Hurt food here leg

[Necklace]

Hello... I have posted about my rooster about a month ago and everyone was saying I should kill him but I could not do it... well he is now eating and drinking and doing ok. But he will still not walk on his leg and I can not afford to take him to a vet.

I am still not sure what is wrong with the leg so i was wondering if anyone had any ideas..

He holds the leg up close to his body all the time.. he will not put it down to walk on at all.. he stands on one foot like a flamingo and uses his wings to help with balance. I have seen videos of dislocated legs and the are dragging behind the chicken.. and if it is broken it should have gotten better by now.

Any ideas of suggestion would be wonderful.. I can not kill him and I just don' know what is wrong.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry to hear about your rooster.

Can you post some photos or upload a video of his movements and provide us a link?

Looking at your other thread https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/lame-rooster.1196571/ It sounds like he was possibly beaten up and suffered some nerve damage - it's hard to know.

Have you observed any swelling of the leg, hocks or thighs? Can he extend the leg at all or does he have use of the foot (can he grip your fingers)?

If he has held it close to his body this whole time -if it was broken, it may have healed into that position.
I'm sorry, I just am not sure what can be done to help him, except continue to keep him separated, watch to make sure he can easily get to food/water, monitor his weight and check him well for mites/lice a few times a month (if he has trouble moving around he may not take care of himself an become infested).

 

[Necklace]

I will try and get a video of him in just a bit.. he tyres to put the foot down sometimes but he does not really put any pressure on it and hope mostly with his other foot. I have felt the leg all the way up to the hip and everything feels fine to me. Nothing feels broken in the leg.. when I pick him up he stretches it out. It does not seem to hurt him when I move it around and mess with it.
The leg did look a bit puffy in the beginning but it looks normal now. He just will not put weight on it.
Will get a video when the sun comes up in an hour or so.

 

[Daddy rooster]

I would say if he is able to raise it he should be able to walk on it.if you can catch him check his foot real good an in between his toes for foreign objects.maybe a splinter or glass.

 

[Necklace]

Hope these links work.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Poor fella
Can he spread out his toes or grip anything with the toes?
To me the leg and foot looks swollen. Do you see any scabs, cuts or anything else on the leg or bottom of the foot. Could be nerve damage, dislocation, broken leg or foot or even possibly the attack stressed him and he may be suffering from disease like Marek's - it's just hard to know without a vet performing an examination.

You could try to see if he will accept being placed in a sling for short monitored periods of time, this will allow him to be supported and be upright without struggling so much.

He does look to be in pain, you can give aspirin in his water (81mg per 1quart of water) to see if that helps make him more comfortable. Aspirin water may not be accepted because it might taste bitter - some sweeten it with a little honey, but make fresh water available too.

Since he is struggling - he may benefit from some poultry vitamins a couple of times a week as well as extra protein like egg, tuna or meat in addition to his normal food.

I'm very sorry, I wish I had better answers for you. It's heartbreaking to see them struggle - he's a handsome boy. I understand you don't want to put him down, but consider giving him a timeline to see if there is improvement, then if not think about the quality of life he has, as well as, how much pain he might be in. A lot of us have been where you are - whether it was illness or injury - there comes a time in every poultry keeper's life where hard decisions have to made.

Here's a basic sling idea - if you google "chicken sling" and look at the images you will find some creative designs:

 

[Necklace]

No he is not able to grasp my hand.. there are no open winds or any sign of damage other then him not wanting to use it. I have been giving him some infant ibuprofen for some time now.. I will try and make a sling and see how it goes.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

No he is not able to grasp my hand.. there are no open winds or any sign of damage other then him not wanting to use it. I have been giving him some infant ibuprofen for some time now.. I will try and make a sling and see how it goes.

I know you are doing everything you can for him.

Please keep us updated and let us know how the sling works.

 

[Eggcessive]

In the first video, his right leg (the better leg) looks swollen at the ankle. The left leg looks swollen at the ankle, but the toes appear more slender. Are either of his other leg joints swollen? Some things that come to mind are bacterial arthritis (mycoplasma synovitis) or possibly gout. But since he is holding the leg up, that reminds me of a hen I had that suffered some type of leg injury. She limped for nearly 2 years until I put her down, but had no swelling or signs of a broken bone. Try the sling and make him comfortable as possible. He may enjoy just sitting with his hens in a favorite spot during the day. If you should lose him or put him down to keep him from suffering, I would think about getting a necropsy by your state vet to find out what was wrong. I remember a post by another BYCer once who had a hen that she found to have suffered from a spiral break in her leg for some time. She always wished she had put her down sooner, but didn't know about the break. Here is some info about getting a necropsy and also about MS:
http://www.metzerfarms.com/PoultryLabs.cfm
http://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/mycoplasmosis/mycoplasma-synoviae-infection-in-poultry

 

[Necklace]

In the first video, his right leg (the better leg) looks swollen at the ankle. The left leg looks swollen at the ankle, but the toes appear more slender. Are either of his other leg joints swollen? Some things that come to mind are bacterial arthritis (mycoplasma synovitis) or possibly gout. But since he is holding the leg up, that reminds me of a hen I had that suffered some type of leg injury. She limped for nearly 2 years until I put her down, but had no swelling or signs of a broken bone. Try the sling and make him comfortable as possible. He may enjoy just sitting with his hens in a favorite spot during the day. If you should lose him or put him down to keep him from suffering, I would think about getting a necropsy by your state vet to find out what was wrong. I remember a post by another BYCer once who had a hen that she found to have suffered from a spiral break in her leg for some time. She always wished she had put her down sooner, but didn't know about the break. Here is some info about getting a necropsy and also about MS:
http://www.metzerfarms.com/PoultryLabs.cfm
http://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/mycoplasmosis/mycoplasma-synoviae-infection-in-poultry

His leg joints look and feel ok to me.. I have a little trouble feeling his hips because he has to many feathers and he is a pretty beefy guy. I have been keeping him on the porch so he can see the others run around and he does get spoiled.. eggs,lettuce, meats.