Please Help/advice-found my girl hanging upside down, think her leg is broken

[aggiemae]

If the splint is working don't remove it! Sometimes, if it isn't padded the stick or what ever you use to splint rubs and that was what I was suggesting you keep an eye on.

I use cotton swabs as splints and when I trim then to fit I leave the cotton bit on the end that will be the top of the splint.

 

[luvmigrls]

The splint I used is the real deal, like used on people; bendable with padding. Thanks for the response.

 

[Shabana]

Great idea with the scratch / foraging feeding. Great to hear she's going for it

Good stuff xx

 

[fishnet1971]

Luvm, where did you get the splint? I have a BR with a broken ankle or foot I think and I have no clue what to do. I have her in the house in a crate. I have tried wrapping with vet wrap, but I am not getting any positioning of the foot and leg and am worried it is going to heal straight out and she wont be able to walk.

 

[Shabana]

You can use two ice lolly sticks wrapped in cotton wool and then the tape/ vet wrap. Make sure it's not too tight and that it doesn't rub. My pullet was young when it happened to me so I used 2 cotton buds cut to fit and again wrapped in cotton wool to prevent rubbing.
You need to splint well above and below the break.
In my experience it took well over 6 weeks to heal but it depends on the severity of the break.
Hope she's ok.

 

[Shabana]

If you are giving any pain med like aspirin be careful nothing ends in Caine or Cain as it is very toxic to chickens.
You could also add baby vits without iron to her water electrolytes etc and help with stress by keeping her warm and a little dark.
Bathe any wounds and use an antiseptic / antibiotic cream again avoiding Caine / Cain ingredients.
Tlc goes along way too.

Hope this helps x

 

[fishnet1971]

thanks, I didnt want to hyjack the thread. lol. I should have just taken her to the vet to get it xrayed to see if it is the foot, ankle, or pelvis. 99% sure the ankle. She had this happen to her a few months ago, but not as bad. She was able to get around good, it wasnt broken like twisted or anything. I thought it was just sprained. Took about 6 weeks and she was back to totally fine. I am pretty sure my rooster might have caught her 'off guard' and did the happy dance on her a little to hard. Anyway, she got better had a tiny limp left over and them last week i found her on the floor of her tajmahal not able to walk. The foot was a little swollen on the pad and with a little heat. I immediatly brought her inside and put in the cozy dog crate in the laundry room with food and water. She is drinking great (i have 1/2 Bayer low dose in 2 cups water) eating tons of munchies (grapes, scrambled eggs, mealworms, etc) her scratch and food well. pooping well and even left me 2 eggs in the last three days. Eyes are bright, color good. She did begin to use the leg yesterday a little to move around which is good. I just wondered if I should splint the foot and ankle to make sure it stays in the angle of standing, or let it heal as is. She is able to stand and it moves ok so far. I really would hate to see it heal to the point she cant bend it. She really does not seem to be in any pain, and will let me bend it to put the wrap on. She does pull it away pretty good if I mess with it to much, so I know it hurts then.

I dont feel any broken bones, no blood, most of the swelling is gone.

We never really know if we are doing the right thing.

 

[fishnet1971]

Dont know if this helps anyone, but I did find these pictures on a bird broken leg. would work good on a small bird I would think.

 

[Shabana]

Difficult to judge whether to splint or not. You're right about never quite knowing what the right thing to do is. The important thing here is that you care a lot and tlc is half the battle

It might be that she's just taken a knock and set herself back a bit but whether that or a break it won't hurt to splint it and maybe check it after a week or two. You'll soon know when you see her skipping about that it's time to take it off

I rescued my maran (called Pudding) on oct 13th and she still limps badly now and sits a lot but there's progress it's just sloooooow !

The pics look cool. I would put something between the sticky stuff and the skin, gauze or cotton wool and use a cotton wool pad under the foot before taping it to help set the foot in the right position.

Best wishes x

 

[lauranickerson]

This doesn't really help you, but I accidentally dropped my adopted Cornish meat bird when young but still heavy from belly button level. I could have sworn her leg was broken, because she didn't use it at all and kind of just crawled around.

But, she ended up making a full recovery after a week or so. As soon as she healed, the others pecked her to death.

ANYWAYS, She might just need time. Hope she gets better!