curly toes on my chick

[chick-girl]

please help me 1 of my chicks that hatched tuesday has curly toes its still getting about but he does find it hard as his legs keep spreading help me on how i can help it please

 

[3riverschick]

please help me 1 of my chicks that hatched Tuesday has curly toes its still getting about but he does find it hard as his legs keep spreading help me on how i can help it please

Ok, so your chick is "spraddle legged" and has crooked toes. This needed to be addressed at hatch. I don't know if it is too late now or not. BYC has a bunch of threads on how to deal with this. I understand you waiting to see if they would straighten out as the chick grew. Unfortunately, one needs to be proactive with these issues the moment they hatch. Look up "pipe cleaner splints" for crooked toes. Also band aid splints for spraddle legs. You should get some hits on that. Try raising your chicks on hardware cloth platform where the wire is raised 1-2 inches above the surface you now have in the brooder. Use 1/4 inch hardware cloth for the 1st 2 weeks. Then move to 1/2 inch hardware cloth for the rest of their time in the brooder. This helps 2 ways.
1. Helps the chicks get a grip on the floor for their spraddle legs..
2. Chicks tend to curl their toes underneath them when they sleep. this can cause crooked toes. The hardware cloth will prevent them curling their toes when they sleep.
Best Success,
Karen

 

[chick-girl]

Thanks thats helped