Newly Hatched Limping Silkie Chick….

[Lainey-chick]

I just took my chicks out of the incubator and saw one of the silkies is limping. It holds one leg out when it walks and kind of limps along. Can a chick have splayed leg in only one leg? I read you can sit them in a teacup, but for how long? I also read how you can splint the legs together, but they have feathers on their legs, so I don’t want to damage those. I am brand new to Silkies and to feathered feet. I read sometimes Silkies need extra vitamins, so wondering if I should give nutridrench or something for it? Just not sure how I should treat this?

 

[BarnyardChaos]

Yes, it can happen in just one leg.
I'd dose it with some Poly-ViSol or NutriDrench for the B-vitamins. Dip a Q-tip in the solution, then apply a drop or two to the tip or side of the beak.
That may be all it needs. But if it hasn't improved in a few hours, then go ahead and band the legs with with a rubber band and piece of drinking straw, or you can use a narrow strip of vet wrap. Some people use a bandaid, but you'll want a brand with easy release. Here's a good description:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/how-we-correct-splayed-legs-on-new-chicks.72873/
I've suggested the teacup method with other posts, and used it myself with success. I haven't had the same luck with banding the legs, but it IS the recommended method and works for most chicks. Maybe just not mine
Since it just hatched, it likely won't choose to eat or drink just yet. But if you can dose it with a little water with electrolytes, that'd be very helpful. By tomorrow, make sure it's eating and drinking. Good luck!

 

[Lainey-chick]

Yes, it can happen in just one leg.
I'd dose it with some Poly-ViSol or NutriDrench for the B-vitamins. Dip a Q-tip in the solution, then apply a drop or two to the tip or side of the beak.
That may be all it needs. But if it hasn't improved in a few hours, then go ahead and band the legs with with a rubber band and piece of drinking straw, or you can use a narrow strip of vet wrap. Some people use a bandaid, but you'll want a brand with easy release. Here's a good description:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/how-we-correct-splayed-legs-on-new-chicks.72873/
I've suggested the teacup method with other posts, and used it myself with success. I haven't had the same luck with banding the legs, but it IS the recommended method and works for most chicks. Maybe just not mine
Since it just hatched, it likely won't choose to eat or drink just yet. But if you can dose it with a little water with electrolytes, that'd be very helpful. By tomorrow, make sure it's eating and drinking. Good luck!

Thank you, I appreciate all the suggestions. I first tried the hair tie with straw and she hopped right out of it. Then tried a pipe cleaner and she kept falling on her face and I felt horrible for her. I couldn’t figure out the cup method, she kept jumping out. So, I did the bandaids method and hopefully I will be able to get them back off of her without pulling her out feathers too much, maybe will try coconut oil to help get them off. She was so mad about that whole ordeal! She’s a fighter, so she has that going for her!

I am calling it a her because I’m hopeful.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

It can take a few days, or longer if they are older chicks. You'll have an easier time using vet wrap - won't stick to her feathers. The human version is fine. It's that stretchy bandage wrap that sticks to itself:

Here's a video that shows how to apply it:

When I used the teacup method (a coffee cup or short drinking glass is fine), I used vet wrap to make a sling chair for my chick inside the cup with holes cut for the legs. But you could also use fabric or a sturdy paper towel

I put a bit of mashed paper towel in the bottom of the cup to give traction. Stretch the sling loosely over the cup; you can use a rubber band or some scotch tape around the outside of the cup to hold it in place. Put the chick into the sling, then stretch another piece of vet wrap over the chick's back, tightly, so that the chick is trapped between the layers of vet wrap and can't wiggle out. (But as it struggles to get out, it's strengthening its legs. Good!)

Then I made food and water cups. I used a couple of plastic measuring spoons with the handles cut short, but soda lids would probably be better. Tape them together, then tape them to the handle of the cup so the chick can reach them easily.

I only had the one newly hatched brooder with a heat lamp, so I placed the chick and cup inside a bigger container, then put that container in the brooder - just in the same range where the other chicks had arranged themselves comfortably between warm and cool zones. You could also place the cup inside your incubator.

By the next morning, the chick had wiggled its way out and was walking around just fine.

I would continue to dose with Poly-Vi-Sol (without iron) several times a day. They need the B-vitamins for neurological and leg issues. You could crush a B-complex tablet and dissolve it in water, instead.

 

[Lainey-chick]

It can take a few days, or longer if they are older chicks. You'll have an easier time using vet wrap - won't stick to her feathers. The human version is fine. It's that stretchy bandage wrap that sticks to itself:

Here's a video that shows how to apply it:

When I used the teacup method (a coffee cup or short drinking glass is fine), I used vet wrap to make a sling chair for my chick inside the cup with holes cut for the legs. But you could also use fabric or a sturdy paper towel

I put a bit of mashed paper towel in the bottom of the cup to give traction. Stretch the sling loosely over the cup; you can use a rubber band or some scotch tape around the outside of the cup to hold it in place. Put the chick into the sling, then stretch another piece of vet wrap over the chick's back, tightly, so that the chick is trapped between the layers of vet wrap and can't wiggle out. (But as it struggles to get out, it's strengthening its legs. Good!)

