Chick with lame leg

[JFreeman]

I found one of my little chicks outside the coop this evening with a lame leg. I don't know what happened. It was fine this morning, so it had to have gotten in trouble.

It's leg is outstretched, but it can't seem to be able to move it's leg at all. I can bend it at the knee without it crying or seeming in pain, and my husband says it doesn't feel like its hip is dislocated (as I first suspected) or broken. Its foot is a little swollen, and the toes will not grip, bend or spread. It is the chick's left leg.

 

[JFreeman]

Update: okay, it looks like there is a break just below the knee, about where the abrasion on the skin is. What can I do to brace the leg?

 

[JFreeman]

Another update: chick is otherwise healthy (eating, drinking, pooping). It's in a makeshift ICU with a brace made from cotton, a popsicle stick, and a bandaid.

 

[JFreeman]

Final result, the little chick has almost, if not fully, recovered. I see no evidence of her being in pain, and she is putting her full weight on the leg. A couple of days of isolation, she regained the use of her leg, alowing her to lay without leaving her injured leg in an awkward position. After four days, she was able to curl and e her toes, and grip objects or roost. By the time she was in cardboard ICU for a week, she started escaping, I made the decision to return her to the coop under supervision.

Four days back in the coop, all is well!