Lame Red Star

[Morrighann]

I’m attaching photos of my Red Star, Susie’s leg. She started with a swollen toe that caused her to rarely walk and made her unable to go up the ramp into the coop. I crated her and gave her 2 weeks of Keflex thinking it was the start of Bumblefoot, though she never developed a scab. When I released her she had a minimal limp and was looking much better. Now she has a large, reddened lump halfway up her leg and is back in the crate because she can’t walk; and when I picked her up I noticed she’s lost a lot of weight, her breast bone is really sticking out. She’s 2 1/2 years old and is my sweetest and most loved chicken so I don’t want to put her down unless it’s the best option for her because we’ve been fighting this for a month now. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

Help! @casportpony @ Wyorp Rock

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

@Wyorp Rock

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry about your hen.
Do you have vet care? The lump, I'm not sure about, could she have fractured the leg at some point?
I would try to encourage her to eat, you may be able to entice her with some wet feed with some scrambled egg. I would give her some poultry vitamins for a couple of days a week too.

If she is not able to stand well, you could try making her a sling to help her get upright for a few hours a day.

 

[Morrighann]

Thank you for the suggestions. She eats and drinks well as long as I take it to her. That’s why I crated her again, to rest her leg and be sure she had access to food and water. She’s in the room with the chicks so it’s funny watching her try to boss them around from her confined space. As for a vet, no one here says they know anything about chickens.

 

[Morrighann]

And I love your sling idea. I’ll try that.