Injured (maybe broken) Leg on EE pullet. Hangs totally limp.

[sevenscuba]

Our 10-ish week old easter egger might have a broken leg... or something? She won't move her left leg. It was pouring rain and she was just laying out in it. When we went to check she won't move her left leg. It just hangs limp. I can't see thing obviously wrong. Any ideas? What do I do? We've put her in a box with some dry bedding downstairs. She's not really reacting to anything either. Normally when you try to pet her she's not thrilled with it. Tonight, no reaction.

 

[RussianChickens]

Does it feel the same as the other leg? No different bumps or indents anywhere?

You can try Carefuly and Slowly moving the leg just a bit to see what movements in what direction cause pain if any. Gently move the leg in all directions after doing the same to the good leg. See if anything moves in the wrong way. I stress Gently because if there is something fractured you don't want to push it out of place.

If it moves to far in one direction then it may be broken or a torn tendon/ligament. If it does not move the direction it is suppose to and the joint feels a little different than the good side it may be dislocated.


If everything is normal after the examination it may be a muscle/tendon/ligament injury.

Never the less bring her inside and let her heal in a nice comfy tub with shavings and food and water close to her head.

Best of luck! That is what I would do.

 

[sevenscuba]

Thank you so much for your help! I went down last night and checked and can't find anything. So we're guessing muscle/tendon/ligament injury. Today she's acting like she feels much better.

A few more more questions for you now. 1) How long do you think we need to leave her inside? 2) Will we have to do anything special when we take her back out with the others? 3) Do we need to move her? Can chickens get the equivalent to bed sores? Do we need to worry about her sitting in her own waste? Am I over thinking things?

 

[RussianChickens]

Glad to hear shes perking up! Maybe it was just a strained muscle of some sort.

Just keep her in until she can walk. That way she won't get picked on by the other chickens for her weakness.

No I don't think you would have to do anything special, if she can get around to food and water she should be fine. Just keep an eye on her.

Yes they can get 'bed sores'. If shes lying down a lot try and keep her in different positions. Also keep her on soft clean shavings, a good cushiony layer of shavings. So yes if shes laying in the same spot a lot I would move her some.

Just keep the bedding clean, change it once its dirty. If you can also push the poop to a spot where she isn't setting when you see it to get it out of the way.

No, there's no such thing as a dumb question. When I don't know something I ask a million questions Lol! Don't feel bad! That's how we learn stuff.

Something else:
You might want to check her feet for bumble foot. I've heard that can cause leg pain, trouble walking and infection. I have no personal experience with this yet but here's a site that explains a little bit and how to treat. Worth looking into!

I'd google it too, along with googling the symptoms she has to see if you get any hits for different stuff we don't know about.

http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2011/07/bumblefoot-causes-treatment-warning.html