Limping and favoring leg

[ravismomma]

I have a Buff O that is limping. Naturally, this is happening while I'm out of town. My husband took her to the vet and was told they aren't sure what it is. Could be a sprain, hairline fracture or Mareks. Of course the word Mareks has me freaked, but my chickens were vaccinated. What is the likelihood of a vaccinated hen contracting Mareks?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I have a Buff O that is limping. Naturally, this is happening while I'm out of town. My husband took her to the vet and was told they aren't sure what it is. Could be a sprain, hairline fracture or Mareks. Of course the word Mareks has me freaked, but my chickens were vaccinated. What is the likelihood of a vaccinated hen contracting Mareks?

How old is she?
If she is old enough to lay eggs, when was the last time she laid an egg?
Any swelling in the abdomen - bloated/fluid filled?

Limping can be a number of things, sprain/injury, egg binding, internal laying/reproductive disorders, tumors, Marek's or some other type of illness.

The best thing to do is place her in a wire dog kennel inside the run (with food/water). This will limit her activity if it is a sprain and let you monitor her behavior. If you have them offer some poultry vitamins in the water.

FWIW Marek's vaccine prevents the growth of tumors, but does not prevent infection (showing other symptoms) by the virus.

 

[ravismomma]

@Wyorp Rock thanks for replying, I follow your posts and value your op. She is about 5 mos, not laying yet. Since I'm not there to care for her, we have her 'hospitalized' so the vet can keep an eye on her and she can be isolated. If I were home I'd do it but I don't trust my husband to care for her (he's not a chicken person like me) *wink* they checked her out and didn't say anything about her being egg bound. I'm hoping it's a sprain but worried about Mareks.
I guess I'm surprised to hear Mareks as a possibility.

 

[azygous]

There's a disease called lymphotic leucosis caused by a virus that produces tumors, much the same as Marek's. This disease can be transmitted to a chick through its egg from its parent donor as well as through the air and direct contact.

I've had a series of chickens who've suffered from leg problems, most probably the result of tumors. I know LL is present in my flock because I had a necropsy done on a rooster who was extremely sick and I euthanized him.

It's not as bad as it sounds, though. My last hen with this problem lived a reasonably long life in spite of her crippled leg. I gave her aspirin to treat the pain, and it enabled her to get around reasonably well, except for the last few months of her life. Eventually, these chickens become so crippled they can't get out of their own feces.

This disease is hard to pin down unless you have a chicken die and get a necropsy on it. There's no cure. No vaccination. But chickens can carry the disease and be resistant to it. Tumors don't always kill. I have one Brahma hen going on nine years old with a slow growing tumor over her eye, causing some vision issues and nothing else.

So, when you spring your chicken from the vet, try treating her with aspirin. It may relieve her pain so she can get around fairly well. Half a children's aspirin is the usual dose, up to twice a day.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Wyorp Rock thanks for replying, I follow your posts and value your op. She is about 5 mos, not laying yet. Since I'm not there to care for her, we have her 'hospitalized' so the vet can keep an eye on her and she can be isolated. If I were home I'd do it but I don't trust my husband to care for her (he's not a chicken person like me) *wink* they checked her out and didn't say anything about her being egg bound. I'm hoping it's a sprain but worried about Mareks.
I guess I'm surprised to hear Mareks as a possibility.
I'm glad you are able to leave her with the vet for monitoring.

It's always a worry that it could be something like Marek's, Lymphoid Leukosis (which looks very similar to Marek's), or Mycoplasma S. She is young, so these are possibilities, but let's hope that it is a sprain/injury that will resolve itself in a short while. (Be hopeful, but be prepared for the worst).

As @azygous has mentioned, an aspirin solution can be given to help alleviate pain. (Your vet may give something else that is better

). For sprains, I've found that keeping them caged to lessen activity works well, but have given aspirin for the first couple of days. This makes them more comfortable and seems to make the healing process a bit faster.

I know your husband did the best he could. I do tell mine about all the things I see/read/research, but I don't know if it sinks in. He has been there to help me when I wash bums, trim feathers, etc., but that is as a "helper".

Keep us posted on her progress.

