Help! Please! - Call Duckling

[SugarDucky]

Hello, my name is Oliver and I'm reaching out for some help.

This baby Call Duckling is a day old
Joint is immobile / stationary, will not bend or straighten.
It is the first time I've seen a case like this. This isn't about the foot- it's about the intertarsal leg joint (The ankle or elbow of sorts/hock joint).
I've floated the baby in water, the only thing that moves the leg is from the hip region. The baby has motor skills in it's foot enough to attempt scratching it's head.

I was sleeping when the zipping took place, so I'm unsure if this is from a malpositioned hatch or, the bone is fused, or a slipped tendon. It could be anything- but what strikes me the most is how wide/thick the joint looks. Because I cannot move it or stretch the leg I'm unable to splint. I have a full poultry vitamin supplement in place + Niacin. This is all I can do for now, so if you wonderful people have any words of wisdom to help me through this, it would be great.


To cover the bases:
My incubator is checked for hotspots, there are none. Incubators all have fans.
All my duck hatches have been healthy up until this point. I've helped other bird species with leg issues.
We calibrate all thermometers and hydrometers.
I have no access to a vet. I am unable and will not cull, do not suggest it.
The only reason I'm posting here is to see if anyone has had the same experience and can give me their story or helpful information.
Thanks for your help and time.

 

[Miss Lydia]

What a precious little one ❤ @Isaac 0 has the best knowledge about this problem.

 

[Isaac 0]

Just making sure, the leg is not able to move at that hock joint of the leg?

 

[SugarDucky]

What a precious little one ❤ @Isaac 0 has the best knowledge about this problem.

Thank you for your kindness.
This duckling has smaller feet, a rounder stumpier body, and a very small (not short, but small) beak compared to any I've ever hatched.

I wonder if this is a full body deformity I'm looking at. With severity in some spots over others. One of the wings sticks outwards a little more than the other too.

Man, I'm in for an adventure.

 

[SugarDucky]

Just making sure, the leg is not able to move at that hock joint of the leg?

No, the leg is not able to move at all at the hock joint.

 

[Isaac 0]

No, the leg is not able to move at all at the hock joint.

You are unable to straighten it out? It's fused together, is it swollen? The two things that would come to find first would be a "Slipped Achilles Tendon", or a possible genetic defect which occurred during incubation, the latter, would be untreatable, some birds learn to live well with the leg, others may be required to put in a sling for proper stability and let bathe often, etc.

Treating a slipped tendon is a far shot, it may work, may not. This is a great link for treating it.

Fix Slipped Achilles Tendon in Hock Joint
Click here to read one little chick's success story of recovery from a Slipped Tendon & Perosis.
Click here to see a video of movement patterns of one chick with Perosis. Editor's note: The video says Perosis can't be treated after 24 hours, but I have not seen any other source say this, so I don't know that is true.
Editor's note: My limited personal experiences with trying to treat Slipped Achilles Tendon have not been successful. Some other people report they have had several successes. However, from my research, it sounds as though the majority of people find that if a few manipulation attempts don't correct the problem, additional attempts only cause significant unnecessary suffering and don't help the chick. Information listed below may not be sufficiently informed. Please do additional research to ensure best treatments. [If you have a success story, photos, or treatment tips, it would be very helpful if you would Contact PoultryPedia so they can be shared to help others!]

• Slipped Achilles Tendon is a condition that results when tendon that runs down through the groove on the back of a bird's hock has slipped out of place off to the side.
• This problem causes a serious form of Splayed Leg that cannot be corrected until the Achilles Tendon is put back in place. It may also lead to Twisted Leg and other problems if not treated soon enough.
• This problem frequently occurs in conjunction with Chondrodystrophy / Achondroplasia & Perosis, conditions in which nutritional deficiencies in parent bird's diet keep chick's bones from developing properly to hold tendon.
  • See "Ensure adequate nutrition to prevent Perosis" section on this page to be sure that your chick feed has appropriate amounts of essential nutrients, and try supplementing in extra if your chick is showing a problem.

