Exaggerated Leg Lift (Hen)

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EuroChook

EuroChook

Songster
Jul 18, 2023
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7 year old Isa Brown hen with no recent medical history has developed right side only exaggerated foot lifting and limp with favoring of left side. Can run just was well as ever, but with limp. Often stands with right foot elevated. Right side grip strength feels slightly diminished. Right foot is occasionally warmer than left, but not always, and both feet are free from lesions. Some right side hip tenderness noted on examination. No signs of fluid build up or lesions during body palpation. Appetite and self care intact, usual sweet mood remains same.

My ddx--possible arthritis/osteoarthritis--but why the exaggerated leg lift? Unilateral neurological or neuromuscular involvement probably rules out something systemic such as caused by diet deficiency or disease. Paresthesia caused by (unknown) trauma?

Have you had a hen with exaggerated foot lift? Any advice or insight will be great. Thank you to all...Vet unavailable till Monday (of course).
 
Yes, this has happened as you describe to chickens in my flock carrying the leucosis virus. This avian virus, also known as lymphoid leucosis is so common, it's suspected to be in almost every flock in some form. Most chicken keepers lose a chicken every so often and chalk it up to a mysterious death.

Marek's is another avian virus that closely resembles leucosis. Marek's affects young chickens eight weeks and older, while leucosis more often presents symptoms around eleven months. Both can produce symptoms of paralysis and leg weakness.

One way to rule out an avian virus is to treat the chicken with B-complex, 50 to 100 mg for each of the B-vitamins. Often it takes one tablet a day for four to six weeks to see improvement, but improvement would discourage the possibility of an avian virus.
 
azygous said:
Yes, this has happened as you describe to chickens in my flock carrying the leucosis virus. This avian virus, also known as lymphoid leucosis ...
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Thank you very much for suggesting lymphoid leucosis. (Thank you for being the first responder). I hadn't thought of that as a possibility.

And great, that's what I was thinking too--B vitamins. I was today going to compound a B complex preparation because, at any rate, it serves well across a range of disease states. The only thing to consider would be caution with B9 and B12 because, if it is the same for chickens as it is for humans, those vitamins encourage cell division and tissue growth--even stimulating tumor tissue growth. Avian leucosis is neoplastic, creating tumor growth, so we need to go careful with those 2 and not accidentally feed any tumor with too much folic acid or cobalamin.

Also, I was thinking tumors are dealt with by the immune system. So weak immune system increases the chances of tumor. It's estimated that the human immune system deals daily with and destroys 70? 100? (a great number anyway) of cells recognized by the body as having cancer potential. So it is important to boost the immune system in cases of any disease that can cause tumor. In Europe products like Nekton-Q are trusted. Taxonyx also used to have an ok reputation all over the world. Also there is talk that Baicalin extract (100-200mg per 2.2lb feed) and/or ashwaghanda (at 2% of feed) might help boost immunity and ward off tumor cells.

Vitamin E is also used in cases of AL. But vit E does thin blood (several business men with high BP have popped one vit E too many on a sunny city morning, and died from haemorrhagic stroke). So we would also be careful there when it comes to chickens.

But many thanks to you! As you see, you got me thinking. Now I will make that B complex.
 
I love company chasing science papers on health issues. It expands the posibilites when it comes to treatment. I don't worry about long term effects of vitamins because we aren't treating with them for more than two to four weeks.

Have you heard of serrapeptase? I'm treating a rooster with it that has what appears to be a squamous cancer on his leg. I'm also giving him a quarter tablet of ibuprofen twice a day to reduce pain and inflammation. It seems to be improving the lesion somewhat, and certainly has improved the way he feels. He recently challenged the alpha rooster and won, something unheard of a year ago when he was in a great deal of pain from this cancer.
 
azygous said:
Have you heard of serrapeptase? I'm treating a rooster with it that has what appears to be a squamous cancer on his leg. I'm also giving him a quarter tablet of ibuprofen twice a day to reduce pain and inflammation. It seems to be improving the lesion somewhat, and certainly has improved the way he feels. He recently challenged the alpha rooster and won, something unheard of a year ago when he was in a great deal of pain from this cancer.
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The great thing about researching is that you can and will and do find novel answers. I see you deeply research. I definitely do-- you know, those late nights, and weird snacks, and coffee turned cold, and sometimes scrapping three days of notes and starting over. But great rewards when you hit on something!

I am aware of serrapeptase trials and studies during covid peak and in geriatric populations. But I never considered it for chickens.

Sounds like your rooster is benefiting from pain relief and if the squamous cell carcinoma has indeed shrunk, then chances are that Serrapeptase must be the reason. Very very few human patients experience SCC remission.

And took down the Alpha! Woah!

I had a start in human med, and was going to shoot the moon with a final dissertation idea of treating autoimmune disease at a neuropeptide level, but then rejected med because I could not tolerate the policy of minimalism and dismissiveness that set the med scene in the country I would have been practising in. So, no thanks.

Anyway, thank you for the great response. Great to hit it off on the research level! And, inspired, I will think about serra for the lil hen in question.

Neuropeptide blockers to treat arthritis and other inflammatory disease might also be possible for our chickens...might hit that research trail next :)

WARNING: If anyone reads this and considers serrapeptase, it thins blood so must never be combined with aspirin, or any anticoagulant. Even natural things like turmeric, cocoa, fish oil, garlic, have anticoagulant properties and must not be used in conjunction with serrapeptase.
 
azygous said:
Just ran into this paper. https://www.cochrane.org/CD006652/GYNAECA_injectable-blood-thinners-anticoagulants-patients-cancer A very limited study finds that blood thinners could have an anti-cancer effect, the trade-off being risk of bleeding. My rooster could be experiencing this anti-cancer effect.
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Wow! That's interesting, who'd have thought? But it probably wotks because thinner blood doesnt offer a concentration of proteins from which cancer cells csn cheat and make their withdrawal in order to build themselves.

But please be careful folks-- thinner blood is not for everyone, especially if you have a bleeding disorder or increased likelihood of bleeding say from an ulcer.

I will see your hand and try to raise it. This one follows your research up and shows squamous cells to be an excellent target for anticoagulant treatments:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35453795/

(And oral because that was the limit of the study but an SCC is always an SCC).
 
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