Help for Hen Leg/Hock Injury

[gea518]

Hi everyone! We have a 6 month old hen and can’t figure out what her leg injury is and how to take care of it. A couple weeks ago she started limping on her left foot but was able to put weight on it with and walk easily, we checked for bumble foot/injuries/mites and couldn’t find anything to explain the limp. We isolated her the next day as it had gotten a bit worse. After a week and a half of isolation, we let her back out and her limp was nearly gone. Then a couple days later (today) it looks like it has been reinjured really badly. It look like her hock buckles backwards when she puts weight on it and looks dislocated (see video linked below). We checked both legs again and her left hock is a bit red and swollen, i feel no breaks throughout her leg and she does not react when touched on any part of her leg. She still has complete range of motion when i move her left leg and the left hock feels the same as the right one. There’s no obvious clicking in or out of place that i notice when moving her leg. She is also eating, drinking, pooping, and laying normally. We will isolate her for the next month, but I’m not sure how much that will help her leg since I don’t know what’s wrong with it. Does anyone have any ideas as to what type of injury this may be and if a long isolation period would be enough for the leg to be functional again? Also any additional at-home treatment ideas would be appreciated. Thank you!

 

[BlackHenCoop]

maybe you could wrap the leg? Our duck got injured between its wing and leg and has a permanent limp and drooping wing, and after some rehab with her she has become more comfortable and hands out with the others despite the limp. Sometimes it’s best to let the wound heal naturally, and separating a chicken for that long from the flock can be mentally painful for a chicken.