Chick splayed legs

[MollySunshine]

Yesterday the chick stork arrived. One chick was DOA and one appears to have splayed leg, other 6 doing well. I wrapped a bandaid around the legs. This sure didn't work out exactly the way I intended. The placement is just ok. The sticky portion of the bandaid stuck to the feathers on the leg and I couldn't get it off to adjust. I didn't want to damage the little girl. Tried to do better on the other side and unfortunately the same thing occurred. Some days I can't win for trying. I figure the worst that can happen is I carefully cut the bandaid, leave it for now and replace with that paper type of bandaid. So my question to all of you more experienced owners is this, how long does it take to show improvement? When do I change and readjust the bandage position? Currently, the placement is just wider than hip distance.

And of course one of the first things I did was to check BYC for articles on what to do about splayed leg. As my luck would have it the link that was posted doesn't work arrrrgh!!! Some days it's not worth gnawing at the leather straps.....

On another note, still concerning this little creature. She is the weaker of all the remaining. It could be due to her inability to get around very well. For now I will attribute her troubles to this known fact. I gave her sugar water last night hoping she would appear stronger this morning. Not so much....This morning I gave her a potion of vita pack and probiotics I obtained from Peter Brown vet supplies. Today, I decided it is take your pet chick to work day! What was I supposed to do?! It was the only option I could think of where I can somewhat watch this little one. It's going to be a warm day so I don't have to worry about warmth. I packed her in the original packaging took some probiotic mix, food and thermometer to monitor the temp. inside the vehicle with me. I made a little cave for her out of a thick, plush dusting mitt. She is currently in my vehicle. I will check on her now and again. Had my original hatch date remained, it would have worked out fantastic because I took the week off just in case something like this would occur. So this is my Plan B. She may have more problems than I am aware of but I will give her a fighting chance until I make that determination.

Your suggestions on all counts are greatly appreciated.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

You can use baby oil to remove the sticky bandaid/tape, then use waterless instant hand sanitizer/cleaner to remove the baby oil.
For leg issues you may want to offer some B2(riboflavin). Hydration is most important so make sure she is drinking, you can offer wet chick starter as well, chicks seem to eat it well.

Here are some usefully links in treating leg/foot problems, hope she improves soon.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/leg-foot-and-toe-issues-in-poultry-of-all-ages
https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/poultry-podiatry

 

[MollySunshine]

Wyorp Rock: Thanks so much for the removal tip. Truly appreciated. I actually saw this recommendation on the emergency care thread yesterday. I didn't look at the date it was posted but it surely came in good time.

I'm not giving up on the little girl who my husband has named Angel. I spoke to Peter Brown yesterday and he was most helpful. Last night I began feeding her with a syringe, prepared a "solution" of the probiotic, vitamin B and cooked egg yolk. I brought her to work again today, she is in my vehicle. Same scenario as yesterday. Although, today I have to watch the temperature more carefully because it is supposed to be 90's. I left a couple of the back windows open and covered her with the soft mitt. I was able to feed her 2x this morning, an hour apart. I'm basically using drops because I really don't want to stress her out by trying to feed her directly down her throat. I'm much to inexperienced and she's too fragile, it could turn ugly. I am hoping this works. I figure I am doing the best I can and God willing, she will pull through. I just have to figure out a way to get to my vehicle often enough today to feed the little girl. If it weren't for the fact she may chirp I would sneak her in my office....I will somehow work this out.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Wyorp Rock: Thanks so much for the removal tip. Truly appreciated. I actually saw this recommendation on the emergency care thread yesterday. I didn't look at the date it was posted but it surely came in good time.

