- Apr 1, 2014
- 7
- 0
- 7
so about 3 weeks ago i got my first 2 chickens. camilla is a buff amerucana and henrietta chicken is a black ausralorp. they were both 8-9 wees old at the time. they live in a 4x4 chicken coop with an enclosed run 20x20. i feed them purina start and feed ( as suggested by the guy at the feed store ) they dont have grit ( same dude told me not to until they start on non-feed food ) so, yesterday morning henrietta chicken was just sitting on the floor and when i was changing out the food and water i saw she was hobbling. her left foot was injured somehow and she was holding it up and slightly out. she cant seem to put any weight on it and she tries to stand but can not balance so she like teeters and tries to catch herself with her wing, which does not work so she falls over. camilla is notably larger and sometimes gets pushy so i thought maybe she pushed henrietta chicken and twisted her ankle. there are no signs of breaks she had the tiniest little scrape or cut like really tiny on the back of her ankle? tibia?.... her skin looks good, she is eating and drinking, butt hole looks ok, her pupils are responsive to light but i cant tell if they are diffusing because she has always had dark eyes.... she could not walk or get up and down her ramp and camilla decided that the thing to do was step on henrietta's head every so often so i brought her inside. she is in a 30 g fish tank. lined with paper towels and a cushy layer of aspen bedding. i gave her a epson salt soak and a gentle blow dry today and she enjoyed it. but im just so worried about her she just sits there all poofed up and sleeps. she will curl her toes around your finger but the grip is weak. she cant walk or stand and i just terrified its mareks because every thing i read leads to mareks disease..... also i believe her absence is distressing camilla who is now alone and will not let me come near her or pick her up... over night she went from happy chicken to the devils bird. should i just bring her to the vet? my vet laughed when i tried to bring them in for a checkup and shots... apparently its not like getting any other pet... and they dont do that. she did say she will see them if they fall ill or something.... but how long should i wait to see if she gets better? seriously if my dog or even gerbil was hobbled i would have been there already.... also is there some sort of disinfecting i should be doing im expecting 2 more chicks in a week or so and i dont want anything to happen to them either although they will have already been vaccinated for... im not sure what, but whatever they could i said to go ahead and vaccinate.... can you tell im a new mom? yeah..... any advice would be very appreciated!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! thanks!!!!!!!!!
