Chick with a bum leg - need advice!

[poppyy]

Hi,

I'm fairly new to raising chicks, everything has been going smoothly until I noticed once of my chicks dragging her leg along behind her. I have no idea what's wrong, it's like the leg is almost completely turned around. I'm not sure if she broke it at some point or if it's a defect she had since she hatched, which I somehow never noticed. She doesn't seem to be in any pain but I'm really worried. Does anyone have any idea of what this could be? Or what I should do? Unfortunately there are no vets that deal with poultry in my area. I've tried to attach a picture (my first time posting here, hopefully I did it right!) it was a little hard to get an accurate picture of how the leg is. But you can see how it's turned out and almost pointing behind her.

 

[Eggcessive]

Welcome to BYC. Could you post another picture or two of her standing? Are either of her wings droopy? I'm concerned that she either could have a leg bone deformity or possibly Mareks disease? How old is she? Was she vaccinated for Mareks? There are several common leg bone deformities, but if you could post more pictures it might help to distinguish if it is a deformity or Mareks causing her to stand like that. Here are a couple of links to read about the 2 subjects:
https://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource000791_Rep813.pdf
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq
http://partnersah.vet.cornell.edu/avian-atlas/#/disease/Marek's_Disease
http://www.agbiosecurity.ca/healthy...e/Valgus Varus Leg Deformities in Poultry.pdf

 

[poppyy]

Thank you so much for the reply.

I'm sorry to say I wasn't even aware of Mareks, I feel so awful. I really hope that isn't what it is. It never even crossed my mind that this could be something viral. It's very hard to take a picture of her standing, as she seems to be having a lot of trouble doing so. She mostly lays to one side, with her one wing kind of drooping. I have attached a picture of it. Also another picture of how her legs are splayed. I will isolate her from the other chicks asap...

 

[Eggcessive]

Bring her inside in a crate or basket, and place her food and water close to her. Does her wing droop all of the time, or just when she is trying to balance while standing? Did she have splayed legs when she was little? This still could be a leg bone deformity, since those get worse with growing and can blow out the tendon in the hock or knee. Just watch her symptoms, and do all of the reading you can on Mareks. You can Google "mareks disease" for many articles to read. She could have also injured her leg. I would put some poultry vitamins in her water daily just in case of a vitamin deficiency--here are a couple of several brands available:

 

[poppyy]

Now that you mention it, she does appear to be drooping her wing only when she needs to use it as balance. I've brought her inside in a crate with food and water and will keep a close eye on her, I will pick up those supplements you've posted as well. Although she never had obviously splayed legs before, the more I look at her leg, the more I'm thinking it could be a deformity or injury, as the leg is bent at such a strange angle. All my other chicks still appear very healthy but I'll be watching them carefully for any symptoms popping up.

I cannot thank you enough for all this info, I appreciate it so so much!

 

[ChickenGrass]

I hope she gets well soon
Goodluck with her