Older hen trouble walking then sits with legs in front of her

[coach723]

I agree with the advice given. Look around for anything that might have been toxic that could have been ingested. I would also do the vitamin supplementing (B complex). I've had birds in molt have balance issues or walk like drunk, and B supplements have been effective many times. There is no downside to the vitamins, it won't do any harm, and may help. Since she has lost weight, she may possibly be ill with something that can't really be helped, or she may just be getting kept from feeders by other birds (this could contribute to deficiencies also). It may help to add some feeders and waterers, spread them around, so that more dominant birds don't keep the lower order birds away too much. Last thought is internal parasites. That could affect her absorption of nutrients. If you can get a fecal test done (not usually terribly expensive) that would rule that in or out as a possibility. If you don't have a vet that will run the test for you (it's the same test for all species) then there are mail in options. This is on amazon, many livestock suppliers also carry this, you can shop for the best price & shipping:
https://www.amazon.com/Reptiles-Rab...ywords=fecal+test&qid=1617731556&rdc=1&sr=8-4

 

[azygous]

@coach723 brought up an important point that completely slipped my mind. Starvation can cause leg weakness and imbalance. So can shock following a traumatic experience, by the way.

A very simple way to tell if these two things are the cause of lameness is to mix a teaspoon of sugar into a cup of water and give it to the chicken to drink. The sudden elevation of glucose can dramatically improve the chicken's lameness.

 

[sassychickens76]

How is she?

 

[clamccauley]

How is she?

She’s doing really well! We would bring her out of the coop each day and make sure was near food and water and was actually eating and drinking. Carried her back to the coop in the evening. Other than her legs just not working she seemed just as happy as could be. Alert, pecking grass nearby.... just like she couldn’t tell her legs to go. Each day she would get around better and better and now she is almost 100% better! She seems to rest a bit more than the other hens and every once in a while she seems to lose her balance a bit but she is up and running. She was always friendly but didn’t like being touched. After all that handling she’s my best friend. Follows me everywhere. I wonder if that really long cold weather we had did something? That’s when she went downhill. For reference, I never gave her anything but just made extra sure she was eating and drinking regularly. She was lame for almost a month! Craziest thing!!

 

[Waves]

So happy to hear she is well!

 

[melandstacy29]

I have a 6 year old buff orpington that really struggled staying warm during a long hard Texas freeze in February. I have 12 hens and all others were comfortable and thriving but she was shivering and obviously having hard time regulating her body temp. We brought her in the house for 2 days and she bounced right back.

About a week later she would walk normal and then teeter back and forth before plopping down. Didn't seem to be in pain....just confused. When I walk up to her to check on her she would stand up and take off running with no trouble. She's progressively gotten worse. She sits for longer periods of time with her legs straight in front of her and will use her wings to stabilize herself at times when she does get up to walk. My hens free range during the day and I would help get her to food and water as she was determined to stay with her flock as they roamed and I didn't want her struggling to get back to water.

So, a week later and she just sits most of the day with her legs in front of her. She gets to food and water but her legs wobble when she walks and she plops down more often. I tried penning her up to keep her from walking on it but that really seemed to stress her out more. She seems very content sitting in the grass with the other hens (who stay close to her) and I make sure she constantly has food and water nearby wherever she happens to be.

Is this just old age? What are signs of pain? I don't want her to suffer.

Hello. Did you find out the illness? Crazy. I have a hen that’s been like his for about two years. Tried everything in the world. Now she’s worse

 

[melandstacy29]

Hello. Did you find out the illness? Crazy. I have a hen that’s been like his for about two years. Tried everything in the world. Now she’s worse

I cannot believe I found someone with a hen with the exact same symptoms. Mine too is a 6 year old Buff.