Hen dislocated her leg, please help!!!

[The Chick Addict]

My 2 year old RIR hen, Henrietta, has a dislocated leg. I left her and my other chickens out to free-range and came out to find her limping badly. I picked her up and her leg was completely limp and when I moved it a little bit, it could move the wrong way, and I could also feel it out of it's socket. I have her in a quiet area where she can't move, and I also fed her and tried to give her some water with electrolytes but she didn't want to drink. I believe one of my goats scared her and as she tried to get away her leg got caught in something and she pulled it out. It's been almost an hour since this happened and she is breathing with her mouth open. I'm hoping to take her to the vet tomorrow but I'm not sure if I will be able to. Is this something I can fix, or will a vet have to, and will she be okay in the meantime? Is there anything else I can do right now? Thank you in advance!

 

[GodLovesU]

How is she?I personally would take her to the vet.

 

[alinas2010]

@azygous @Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock


So sorry to hear this happened. How is your hen today?

A vet would be best, I agree. But maybe someone has seen something similar and there is something you can do to help if vet care isn’t an option.

 

[azygous]

A lot of first responder training for human accident victims apply to chicken injuries. The first rule is to immobilize the injured limb to prevent further injury and also to reduce pain.

If you have a small pet crate, place the hen in that with food and water until you can get her to a vet. This will greatly reduce her movement. Another option is to ask a nurse friend, if you know one, to look at the leg. These medical professionals can often substitute for a vet, I've found.

But this is something that shouldn't be diagnosed and treatment prescribed over the internet. Doing the wrong thing could permanently injure nerve connections and the hen would be paralyzed for the rest of her life.