Limping Pullet

[Paula Robinson]

I have a Pullet about 9 months old who suddenly started limping. The ankle has a little to much movement in it. It may be broken. What should I do?

 

[Ebony Rose]

Gently feel the leg to determine if it's sprained or broken. I'm assuming that if broken, that the bone did not puncture the skin, so at least that's a good thing. If broken, splint it. Detailed directions available on the forum. A sprain can occur simply by coming off of the roost wonky or in any number of ways such as a hole in the ground, twisting it while running, etc.
You may also wish to bathe and examine her feet, both tops and bottoms, looking for possible bumblefoot infection.
If possible, please link photographs of her clean feet, top & bottom, her legs (affected leg and unaffected leg), her posture while she's out doing what chickens do (full photo of her) from a sideways view and a rear end view. And since you'll already be taking pictures, a front on facial view and a side-view of each side of her face. Photo(s) of her poop are also welcome to help determine if the limping is a symptom of anything underlying. Pictures speak a thousand words to a trained eye in poultry troubleshooting.

 

[Paula Robinson]

Thank you for the advice. Nothing has come through the skin, but the joint has more movement than the unaffected one. I'll get going on the advice.

 

[Eggcessive]

Is there any swelling or redness in the ankle? Forcing rest on the leg might be good. Splinting with tape or vet wrap might give her ankle more support, but be careful to check circulation to make sure the wrap doesn’t get too tight. A vet for xrays would be good if possible and affordable.

 

[Eggcessive]

Here is a link about splinting:
https://theiwrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Duerr_Splinting_Manual_2010.pdf
Here is a video about splinting a broken lower leg:

 

[Paula Robinson]

Is there any swelling or redness in the ankle? Forcing rest on the leg might be good. Splinting with tape or vet wrap might give her ankle more support, but be careful to check circulation to make sure the wrap doesn’t get too tight. A vet for xrays would be good if possible and affordable.

A little swelling. I'm going to try wrapping it. Thanks

 

[Paula Robinson]

I have a Pullet about 9 months old who suddenly started limping. The ankle has a little to much movement in it. It may be broken. What should I do?

A little swelling. I'm going to try wrapping it. Thanks

Sorry there has been such a delay. I'm attaching a couple pictures. You can see the right foot is swollen and she was holding it up.4t However, I want to tell you that the chick recovered. I put her in a wire dog crate so she would rest the foot, but still be in the flock. The rest did the trick. She's walking fine now.