Curled feet

[ausash]

My very last chick to hatch has both feet where the toes do not go straight out but instead curl in and the little thing has trouble walking and falls over a lot. I tried to put it in with mama shortly after birth like I did all the rest (I had to split my eggs between mama and incubator) but she clucked at it to call it and when it stumbled around a little bit she decided that she was going to have nothing to do with it and started to attack it. My husband immediately grabbed it and we brought it back inside to a little brooder and have been keeping it company with a stuffed animal shaped ironically like a chick. It has ate and drank but can not really walk well and I now realize that we will be raising this lone chick rather than mama as she will not tolerate the lameness. My question (sorry about the ramble) is will the feet ever straighten out? Does this poor little baby have a chance at all? Is there anything that we can do to help it?

Thanks.

 

[chickenmomva]

I got Barred Rocks as pulletts and I have on that has curled toes on one foot.......I thought it was broken but it grows that way with the hen.........they all go in towards her middle almost like she is holding something in that foot but she is ok...........it hasnt bothered her any..........

but mine was just one foot...........

 

[ausash]

Well I put little chick shoes on its feet and it helped a little bit with one foot and a lot with the other. I had to take them off this morning though because he kept falling over and was unable to right himself and I will be gone all day long. I will try the shoes again tonight on the one really bad foot and see if we can't get it completely righted. I feel so bad for the little guy as he just chirps constantly and I don't know what to do for him.