• Symptoms:
  • One leg's hock joint may rotate out to the side or twist underneath the bird (showing Splayed Leg), depending on whether the tendon has slipped to the outside or inside of the leg.
  • The bird's leg will be constantly bent, and the bird won't be able to straighten the leg much.
  • The bird will not be able to use its muscles to bend its ankle correctly.
  • The bird will likely exhibit pain at least the first few days after injury. Birds may peep or cry repeatedly.
  • The back of the hock will look flat (Compare to other legs to double-check).
  • The joint will become swollen after a while.
  • The bird will not be able to use its muscles to bend its ankle correctly.
  • If the tendons are slipped in both legs, the bird will stand & walk hunched down / squatting on its hocks ("elbows"), and may use its wings for balance.
• Treat this problem as soon as possible, so the joint doesn't swell as much (making healing more difficult), bones don't become twisted, and the tendon and muscles do not end up shortened or deformed.
  • If the tendon has been out of place more than a few days, it will almost certainly be unbearably painful to the bird to try to fix it and you will probably cause more injuries.
    • This is especially true of young chicks because their legs are growing so quickly. Various bones, tendons & muscles will have done a lot of growing in just a couple of days and may have become too short, long or twisted so they can't allow the Achilles tendon to be back in the correct location.
    • If you catch the problem soon after it occurs, you could try gradually stretching the leg the leg a number of times a few days to lengthen the tendon, & then try correcting the placement.
• To reposition the tendon into the correct place: Gently pull the upper part of bird's leg a bit behind normal position and then carefully straighten the leg as though bird were stretching its leg back in a pretty normal stretching motion. Press gently against the side of the tendon if needed, holding the joint between your thumb & finger and rolling it back and forth gently. If the tendon has slipped, you will feel it snap back into place (and back out again, if the bone is not sufficiently developed). It should pop back into place pretty easily and cause little if any pain. Gently release the leg and it should return to a normal bent position.
  • Some sources recommend pushing the tendon back in place just by pressing with your finger. However, stretching the leg back is a much less painful method.
  • If the slipped tendon occurred recently but won't pop into the hock groove, there is a small chance your bird may instead have a rotated femur, which requires surgery.
    
• Sometimes a tendon has a hard time staying in place. It may have been out of place for too long or a chick's hock groove may not yet have developed enough to hold the tendon well (Be sure to provide very good nutrition to support optimal bone growth at this time. Do NOT give Calcium or other nutrients in excessive amounts, however--that could cause other problems.).
  • You can repeat the repositioning of the tendon additional times. This may help the tendon gradually lengthen & shape correctly, while the bone is also growing enough to hold the tendon better.
  • You can put the tendon in place & then ***wrap the joint area with sports tape*** or other tape to help hold it there. Use a thin strip of tape wrapped several times around the joint. Change the tape after a few days to ensure it doesn't restrict circulation too much.
  • It will also help if you put the bird in a Chick / Chicken Sling or Chair and/or put its leg in a cast (such as one made from a bendable drinking straw) for a few days (~5) while re-alignment stabilizes.
    • (Note: There is some debate on whether it is better for feet to not touch the ground--as recommended below-- or to touch the ground a little. Please research further when making the choice.)
    • It is important for the legs not be able to reach the ground. The bird needs to be suspended with its legs just hanging freely or in not-too-tight casts shaped in normal bent angle. In this position, the chick won't try to use its legs as much. Its legs need relaxed rest in their normal position until the tendon(s) have stretched and adjusted back to the right place and shape.
• Even after the tendon is back in place, the bird may continue to have some problems walking for a few days. If so, use a Hock Cushion(s) to protect its hock(s) from chafing & bruising during recovery. Limber the leg by gently stretching the leg several times a day, as you did when repositioning the tendon (Check to make sure the tendon stays in place.). If the chick struggles to figure out correct movements, Physical Therapy or short sessions in a Chick Cup (More info to be added.) may help.
• If the tendon does not go back in place, and you just want to help the bird have some more stability in the joint temporarily, you can try wrapping a soft bandage in a "figure-8" twist on the leg above and below the joint.

• You can try taking the bird to a veterinarian for a tendon that won't go into place or won't stay in place. The veterinarian may try surgery or other treatments. Click here to read one little chick's success story.
• However, costs can be expensive with various vets, results are not guaranteed successful, and the effort involved is significant. It is appropriate in almost all cases to instead put down the bird.
  
  
• If there is swelling on hock:
• If infection is part of what is causing joint to swell, there will be pus in the area, though it may be hard to definitely identify beneath the skin. In this case, recovery is usually not possible, and would be EXTREMELY difficult. In almost all cases the bird should be put down to avoid additional suffering.
• If swelling was just caused by displacement that has now been fixed, swelling will go down in 2-4 days.
• If there is non-infected swelling & initial attempts to put the tendon back in place aren't successful, you may try putting the bird in a Chick Chair for a day or two while giving nutritional supplements. This can allow swelling to go down before trying again, and possibly allow the groove to more fully develop correctly. Be sure to regularly stretch/extend the leg during this time to help the tendon lengthen.
  • *Be aware that Chick Chair treatment requires a lot of work, and it may not be successful and may only prolong suffering.

https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/poultry-podiatry

 

[SugarDucky]

I was able to take a video just now. Maybe this helps explain movement.

 

[SugarDucky]

It's hard to tell the difference between fused bone and swelling. The joint is wider, but I don't know why.

I was going to wait another day to see if there was any mobility to the joint. If there is I might be able to pop the tendon back- but I would need to stretch it out first and then sling it.

Thanks for the link- I also have that information and have used it for reference already with this one. I just... can't put my finger on it.

Thank you!

 

[Miss Lydia]

It says video unavailable

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

It says video unavailable

I noticed that as well but on mine I clicked this and it worked. I just clicked watch on YouTube. That might work for you if you hadn’t figured it out. Poor little I do hope it gets better.