Lame hen--Help!

[marycolo]

One of my young laying hens, a 5-6month old Americauna seems to have an injured leg. I check on my 6 birds a couple times each day so suspect the injury just happened yesterday morning. She is able to get in and out of the coop and whatnot but spends her time just sitting low to the ground.
I have separated her from the others and examined her leg and foot and see no signs of injury; no swelling, no disfigurement, no sores.
Any advice is most welcomed! Thanks

 

[foxy2320]

Is she eating and drinking? Some people say to wait it out if they are, others say if it goes on for more than two days with no improvement just cut your losses and cull the bird. My flock started out small (8 girls) and one of my Ameracaunas started having trouble walking, like her leg would just collapse under her. I got ahold of a local 4-H lady that literally raises hundreds of chickens, and she looked at her and said the way she was holding her foot when you lifted her up seemed to point to nerve damage. She was about 3-4 months old at the time. It could've been from a fall out of the coop (they don't like the ladder, just jump down), or it could've been a problem with incubation and didn't really show up until her body weight was high enough to cause an issue. The 4-H lady recommended putting her down, and offered to do it for me for free after I left, so we ended up doing that. I was upset, since it was the first one I lost, and my flock is so small that they are more like pets. Sometimes it's the best thing we can do. But I would watch for a few days, perhaps isolate her in a dog crate or other place away from the rest of the flock. Make sure she's eating and drinking well. Could also be a dislocated hip. Keep us posted!