Limping 12 week old chicken

[BenlynFarm]

I have a 12 week old chicken who has been limping. At first, I checked for any wounds, which there were none. Her foot looks great on the bottom and toes appear to be all straight, not broken. She is limping a little less now but still lifts that leg up like it hurts her. It now looks like it’s swollen but I’m not sure what could be causing it. I’ll attach some pictures. If anyone could help me out, and if you think it’s some form of infection, what I should give her. She still acts very healthy, runs around, and eats. Thank you! Middle toe in the right.

 

[Isaac 0]

I'm sorry to hear about your bird.

I do see some noticeable swelling in her middle toe/ankle area. As of now, I wouldn't be too concerned of it being related to an infection, although it may not be a bad idea to check her footpad to check for any lesions, indicating Bumblefoot as the swelling can sometimes spread upwards.

More likely, she flew off the perch and landed on the toe wrong, or tripped over something, got in crushed on something, etc.

Really what you'll want to do, for now, is moving her into a pen that reduces her movement so she doesn't further reinjure the area on accident. The area should be soft padded, and free of things she can trip on. Riboflavin (B12) is an important vitamin in chickens that supports healthy leg growth and structure, so she may benefit from a little Riboflavin in the form of B complex for a while.

In addition, you could soak her leg every few days in Epsom Salt water if you want to reduce some of the swelling going on. You could also administer an NSAID, but I would personally hold off on that for a while as pain is what is keeping her from reinjuring the leg. Sometimes when you "over"medicate a bird with an injuring, they feel better, starting walking on the injured part too soon, and reinjure it further.

 

[Eggcessive]

I think that Isaac O meant that vitamin B 2, is riboflavin. I agree that you might want to limit her activity. Roosting would be very hard on that foot. It may be sprained or possibly broken. That could take several weeks to heal.

 

[BenlynFarm]

Thank you both for the advice! I of course tried to google information but it was just so many different things. I figured it’d be best to ask the experts and provide pictures!