My chicken needs help!

[A5linn]

My little chicken has been like this for over a week and seems to be getting worse. I’m not sure it will make it but I do not want to give up since the chicken seems to still be eating and drinking it just can’t use one leg but now it seems like both legs are giving out unless the good leg is tired from being used all week. It’s been hoping around but this week it’s slowed down and now only sits and I need to bring it food or else it would starve. I have checked for bumble foot and there is nothing.

 

[CombNWattles]

The leg could be dislocated or sprained. I had a hen get stuck between a board and the coop wall once; she was unable to walk for over a month and one leg was stretched up almost above her head. She looked really bad, but she was still eating/drinking and clearly wanted to live, so I just kept her in a crate in the coop and fed her. She kept trying to walk, and eventually she was able to drag herself around without falling over, so I supervised her in the yard. And one day, after a while of her self-imposed physical therapy, she started walking again.

If your bird is still eating and drinking, and seems to have a will to live, I would give her a chance. She may need to be put in a crate at night in the coop so the others don’t bother her.

What is your run/setup like?
Is it safe for her to be unattended during the day?
If you put food and water in her reach, will she move herself away from it then not be able to get back?

 

[coach723]

Having one leg forward like that can sometimes be a symptom of Marek's disease. I would use a chicken sling (images below) for periods to let her rest the legs, and do some vitamin supplementation, to see if you see any improvement. A b complex or super b complex tablet or capsule, human ones, any brand, 1/2 of one once daily. The B's are very safe. B vitamin deficiencies are not uncommon and can cause some weird symptoms sometimes.

 

[Eggcessive]

How old is the chicken? Has the leg looked normal before a week ago? I wonder about a leg bone deformity that may have worsened with growth.