Picture of Omlete's leg...what to do??

[rachelm10]

OK, Here is Omlete's leg. What do you think? The vet obiously had no answers (he made a pathetic splint that had the little guy all bruised and swollen). should I bother hobbling him again, or let it be? He eats, drinks and poops fine....he just has a REALLY rough time getting around. The bad leg drags and therefor is swollen and a little scratched.
Omlete is three weeks old today...what should I do? What is this?
Thanks!

 

[mmajw]

Is Omlete a meat hen?
If so then the weight that she will gain will only make her leg worse. I say that and then I will also say that I had a meat hen once with a bad leg and I carried her to and from the food and water and she did just fine right up to slaughter.

 

[rachelm10]

I don"t know what she is. Does she look like a meat hen? SHe is from a kindergarten class!!

 

[SpottedCrow]

His leg looks completely unattached...
You could make a sling for him, like the old Jolly Jumper so that he would not be resting on his tummy all the time.
Have you tried physical Therapy on him?

 

[mmajw]

It does look like a meat hen can you post a few other pics?

 

[Pine Grove]

Thats called Twisted Leg, The most common of the leg disorders in broiler birds, Theres nothing you can do about it.....

 

[silkiechicken]

Looking like that at 3 weeks old... sure screams meat bird to me. I doubt she will be able to improve since they put on weight so fast and hard that her leg may never be able to recover. Often these meat birds with regular legs will have them give out on them by they time they are 8-10 weeks old.

 

[rachelm10]

OK, so if she is a meat hen, I guess I cannot expect her to be very much fun and lve a long life, is that right? Now that we've had this chick for three weeks, I want more!!

What am I looking at to tell if it's a meat hen? She was 205grams (I think) at 2 1/2 weeks.

 

[tiffanyh]

Some people have kept them, but you have to monitor closely what they eat. Why do classrooms always hatch meat birds?

I would make a sling. Take the leg, put it up to her body is a comfortbale position and wrap an ace bandage around her body that comes down and around the leg so the leg remains tucked up. You have to come around a few times and to it fair sung so the leg doesnt slip out.

I had a hen with a broken leg. She had it wrapped and got around fine for a while. Althoguh she had other complications and never gained us of her leg, she hops around on one leg all over the year. nicest hen I have!

 

[mmajw]

Meat birds are known for heart attacks because of their rapid weight gain. If you are going to try and keep her as a pet you will need to restrict her feed or she will surely eat her way right to a heart attack. Most meat birds are slaughtered between 8-12 weeks of age. However, if you pay attention to her feed she may live longer.

If you are buying chickens or chicks just make sure you ask for layers. Her coloring and the color of her legs shows that she is a meat chicken.

Good luck with her.