Emergency!!? Chicken with injury acting odd

[Wyorp Rock]

I gave her 1/2 an 81mg aspirin yesterday and 1/2 this morning with plans of giving her another this afternoon but if she can take whole aspirin safely then I'll give her a whole one twice a day once I've checked her poop for blood.

It's hard to tell about the blood, she's pooping on the wood shavings in her box. I haven't noticed any more, I'll examine the next one more closely. Still the yellow and green poops so far.

She also keeps doing that lip smacking thing. She doesn't seem to have any physical issue eating, it all goes down fine.

When she stands she seems to have trouble getting one of her toes out flat, the first toe on the inside on her left foot. Not sure if I think her ankle joint is swollen or not, it kinda does but I don't think it's too much different from the other foot. The main issue does seem to be her foot hurting, she just wants to lay down and keep off of it and she "looks" like she's in pain sometimes. It might just be a normal, tired chicken look, I don't know.

I'm wondering if she's sprained the foot or just messed up her toe. It's cold enough for her to have gotten frostbite, but would that have injured the foot and left it looking otherwise normal just not functional?

What kind of steps should I take to examine the foot and ankle or should I just leave her be at this point?

Her latest poop. I'm questioning the green balls, I can't think of anything she's eaten recently that would be coming out green, it's winter and the ground is covered in ice/snow.

Is this an indicator of something?


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Also, here's a picture of her foot, she seems to have an issue with the one toe that looks like it's bent backwards a little.

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Not sure about the foot really. I've had birds that broke toes and really injured their legs/feet and they still kept going.
I don't see any evidence of frostbite - the skin would be turning color by now.

Since this happened right after her injury, I'm still inclined to think the walking problem is related.
The poop is interesting. I would still check her crop to make sure it's emptying.
Make grit (crushed granite) available free choice. Take a good look inside her beak too.
I would also be inclined to give her 1 tsp of coconut oil a day. This can be added to her food, but I've found that mine like it so much they will eat it outright. I put it in the fridge or freezer to harden it and then break it up into small chunks. The coconut oil won't hurt and may help if those balls are from constipation.

 

[JHH3]

I'm at a loss.

She's still alive, her back injury is healing but she still has as much trouble walking as she did when I removed her from the flock last Wednesday. Giving her aspirin doesn't seem to make her any more inclined to walk, though she hobbles a few steps every couple hours to sit in a different part of her crate. I tried rigging up a sling but after a bit she jumped out of it so I must have done a bad job on it. I took it down so she wouldn't hurt herself further, if she is indeed hurt. She's not eating much, mostly yogurt and a little scratch grain, some canned peas yesterday. I'm not sure how much she ought to be eating, but I don't feel like she's getting enough. She's certainly not filling up her crop. Poop is basically the same as it has been, glob of little green balls in sticky clear stuff, with the occasional brown you might hope to see.

Might this be Marek's?

My Wyandottes were vaccinated at the hatchery before they were sent, but I have 4 Barred Rocks and 4 Australorp (she's one of these) that I got at the local hardware store 2 months after the original group and I don't know if they were vaccinated for it or not, I plan on asking the next time I go in.

The way she walks, she stands up and steps a few times with her bad leg like she's testing it out and trying to get it placed good, then she hops forward with her good leg as if the bad leg is a peg leg, sometimes she'll steady herself on that side with her wing. She doesn't sit or lay on the bad leg, she sits leaning toward the good leg.

As much as I want this to be a leg injury, for her sake and the sake of the other chickens in the flock that may not be vaccinated for this disease, it's the only other thing I can think of that could explain her symptoms.

How long do I try nursing this chicken along before it's obvious it's not a leg injury that's going to heal? How long until I ought to see some improvement in her walking if she's sprained or fractured her leg?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

There's always a possibility that and underlying illness like Marek's could be in play.
But since she's injured, especially on her back another good possibility is just damage - neurological or spinal that may take a good while to overcome if at all.

Only you can decide how much progress she's making, whether you need to continue to offer care or she is failing and needs to be put out of her misery.

The Marek's vaccine does offer some protection in the prevention of tumor formation, but it does not prevent infection from the virus, so birds often become ill or symptomatic. There are 4 forms of Marek's.

 

[JHH3]

There's always a possibility that and underlying illness like Marek's could be in play.
But since she's injured, especially on her back another good possibility is just damage - neurological or spinal that may take a good while to overcome if at all.

Only you can decide how much progress she's making, whether you need to continue to offer care or she is failing and needs to be put out of her misery.

The Marek's vaccine does offer some protection in the prevention of tumor formation, but it does not prevent infection from the virus, so birds often become ill or symptomatic. There are 4 forms of Marek's.

Well, I'm going to keep going for now and re-evaluate next weekend. I'd feel better about things if she'd just eat and drink more normally, I'd be happy to wait if I didn't have to coax her to eat and if she was pooping normally. If it is just an injury, would she be off her feed so badly?

I can't find it now but the one reference on Marek's I found listed the different forms and I could see her having one of them. Not sure how the disease would have been introduced to the coop short of it being there from the moment I introduced the hardware store birds and it just lay dormant until now.

I'm the type of person that doesn't like not knowing so this bothers me.

Thanks for all your help, btw, I appreciate it.

 

[JHH3]

It appears that she's lost or is losing the function in her good leg. I force fed her yesterday and got full sized poops from her today, but they were green all the way through. Force fed her again today but I'm not hopeful.