I'm not giving up on the little girl who my husband has named Angel. I spoke to Peter Brown yesterday and he was most helpful. Last night I began feeding her with a syringe, prepared a "solution" of the probiotic, vitamin B and cooked egg yolk. I brought her to work again today, she is in my vehicle. Same scenario as yesterday. Although, today I have to watch the temperature more carefully because it is supposed to be 90's. I left a couple of the back windows open and covered her with the soft mitt. I was able to feed her 2x this morning, an hour apart. I'm basically using drops because I really don't want to stress her out by trying to feed her directly down her throat. I'm much to inexperienced and she's too fragile, it could turn ugly. I am hoping this works. I figure I am doing the best I can and God willing, she will pull through. I just have to figure out a way to get to my vehicle often enough today to feed the little girl. If it weren't for the fact she may chirp I would sneak her in my office....I will somehow work this out.

Yikes!
Somehow I missed that you were leaving her in your car- thought you were taking her inside while you were at work.
While this may seem ideal with the hot temps, she has no way of finding a cooler place to go if she were to start to overheat. Even in a brooder setup, you only need one warm spot and the rest remains cool/cooler, this way chicks can find a more comfortable temp to be in. When they feather out they will be able to "self-regulate" temps a bit better, but with fluff they have no way of doing this.

Watch for any signs of heat stress and if so move to her a cooler area immediately. Offer cool water and keep an eye on her.

Let us know how she is doing.

 

[MollySunshine]

Wyorp Rock: Baby chick is resting comfortably in our conference room. I smuggled her in. No one is the wiser. I put her in my office but she kept chirping. It's cozy warm in the conference room. I was monitoring the temp. in my vehicle. Once it began to creep to 90 I took her out. She will be going to the vet after work today. I don't see improvement from yesterday. I don't know if I am not feeding her enough or if my efforts are futile. This way her leg too can be checked to be certain it is not the tendon that is causing her difficulty. I am not experienced enough to fool with such things. Thanks for voicing my concerns.....you never know....

 

[MollySunshine]

Quote: I meant thanks for voicing your concerns

 

[MollySunshine]

Wyorp Rock: I meant to write, thanks for voicing your concerns. Must have been a Freudian slip....it was my concern also.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Wyorp Rock: Baby chick is resting comfortably in our conference room. I smuggled her in. No one is the wiser. I put her in my office but she kept chirping. It's cozy warm in the conference room. I was monitoring the temp. in my vehicle. Once it began to creep to 90 I took her out. She will be going to the vet after work today. I don't see improvement from yesterday. I don't know if I am not feeding her enough or if my efforts are futile. This way her leg too can be checked to be certain it is not the tendon that is causing her difficulty. I am not experienced enough to fool with such things. Thanks for voicing my concerns.....you never know....

Glad to hear you were able to sneak her in

Just keep up with the feeding and keep her hydrated. The only thing you can do it try, you are doing good.

Let us know how the vet visit goes.

 

[MollySunshine]

Sad news.....chickie died at the vet last night. I know in my heart I did the very best I could so for that I feel ok with it. When she came to me, I thought she was dead, until one of the other chickies stepped on her and she moved. Maybe things would have worked out differently had I taken her to the vet that day...or maybe not. I can't second guess myself. Yesterday was a series of fortunate events that lead me to this new vet in town. I didn't even know he was an exotic vet. I just knew it was a new vet in town. But now I know and if the need arises in the future I have a solid place to go to if I am not comfortable with what is happening with one in my flock.

Everyday I learn something new. This gives me experience and wisdom. I feel I am improving on composting, deep litter method and maybe the list goes on that I am not aware of. I don't think I have fully perfected the DLM but at least I am trying.....and I can admit to my shortcomings so I can allow improvements. I am still in training wheels but I have the desire to learn "everything" about these chickies. I truly wish I had an expert to discuss with on a daily basis so I could pick there brain even about the minute details of raising chickens. That is where this site comes in. At least I can read about what others are experiencing and learn from there. I have discovered early on that this site offers a great support system/knowledge base wrapped up in a tiny bow.

With so much going on in life I haven't had a chance to take or post any pics of the new chickies. I intend on taking some pics this weekend. They grow so quickly, before I know it they will be feathering out! Ahhhh, the kids grow so quickly

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry for you loss.