limping hen

[eggcatcher]

This morning my hen Lucy was limping. I looked at her foot. No obvious trauma, no swelling, looks like the other foot. She hid in one of the low nesting boxes, I left her there thinking she would rest. This afternoon she was out in the yard limping but a little better. At night she tried to get up the ladder to the roost, she kept falling I was afraid she would hurt herself worse. I lifted her up and put her on the roost she was unable to keep her balance on the roost and fell off. She was breathing heavy I assume from exertion and distress. I put her back on the floor of the coop and tried to encourage her to go back to the nest where she was hiding this morning. She wouldn't go. I picked her up and put her in one of the higher nesting boxes and turned off the light. She stayed in the nest box. I'm hoping she'll rest for the night and the 1 foot jump from the higher nesting box to the floor won't be too much. Any suggestions other than watch her and hope she gets better???

 

[daddysgirlz]

This is what just has been happening with mine...I took a closer look and she had red mited crawling all over her...they apparently are in her ears and causing the limping/unsteadiness! She needs attention right away if it is mites...I only noticed the mites because i was looking at her face real close and noticed all these red mites crawling around her eyes! Mine is very weak and getting weaker ...I treated her with poutry dust and vitamin water in hopes she will recover...tomorrow she will get a bath in flea and tick puppy shampoo and another dusting...

 

[eggcatcher]

Don't think it's mites. Just went in the barn and picked the poor little hen out of the nesting box and there are no mites, around her eyes, they are bright, nothing around her nose, in her feathers. Can't imagine it is just an equilibrium problem because she stant on her good left foot, and gingerly puts down her right foot, again she will stand on just one foot for quite some time. She lost her balance on the roost when she was trying to put her right foot down, otherwise she doesn't seem to have a problem. She only falls when she trys to put weight on her right foot like when she was trying to climb the board up to the roost, jump up to the roost from the poop board etc. If she is walking it is always her right foot she is gingerly with and she will stand on her left with no problem. She definately acts like that foot hurts. She would even walk putting her foot on the end of her center toe instead of having the foot flat on the ground.

 

[daddysgirlz]

Check her vent area really well too! do it at night with a flashlight to see if you see and creepy crawlies...you descibed perfectly what my hen was doing...I treated her yesterday and now she is doing much better! I will wash her today and see what happens...let me know what happens with yours...good luck!