I'm debating trying to get some antibiotics and treating her with that on the chance that she's got an infection internally. Not sure if an infection would explain her not being able to stand and walk.

I probably should just put her down, but I just can't bring myself to do it.

 

[NatalieP]

It appears that she's lost or is losing the function in her good leg. I force fed her yesterday and got full sized poops from her today, but they were green all the way through. Force fed her again today but I'm not hopeful.

I'm debating trying to get some antibiotics and treating her with that on the chance that she's got an infection internally. Not sure if an infection would explain her not being able to stand and walk.

I probably should just put her down, but I just can't bring myself to do it.

How much is she moving during the day? Could it be that she's tired out the good leg?

 

[JHH3]

How much is she moving during the day? Could it be that she's tired out the good leg?

She's not moving much, mostly laying on her side on her good leg. She'll move from one end of the box she's in to the other a few times a day, sometimes to get away from her own poop and sometimes just to adjust and get more comfortable, I think.

It may just be that she's sitting on the leg all day and not using it, but she's not grabbing my finger with the good foot any more when I test it.

Her bad leg won't extend very far when stretched out gently, the good leg still does.

A couple days ago she used to be able to stand on the good leg and would kind of step a few times on the bad one testing it out before trying to hop forward with the bad leg barely supporting her, she'd put her wing down on the bad leg side to steady herself. Today she mostly kinda stands and flops forward.

I've started her on antibiotics today to rule out a bacterial infection, she's showing a little brown in her last poop but it's still mostly green.

If the antibiotics don't work, and she shows no sign of improvement, I think it's going to be time to make the tough call and put her down.

 

[NatalieP]

She's not moving much, mostly laying on her side on her good leg. She'll move from one end of the box she's in to the other a few times a day, sometimes to get away from her own poop and sometimes just to adjust and get more comfortable, I think.

It may just be that she's sitting on the leg all day and not using it, but she's not grabbing my finger with the good foot any more when I test it.

Her bad leg won't extend very far when stretched out gently, the good leg still does.

A couple days ago she used to be able to stand on the good leg and would kind of step a few times on the bad one testing it out before trying to hop forward with the bad leg barely supporting her, she'd put her wing down on the bad leg side to steady herself. Today she mostly kinda stands and flops forward.

I've started her on antibiotics today to rule out a bacterial infection, she's showing a little brown in her last poop but it's still mostly green.

If the antibiotics don't work, and she shows no sign of improvement, I think it's going to be time to make the tough call and put her down.

Just to keep the joints moving, you could do a little physical therapy with her good leg and extend and bend a little bit for her a few times throughout the day if it's not causing her pain.

My bet is that the green is just her not eating enough. I'm not sure how you're force feeing (whether tube feeding or some hand feeding) but always be careful about aspiration.

Last month I had to put down my first chicken after a battle with an unknown illness. Making the call was so difficult and it was a very emotional time. Wishing you strength through this and know that if you get to that point and you don't feel comfortable doing it yourself personally, there is always the option to have a vet put them down.

 

[JHH3]

Just to keep the joints moving, you could do a little physical therapy with her good leg and extend and bend a little bit for her a few times throughout the day if it's not causing her pain.

My bet is that the green is just her not eating enough. I'm not sure how you're force feeing (whether tube feeding or some hand feeding) but always be careful about aspiration.

Last month I had to put down my first chicken after a battle with an unknown illness. Making the call was so difficult and it was a very emotional time. Wishing you strength through this and know that if you get to that point and you don't feel comfortable doing it yourself personally, there is always the option to have a vet put them down.

Just hand feeding her mush balls made up of yogurt, layer pellets, and coconut oil. It's a trial getting the balls in just right so she actually swallows them instead of holding them in her mouth, but we manage though it's a bit traumatic for her.

I think I'm going to try to find a different way to get food into her tomorrow, forcing her works to get enough food in her but it's not a pleasant experience for her.

I came across and old and long thread here on green poop, there are apparently a number of possible causes, I'm hoping in this case it's something the antibiotics will help with. No harm in trying and if it doesn't work, the result would be the same as if I didn't try it.

While I don't relish the thought of putting her down, I'm more concerned with doing it right and not causing her more pain than I am not being comfortable doing it. The broomstick method seems the best way, though I'm concerned that if her leg does hurt her than that method would cause her pain however brief. She's ultimately my responsibility, I'll do it, I just want it to be quick and painless.

 

[JHH3]

An update on this. She's still alive, though not much improved.

She's eating on her own, but I'm not sure if she's eating enough. She's not eating so much that you can feel it in her crop. When she does eat she clacks her beak a lot, I don't know if that means she's having trouble swallowing or what but it seems odd. The only thing she'll eat is some layer crumble, the occasionally cooked carrot and possibly other vegetables from a can of mixed vegetables, a peanut or two and a little grass. I have what I need to tube feed her but I don't want to force feed her if I don't have to.

Near as I can tell the lameness is because her leg is hurt at the knee where her drumstick connects to her thigh, gentle pressure around there causes a reaction from her. Not sure if it's broken or just strained really badly, she keeps her leg tucked up underneath her but I can straighten it out some, I haven't tried to extend it all the way out as far as it ought to go for fear of hurting her. She'll stand occasionally and place the injured leg down occasionally but doesn't want to put any weight on it.

I'm going to try to rig up a sling that she won't jump out of and see if getting her up off her legs helps her heal.

Lol, I got chickens for eggs and ambiance on my little hobby farm, didn't intend to make them pets. Probably shouldn't have named them, I suppose.