Then I made food and water cups. I used a couple of plastic measuring spoons with the handles cut short, but soda lids would probably be better. Tape them together, then tape them to the handle of the cup so the chick can reach them easily.

I only had the one newly hatched brooder with a heat lamp, so I placed the chick and cup inside a bigger container, then put that container in the brooder - just in the same range where the other chicks had arranged themselves comfortably between warm and cool zones. You could also place the cup inside your incubator.

By the next morning, the chick had wiggled its way out and was walking around just fine.

I would continue to dose with Poly-Vi-Sol (without iron) several times a day. They need the B-vitamins for neurological and leg issues. You could crush a B-complex tablet and dissolve it in water, instead.

Thank you for the information. I got the band-aid off and she was no different, so put it back on. I don’t have the vet wrap tape and cannot get out today to get any. I also don’t use a heat lamp. I use a heat plate. Can you take a look and let me know if I wrapped her correctly? I give her food and water. I added chick saver electrolytes and probiotics to everyone’s water and I have been giving her nutridrench.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

Thank you for the information. I got the band-aid off and she was no different, so put it back on. I don’t have the vet wrap tape and cannot get out today to get any. I also don’t use a heat lamp. I use a heat plate. Can you take a look and let me know if I wrapped her correctly? I give her food and water. I added chick saver electrolytes and probiotics to everyone’s water and I have been giving her nutridrench.

So sorry for the delay! I haven't felt well today. Yes, the leg band does appear to be correctly sized and placed. I hope it works!

Next, will you please check your chick's hock joints? I've just read that slipped tendon often occurs in one leg only. Is his hock swollen or red? If so, check out these links below. I've never treated a slipped hock joint, so I couldn't help any more.
https://backyardchickenscoop.com/perosis-in-chickens/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ith-a-slipped-tendon-one-chick’s-story.69353/

I just checked the label on my NutriDrench and I don't see any B vitamins. Whether spraddle leg or slipped tendon, he needs those B vitamins. Go to a pharmacy and get the Poly-Vi-Sol or B-complex. (Recommended earlier because it's a common recommendation - however, I had not yet done my research.) NUTRI-DRENCH HAS NO B VITAMINS.

 

[Lainey-chick]

So sorry for the delay! I haven't felt well today. Yes, the leg band does appear to be correctly sized and placed. I hope it works!

Next, will you please check your chick's hock joints? I've just read that slipped tendon often occurs in one leg only. Is his hock swollen or red? If so, check out these links below. I've never treated a slipped hock joint, so I couldn't help any more.
https://backyardchickenscoop.com/perosis-in-chickens/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/treating-a-chick-with-a-slipped-tendon-one-chick’s-story.69353/

I just checked the label on my NutriDrench and I don't see any B vitamins. Whether spraddle leg or slipped tendon, he needs those B vitamins. Go to a pharmacy and get the Poly-Vi-Sol or B-complex. (Recommended earlier because it's a common recommendation - however, I had not yet done my research.) NUTRI-DRENCH HAS NO B VITAMINS.

So sorry you’re not feeling well! Thanks for looking at my post and your helpful information. I don’t think it’s a hock joint, doesn’t look like the images in the articles. I really think it’s a splayed leg. It‘s not at the knee joint, but it’s like her hip throws her leg out to the side if that makes sense. I read you shouldn’t give poly-vi-sol with iron. I looked online and my local store only carries it with iron. Would Poultry Cell work for this? I also have human multivitamins without iron here.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

So sorry you’re not feeling well! Thanks for looking at my post and your helpful information. I don’t think it’s a hock joint, doesn’t look like the images in the articles. I really think it’s a splayed leg. It‘s not at the knee joint, but it’s like her hip throws her leg out to the side if that makes sense. I read you shouldn’t give poly-vi-sol with iron. I looked online and my local store only carries it with iron. Would Poultry Cell work for this? I also have human multivitamins without iron here.

Check the label on the Poultry Cell; from what I see online, it contains a high dose of iron and could be toxic to chicks because it concentrates in their tiny bodies. I'd sooner use the human multivitamins.

 

[Lainey-chick]

Check the label on the Poultry Cell; from what I see online, it contains a high dose of iron and could be toxic to chicks because it concentrates in their tiny bodies. I'd sooner use the human multivitamins.

Thanks, I didn’t see that!!

 

[Lainey-chick]

Can I give her scrambled egg for vitamin B? I read that you can do that for chicks, but wondering if she would need grit to digest?

She seems to have a lump in the middle of her foot now. I made a different post about that.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/can-a-two-day-old-chick-have-bumblefoot.1575334/