Lame hen, no breaks... how should I treat?

[DawnB]

I had posted that I thought my hen was egg bound but it turns out she has a bad leg. Not sure what happened but it's not broken. She's eating and pooping well and she's starting to get her spunkiness back.

I have her isolated. Her leg is obviously sore when I pick her up. I've read that you can give chickens baby aspirin, what is the proper dose? The hen is 7 months old.

Is there anything else I can do besides rest. She's moving the leg but won' t put any weight on it. She won't sit up. She will only lay on her left side.

Thanks!

 

[Johnn]

Have you checked under her foot on the pad to make sure it's not Bumble foot?

 

[DawnB]

Yep....it looks good. She doesn't mind me handling it. It seems whatever is painful is higher up the leg. It may be a strain or sprain. I'm not sure how she injured herself.

Should I put her in a sling so she's not lying down all the time? How much aspirin can I guve her to help make her more comfortable?

Thanks.
Dawn

 

[SaraT]

I have a lame hen (with no noticeable reason for being lame) and was just searching for information and ran across your post. You should check out the poultry pedia website for more information, but the dose is about 300 mg/day or 25 mg/lb/day divided into 2 doses. Here is the page: https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/poultry-podiatry

I've only given my hen one baby aspirin once a day, but when I have more time this weekend I'll actually weigh her and dose her appropriately twice a day to see if it helps. I've just been crushing the aspirin in my hand and mixing it up with a little grated cheese.

Good luck!

 

[Kernel Cluck]

Any chance she was injured by a rooster trying to get "friendly"? I have seen smaller hens have limps after this encounter. It healed up on its own.

 

[DawnB]

Thanks SaraT for the link & the aspirin info. I'll dose her in the morninv and see if that helps. She's not so flopped over on her side all the time. She's trying to sit more upright but she's still all puffed out.

KC...it's definitely possible o the rooster front...I have a 6mo roo who hasn't quite perfected his technique (if ya know what I mean). Mr. Smooth he is not.

But Murphy's Law was ALL over this. I was out of town and our chicken-sitter called and let me know she found the hen in the coop not wanting to move. I didn't get to her to check her out till almost 12hrs later (I did have our friend separate her so she wouldn't get picked on. I thought at first she was egg bound. Did the baths and massage and she laid an egg the next day. I've kept her in fairly dark surrounding to stop her from laying...but I don't know how fast that stops. She hasn't laid an egg since Saturday. Should I do more baths to double-check?

So...now it's jus t a waiting game with fingers crossed.

 

[ten chicks]

Thanks SaraT for the link & the aspirin info. I'll dose her in the morninv and see if that helps. She's not so flopped over on her side all the time. She's trying to sit more upright but she's still all puffed out.

KC...it's definitely possible o the rooster front...I have a 6mo roo who hasn't quite perfected his technique (if ya know what I mean). Mr. Smooth he is not.

But Murphy's Law was ALL over this. I was out of town and our chicken-sitter called and let me know she found the hen in the coop not wanting to move. I didn't get to her to check her out till almost 12hrs later (I did have our friend separate her so she wouldn't get picked on. I thought at first she was egg bound. Did the baths and massage and she laid an egg the next day. I've kept her in fairly dark surrounding to stop her from laying...but I don't know how fast that stops. She hasn't laid an egg since Saturday. Should I do more baths to double-check?

So...now it's jus t a waiting game with fingers crossed.

You can also give her an epsom salt soak great for sprains/sore muscles. You can give baby aspirin 81 mg or a reg 325 mg aspirin,dose is 25 mg per lb of body weight,crush and place in water(my preference for giving aspirin)may make her sleepy. Keep her warm,if you have a hot water bottle fill and wrap in a pillowcase,place beside her for warmth,when chickens are ill/injured they cannot regulate their body temp.