Chick with Leg at Weird Angle

[JewelBirds]

I have a 1.5 week old Black Australorp chick who has an issue with its leg(s). Not sure if it's both legs or just the right one. Upon first glance it looked like both of them were sticking outwards, but the right leg especially seems to be bending at an unnatural angle. Any thoughts to help fix this issue? Not sure what the cause is, he didn't seem to have any problems at hatch.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Does the leg move smoothly through the knee (hock) joint?

My first gut reaction is slipped hock since it wasn't there at birth. Splay leg usually is from birth, but that can form later too.

Taping may be the answer. I'm not good at that, so hopefully somebody will leap in.

LofMc

 

[Eggcessive]

It may be a leg bone deformity called varus valgus deformity or a rotated tibia which are not treatable. Some chicks may be able to overcome the deformity well enough to get around and eat and drink on their own. Some may require culling or may die. Here are 2 good articles for information:
https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poul...ctious-skeletal-disorders-in-poultry-broilers

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1790586/

 

[JewelBirds]

Does the leg move smoothly through the knee (hock) joint?

My first gut reaction is slipped hock since it wasn't there at birth. Splay leg usually is from birth, but that can form later too.

Taping may be the answer. I'm not good at that, so hopefully somebody will leap in.

LofMc

Well I'm not sure exactly what that means, but hopefully this video will answer that question.

It may be a leg bone deformity called varus valgus deformity or a rotated tibia which are not treatable. Some chicks may be able to overcome the deformity well enough to get around and eat and drink on their own. Some may require culling or may die. Here are 2 good articles for information:
https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poul...ctious-skeletal-disorders-in-poultry-broilers

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1790586/

That is not good news if that is the case. The Merck source said something about bandaging if caught early on, unfortunately it doesn't really say how to do so. So perhaps I will have to try bandaging the legs somehow to help it

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Hmmm...I'm not an expert only having one turkey poult with slipped hock, but it doesn't look like it walked. It looks like the hock is moving well enough.

@Eggcessive may be correct at rotating tibia or some other structure.

I agree some birds seem to grow well enough but others get into trouble when they get big enough that the leg can no longer hold the weight. At that point, I cull.

LofMc

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

It may be a leg bone deformity called varus valgus deformity or a rotated tibia which are not treatable. Some chicks may be able to overcome the deformity well enough to get around and eat and drink on their own. Some may require culling or may die. Here are 2 good articles for information:
https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poul...ctious-skeletal-disorders-in-poultry-broilers

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1790586/

Yeah, this happened to 3 so far of the Chantecler chicks I got from Cackle Hatchery, and I am not happy at all.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Okay...that sounds like a genetic defect. Contact Cackle.
LofMc

 

[JewelBirds]

Hmmm...I'm not an expert only having one turkey poult with slipped hock, but it doesn't look like it walked. It looks like the hock is moving well enough.

@Eggcessive may be correct at rotating tibia or some other structure.

I agree some birds seem to grow well enough but others get into trouble when they get big enough that the leg can no longer hold the weight. At that point, I cull.

LofMc

Okay that is unfortunate. Could vitamin therapy perhaps help it from getting worse at least? Or maybe making a splint to keep the leg straighter?

 

[JewelBirds]

Yeah, this happened to 3 so far of the Chantecler chicks I got from Cackle Hatchery, and I am not happy at all.

That's crazy. This chick is from a hatching egg from a different hatchery.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would use caution if using splinting or taping. It can get too tight and cause swelling or tissue damage in little chicks.
Although I have not had chicks with these leg issues, I would tend to let the chick stay in the flock and try to get around on it's own. There is a old thread about a chick called Cleopatra that had a similar defect. The owner originally thought it was a slipped tendon, but it looked more like a varus valgus deformity. I don’t know if the chicken is still alive, but it was thriving after it grew into adulthood. Here is a thread that shows Cleopatra’s leg problem in post 6:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/rooster-chick-with-weird-leg.978353/