have a chick that has injured her leg. The leg just sits out and she doesn’t seem to move it. It happened when I was filling the feed, she got a fright and ran but her leg looked like it got caught on the fence. It has been 4 days now and it has not improved. Other than her leg she seems content but obviously she can’t live like this forever. Does anyone know what she has done and is it something that can be fixed?

Thanks

Hi
I had a chicken recently that broke her lower leg. It was swollen and the vet missed it but I had a hunch. I put my finger underneath her pad to see if she gripped it with her toes, which she did and I basically kept getting her to practice that and eventually had to force her to balance on her other leg once the swelling went down. Sounds cruel but she was scared to put weight on it, muscle memory! It healed super quick (because she was using it) and she is great now despite a slight weird angle on her foot ! So perhaps hold her up and see if she grips. Work the leg like you are doing physio, remind it and her what to do. You should be able to tell if it’s muscular or broken. Be gentle. Wishing her well xxx. Arnica and rescue remedy work wonders too.

 

[David61]

put her in the hospital /broody cage (12x14) for a month to restrict her movements. I can't see the leg move so i don't know if it needs to be vet rapped to the body. After that, if she can't walk, cull

 

[coach723]

Is the other leg normal? Will her toes grip or try to grip if you put your finger under her foot and press up?
You can use a chicken sling for periods, to help her stay upright, eat, drink and poop more normally, and help let the leg rest. I will attach pictures below of examples. Normally you adjust the sling so that the feet just touch the ground. You need to supervise while she's in the sling, so she doesn't freak out and injure herself trying to get out. I will also attach a splinting manual, explains how to examine for fractures etc., and how to splint if necessary. I wouldn't splint unless you are sure that's the issue. Sprains and strains are also common, and can take weeks to months to resolve, depending. I would use the sling, make sure you can't feel anything broken, and give her a B complex vitamin once a day, human ones, any pharmacy should have. Just put in her beak and push back a little and she will swallow it. You can also do warm epsom salt soaks to help with pain and swelling.

 

[Jingles000]

 

[Jingles000]

Is the other leg normal? Will her toes grip or try to grip if you put your finger under her foot and press up?
You can use a chicken sling for periods, to help her stay upright, eat, drink and poop more normally, and help let the leg rest. I will attach pictures below of examples. Normally you adjust the sling so that the feet just touch the ground. You need to supervise while she's in the sling, so she doesn't freak out and injure herself trying to get out. I will also attach a splinting manual, explains how to examine for fractures etc., and how to splint if necessary. I wouldn't splint unless you are sure that's the issue. Sprains and strains are also common, and can take weeks to months to resolve, depending. I would use the sling, make sure you can't feel anything broken, and give her a B complex vitamin once a day, human ones, any pharmacy should have. Just put in her beak and push back a little and she will swallow it. You can also do warm epsom salt soaks to help with pain and swelling.
View attachment 3693120
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I have added a video. She seems to be getting worse. She can't grip at all with either foot.

 

[SchwartzLakeFarmNC]

I don't have experience with what you're dealing with, but my opinion is to cull at this point, I think the poor thing will only suffer the longer she lives, I hate this part of flock management but my heart breaks for you and your little chick.

 

[coach723]

I would recommend that you have her necropsied, to know for sure, if you lose her or euthanize. Is this a crested bird, silkie, silkie mix, polish etc? They are very prone to head injury due to the vaulted skull, so that may be the issue rather than the leg, the leg may just be a symptom. Since she has deteriorated so much, she may not recover. When you have progressive paralysis Marek's disease also has to be at least considered. If she was perfectly normal before she crashed into the fence, then maybe injury is all it is, hard to say from here.
Necropsy resources, it's not expensive in many states, call your nearest lab for particulars:
https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/nahln/downloads/all_nahln_lab_list.pdf
https://www.metzerfarms.com/poultry-labs.html

 

[Jingles000]

I culled her today. I feel awful! She had been eating and drinking and seemed content the entire time but there had been no improvement with her ability to stand. She couldn’t move one leg at all and the other she could only move a little and couldn’t grip with her toes at all. I hoped she would improve and I tried different things but unfortunately nothing got better. I hope I did the right thing. I keep wondering if I could have done more