 

[ravismomma]

@Wyorp Rock just got her home from the vet. Seems a mycroplasma infection. Likely brought on by some sort of trigger, maybe a leg injury, weather, who knows.
We are treating with both oxytetricyclin and trimeth-sulfa. The vets said the first two days she was in really bad shape and weren't holding out hope. After 4 days of treatment and supportive care she seems much better. Still in respratory distress. But improving.
I have her isolated and gave some applesauce with nutridrench, as well as a vet rx vapo steam.
I'll do that each night...
Hoping she continues to improve.
I'm a little concerned about possible white mold/fungus in our run. I ordered Oxine to spray. I notice it and always rake or shovel out but have never sprayed it. I sprayed with bleach tonight and will follow up with baking soda and vinegar. I'm debating adding sand to the run to eliminate the problem but I'm not sure if that will erraticaye the mold or harbor it...
Would love input.
Anyways, that's the update! Wish me luck!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

@Wyorp Rock just got her home from the vet. Seems a mycroplasma infection. Likely brought on by some sort of trigger, maybe a leg injury, weather, who knows.
We are treating with both oxytetricyclin and trimeth-sulfa. The vets said the first two days she was in really bad shape and weren't holding out hope. After 4 days of treatment and supportive care she seems much better. Still in respratory distress. But improving.
I have her isolated and gave some applesauce with nutridrench, as well as a vet rx vapo steam.
I'll do that each night...
Hoping she continues to improve.
I'm a little concerned about possible white mold/fungus in our run. I ordered Oxine to spray. I notice it and always rake or shovel out but have never sprayed it. I sprayed with bleach tonight and will follow up with baking soda and vinegar. I'm debating adding sand to the run to eliminate the problem but I'm not sure if that will erraticaye the mold or harbor it...
Would love input.
Anyways, that's the update! Wish me luck!

I'm glad you were able to see a vet. I'm sorry to hear she has developed a respiratory illness.

Keeping her separated is a good idea, Mycoplasma is contagious, so you want to practice bio-security between her and the others.
Will she eat a bit of crumbles with the applesauce mixed in? If so, try that, she need that protein that is in the poultry feed (chick starter/grower). If she won't eat her normal feed, then offer some egg (scrambled/hard boiled).

Is she able to get around or is she still limping?

What is the "cause" of the white mold/fungus in the run? (Water station, rain off a roof, etc.?)

There are plenty more people more knowledgeable than I on coop/run construction and what works to eliminate water/mold, etc. @aart is one of them, @Ridgerunner is another. I honestly don't know about using sand to help eliminate your problem, I've read a lot of pros and cons. Almost all of my run space is under cover and very dry, so I haven't encountered this problem (yet

). First you would need to know the cause, then hopefully we can help you figure out how to fix it.

You can post some photos of your coop/run on this thread or make one for the coop/run forum (or both-sometimes you will get better answers there).

Please do keep us updated on your girl.

 

[ravismomma]

@Wyorp Rock

I'm confident my flock has mycroplasma.
However I will still isolate her until she is symptom free. I learned that lesson the hard way!

She's eating on her own, she ate a lot her feed tonight and also ate a good amount of applesauce. I'll watch the amount of feed she takes, good point on the protein.
After I gave her meds she actually walked around the garage looking to forage!
I'm hoping she makes a full recovery!

Re: the run. It is intended to be an area across the yard from their coop where they can hide out, get out of the rain ( we live in Washington) and we can close up if we are going to be gone long. We typically let them free range all day long.
It's covered right now with a tarp, we intend to get a roof on asap.
I wrapped it with plastic for winter, leaving both ends a little open for circulation.
Water gets in at ground level, no standing water, but the dirt stays damp.
I notice the white mold growing around my yard, but especially on the ground in the coop. I'm sure it's from the wetness... I'm not sure how to get rid of it.
I'll post a photo of it below.

 

[ravismomma]

The run....

 

[aart]

Why is there water getting in at ground level....is it coming into the run from nearby when it rains?
Might need to do something to keep that water away from run and flow off in a different direction.
If water is coming in sides of the run from rain and you're going to put a solid roof on......make very large roof overhangs.

It'll never dry out with plastic wrapped around it.

Want to suggest adding lots of deep litter to get chicken feet off wet stuff....but....not sure if that would work in your climate.

@donrae lives in the PNW, maybe she would have a suggestion?