My chick is limping and turning foot out.

[LaFemmeKatia]

Okay, now I am in need of some medical advice.
I have a five week old Light Brahma chick, and I just was out to the chick pen and discovered her limping, with her foot turning out to the side.
I brought her in the house and checked her over, and her left lower leg is twisted out to the side. Nothing seems broken and the chick actively moves her leg. The joint seems a little swollen but not terribly so. There are no open areas or scrapes or feathers missing. I can move it into alignment (Both feet forward) but she won’t let me straighten it completely out.
Any advice how to treat?

 

[Oncoming Storm]

This looks like early stages of valgus Vera. It’s caused by some kind of vitamin deficiency. The leg will continue to twist until it’s facing completely backwards. This wasn’t your fault. It just happens. I have a silkie cockerel around five months with this. He was given to me past the point of no return. He moves around and lives well. You might try rubber banding it to keep it from twisting more.

 

[LaFemmeKatia]

This looks like early stages of valgus Vera. It’s caused by some kind of vitamin deficiency. The leg will continue to twist until it’s facing completely backwards. This wasn’t your fault. It just happens. I have a silkie cockerel around five months with this. He was given to me past the point of no return. He moves around and lives well. You might try rubber banding it to keep it from twisting more.

Can you explain how I should go about that? I would like to try.

 

[ladybrasa]

Maybe read through this very long but very informative page:

http://www.poultrypedia.com/poultry-podiatry

lotsa good stuff about leg and foot problems!

 

[Oncoming Storm]

Can you explain how I should go about that? I would like to try.

I’m not exactly sure. Like I said, the cockerel I received had it to the point his leg was already backwards.

 

[Jeanw]

Maybe read through this very long but very informative page:

http://www.poultrypedia.com/poultry-podiatry

lotsa good stuff about leg and foot problems!

Thank you for this link!

 

[Eggcessive]

It looks like a possible leg bone deformity. The common ones are twisted tibia, or varus or valgus deformity. There is no treatment. Hers look more like valgus which can give a knock kneed appearance if both legs are affected. In the link below, if you expand the pictures, you can see what each one looks like:
https://www.researchgate.net/public..._of_the_Intertarsal_Joint_in_Broiler_Chickens
Here is another with illustrations of the various deformities:
https://thepoultrysite.com/articles/leg-health-in-large-broilers

 

[LaFemmeKatia]

Thank you all for the awesome links. I have been reading for hours and after going through all of the information, I am thinking that it may be a slipped tendon, as only one leg is affected. First thing in the morning I am going to attempt to put it back in place as described in the literature. It’s late now, and the chickens are all asleep in the coop. So, I’m waiting until it gets light out.
I am a little nervous. I have read the description of how to do it over and over. Still, it’s one thing to read it and another to do it when you’ve never done it before.

 

[LaFemmeKatia]

Well, I wasn’t able to palpate a tendon, so I am going to try splinting her leg for a few days. Her hock area is swollen and warm to touch but her leg bones are straight. I soaked her leg in a warm Epsom salts bath, did some stretching, range of motion, massage, and then splinted it. I’m going to do the soak and range of motion a few times a day. I have her resting in her crate with her food and water near her. I put nutri-drench in her water.
This is what her leg looks like.

Here is said chicken relaxing in a warm Epsom salts bath.

(Gracie is supervising)
After the soak, I did some stretching, range of motion, and some massage.
I don’t have pics of that because I didn’t have enough hands.
I made splints by taping toothpicks together (I don’t have popsicle sticks)

Then, TADA!

 

[ladybrasa]

I don’t have much experience (or at all really). The one chick I thought had a slipped tendon was probably a congenital/inbreeding deformity, especially since it also started to develop scissor beak.

If I recall from reading, you might not feel the tendon well if the joint is swollen? Can you find it on the unaffected leg?

Good luck whatever the issue is!!