Hen limping badly

[HorseGirlAbby]

My sister and I took her out of the tractor to take some pictures, and she immediately lay down and started sunbathing. She sure doesn't look like a hen in pain, does she?

Her leg looks pretty normal from the side:

Here you can clearly see the bump on the inside of her hock joint.

She was struggling a lot during the photo shoot, which is a good sign. She also seemed to be moving around a bit better, or maybe it's just wishful thinking.

 

[Eggcessive]

It might be sprained, but I would keep her from being too active.

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

I have had 2 chickens within 2 weeks of one another display injury to the leg (I realized their roost set up was a bit hazardous). I set up a dog crate in the run with everything she needs; bedding, food, water. The goal is to keep her off of the leg to rest, which she wont do if shes with all the others. Thats good shes acting normal otherwise, as were mine, thankfully. The second chicken healed better while in the crate from the onset. (First injured chicken, i waited 12 hrs.) Healing may take awhile, but she'll probably heal up and hopefully be back at it soon! Some extra protein may not hurt here either. Maybe a nice scrambled egg mixed with a little feed and water. The extra protein helps healing and with the molting. Good luck to you and your flock

 

[HorseGirlAbby]

It might be sprained, but I would keep her from being too active.

She’s just sitting around all the time anyway. I kept her in the tractor for now, because I think she likes the company of the other hen in there. I’ll definitely put her in the entryway tonight, though, so she doesn’t get worried and start pacing around again.

I have had 2 chickens within 2 weeks of one another display injury to the leg (I realized their roost set up was a bit hazardous). I set up a dog crate in the run with everything she needs; bedding, food, water. The goal is to keep her off of the leg to rest, which she wont do if shes with all the others. Thats good shes acting normal otherwise, as were mine, thankfully. The second chicken healed better while in the crate from the onset. (First injured chicken, i waited 12 hrs.) Healing may take awhile, but she'll probably heal up and hopefully be back at it soon! Some extra protein may not hurt here either. Maybe a nice scrambled egg mixed with a little feed and water. The extra protein helps healing and with the molting. Good luck to you and your flock

Thank you! This is the first chicken I’ve had that’s hurt her leg. It wouldn’t hurt to baby her a little, either. Maybe I’ll scramble an egg for her later.

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

She’s just sitting around all the time anyway. I kept her in the tractor for now, because I think she likes the company of the other hen in there. I’ll definitely put her in the entryway tonight, though, so she doesn’t get worried and start pacing around again.

Thank you! This is the first chicken I’ve had that’s hurt her leg. It wouldn’t hurt to baby her a little, either. Maybe I’ll scramble an egg for her later.

just like us, we need to rest if we hurt our leg.

 

[HorseGirlAbby]

Well, she’s all settled in for the night, in the entryway. Unfortunately, I wasn’t out there while the hens were going to bed; I had to eat dinner. So I got out there later than I wanted. There was evidence of her pacing back and forth, some shavings in her food and water, and one wing was wet, like she’d run into her water bowl. Anyway, I went into the house to make sure everybody was where they were supposed to be, which they never are. I put Holly on the roost, and then stepped on something that crunched. I immediately thought it was an egg, and had to turn the light on to check. The light switch is in the entryway, and right when I opened the door, the injured hen squeezed her way past me and limp-ran into the coop. She got halfway across before I turned the light off and caught her. The thing I stepped on was an old watermelon rind . She’s back in the entryway now, right up next to the door leading into the house. Poor thing. She really wants to be with her friends. I guess I’ll see how she is in the morning. Goodnight all, and thank you so much for all your help.

Oh, the hen’s name is Little Nancy, by the way.

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

Hows little Nancy this morning? Is there anyway you can put a smaller crate in the henhouse so she can sleep with the others but not roosted? The stress is no good for healing. I hope she does better today.

 

[HorseGirlAbby]

Hows little Nancy this morning? Is there anyway you can put a smaller crate in the henhouse so she can sleep with the others but not roosted? The stress is no good for healing. I hope she does better today.

We used to have a dog crate. I had a sick hen in there, and she broke her neck trying to reach under the bottom wire. So we got rid of that. Unfortunately, we don’t have anything else we could use. This morning she seems to be walking a bit better, not flapping her wings at all. She’s mostly just sitting down, though.

She and one of the other chickens were exchanging insults through the wire. Her comb’s red, she pooped, and she ate some food, so she’s feeling good otherwise.

 

[HorseGirlAbby]

Little Nancy is definitely on the mend!! I opened the door this morning, and she was standing up. Her tail was still down, but she was alert and happy. I lifted her out, because I didn't want her to jump down, and she just started walking around. She's still limping quite a bit, but she walked all around the coop pecking at stuff. I opened the scratch container, and she started to run towards it, and then thought better of that. She was very annoyed when I picked her up, though! I kept her in the entryway, because I don't want her jumping in and out of the coop with the others, and we don't have a ramp for the door. She was excited to get her scratch, but she really wanted to be with the other hens.

Thank you so much for all your help and support! I hope she keeps getting better every day.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Glad to hear she's improving.