I have a chicken with a hut leg.

[elizaj57]

I let the girls out of their pen, and one has an injured foot or leg.

I think it's broken, but haven't picked her up and examined it yet. She can walk on it, but it's painful (even watching).

I checked the pen and there's no evidence of predators getting in, so I think she just snagged her foot on something.

My questions are: will this heal on its own? If not, I can't see paying an expensive vet bill for a chicken. If she does just need time to heal, will the other 3 hens pick on her? Should I separate her from the group?

Any advice will be appreciated.

 

[Ridgerunner]

You need to inspect her and see what is going on. It could be something you could easily treat, like bumblefoot. Until you do that, I can't really offer any advise.

This link may help if it is bumblefoot.

Bumblefoot Thread
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=219319

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

And if it is broken, you need to splint the leg so that the bone will heal in the proper position. Do you have photos?

 

[into_my_web]

I have dealt with a similar situation except all my chickens were very young. I found out the hard way that waiting for it to heal on it's own is not good. My chick's leg got infected and the vet was unable to do anything for her, my chickie got so sick that she couldn't eat and would only eat from my hand sometimes. I had to separate her from the other chicks because they would step on her and pick at her leg. I would really suggest a vet, it may be pricey but your chicken is worth it.
Also, just because the leg seems to be getting better does not necessarily mean it is. A lot of times my chick would seem to be doing better but after a day or two things got even worse..