I know that ya'll get a lot of these questions, and I did a search and couldn't find anything that really matched what I'm dealing with. So, I hope you will forgive me if you're sick of answering this question.
About a week ago my hen hatched a single chick. I bought 5 chicks to go with it so it wouldn't lonely. They didn't have a light on them at first because my bulb was out and I didn't have time to get a new one since I had to go to work. When I got home and went to put the new bulb in one was laying on the bottom and looked dead. I went to take it out and it moved. It was damp (I guess the water got spilled) and cold, so I warmed it up and hoped for the best. I fully expected for it to die. When I checked on it later it was holding it's head up and alert, but not walking around so I gave it more time. It's been 5 or 6 days now and it's still not using it's legs. The hock joints are swollen and it's not moving the feet/legs below the hock. It's toes are curled as well. It's started to move around on it's hocks. It is completely alert and has energy. It's eating and drinking and protests loudly when I try and doctor it up. I tried the band-aid hobbles and it made it even harder for it to move around, it was way more clumsy with the hobbles on. I tried to make shoes too but that did no good. I tried to check for slipped tendons, but I can't really feel anything with the swollen hocks. It was walking around with the others just fine when I got it. It's in a box alone with it's own food and water because every time it would make it's way to the food the other chicks would bombard it and push it out. They were also trampling it. I feel horrible for the poor thing. I know this is my fault because if I had checked the bulb before I went and got the chicks it would probably be fine. Is there any hope for the poor thing? It's so alert and healthy otherwise, I hate to kill it (well i can't kill it...I'd have to get someone else to do it). I just don't know what to do.
Thanks for any help you can offer
About a week ago my hen hatched a single chick. I bought 5 chicks to go with it so it wouldn't lonely. They didn't have a light on them at first because my bulb was out and I didn't have time to get a new one since I had to go to work. When I got home and went to put the new bulb in one was laying on the bottom and looked dead. I went to take it out and it moved. It was damp (I guess the water got spilled) and cold, so I warmed it up and hoped for the best. I fully expected for it to die. When I checked on it later it was holding it's head up and alert, but not walking around so I gave it more time. It's been 5 or 6 days now and it's still not using it's legs. The hock joints are swollen and it's not moving the feet/legs below the hock. It's toes are curled as well. It's started to move around on it's hocks. It is completely alert and has energy. It's eating and drinking and protests loudly when I try and doctor it up. I tried the band-aid hobbles and it made it even harder for it to move around, it was way more clumsy with the hobbles on. I tried to make shoes too but that did no good. I tried to check for slipped tendons, but I can't really feel anything with the swollen hocks. It was walking around with the others just fine when I got it. It's in a box alone with it's own food and water because every time it would make it's way to the food the other chicks would bombard it and push it out. They were also trampling it. I feel horrible for the poor thing. I know this is my fault because if I had checked the bulb before I went and got the chicks it would probably be fine. Is there any hope for the poor thing? It's so alert and healthy otherwise, I hate to kill it (well i can't kill it...I'd have to get someone else to do it). I just don't know what to do.
Thanks for any help you can offer
