please help! my chickens legs are swollen

olivetree

In the Brooder
Apr 7, 2020
38
23
23
so my chicken about 2-3 months hasn’t been able to walk the past couple days. she can’t even stand for very long, she just crawls. i thought she had coccidia so i’ve been treating her for that but i think is something different. does anyone else have experience with this?? here are some pictures of her. she’s been laying on her side a lot.
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I'm sorry your chick is ill. How long as it been like this?

The abdomen looks swollen too.

My first thought was omphilitis (infected naval cavity) from hatch that left unchecked causes additional swelling, called "squishy chick syndrome" meaning it has a rampant bacterial infection. It needs antibiotics immediately if you wish to save it.

Other causes of swollen extremities are equally grave. My second thought, since the chick is 2 to 3 months old, and if it had no lingering symptoms from hatch, is Infectious Synovitis, which is caused by a specific bacteria often in the soil, causing swelling of the hocks and inability to walk.

You can read more about it here:
http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/infectious-synovitis

My thoughts.
LofMc
 
I'm sorry your chick is ill. How long as it been like this?

The abdomen looks swollen too.

My first thought was omphilitis (infected naval cavity) from hatch that left unchecked causes additional swelling, called "squishy chick syndrome" meaning it has a rampant bacterial infection. It needs antibiotics immediately if you wish to save it.

Other causes of swollen extremities are equally grave. My second thought, since the chick is 2 to 3 months old, and if it had no lingering symptoms from hatch, is Infectious Synovitis, which is caused by a specific bacteria often in the soil, causing swelling of the hocks and inability to walk.

You can read more about it here:
http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/infectious-synovitis

My thoughts.
LofMc
she’s been like this for about a week. i think she does have some bacteria in her. she was one of my chicks that got hurt by my ducks. they plucked half of her feathers out and made her bleed. i’m guessing she got the bacteria from that. i got antibiotics today and are giving it through water. thank you for the insight. it really helped
 
She looks to be a cornish cross meat bird. Did you know that already? They grow very quickly, usually to be butchered around 6-7 weeks old. They can have leg and heart problems early in life.
i did not know that. the other birds that are like her don’t look like that. i have two more just like her. but i don’t know what kind they are. i got them a rural king and they didn’t know either. they look to be egg layers. they look like they are gonna hatch an egg any day here. idk i gave her some antibiotics to see if that help.
 
Eggcessive brings up a really good point about Cornish Cross. Many of those succumb to heart illness due to their fast growing. And your chick may definitely be one of those.

However, to give it a benefit of the doubt. Could you post pics of the other chicks like her to help us determine if she is a Cornish Cross, or possibly a laying type like a White Rock.

I'm thinking the puffiness is disfiguring her a bit.

I hope the antibiotics work, but she does seem to be in a bad way so you should be prepared to cull her if necessary.

LofMc
 
Eggcessive brings up a really good point about Cornish Cross. Many of those succumb to heart illness due to their fast growing. And your chick may definitely be one of those.

However, to give it a benefit of the doubt. Could you post pics of the other chicks like her to help us determine if she is a Cornish Cross, or possibly a laying type like a White Rock.

I'm thinking the puffiness is disfiguring her a bit.

I hope the antibiotics work, but she does seem to be in a bad way so you should be prepared to cull her if necessary.

LofMc

here is a picture of one of the ones that are jut like her. the other one i couldn’t get a good picture.
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She looks like a cornish cross as well, but I cannot be positive. Do you have any other breeds or different colors to compare their sizes? White rocks and white leghorns can be solid white, but the meat birds grow rapidly. Here are some pictures in this link of what they look like:
https://www.cacklehatchery.com/jumbo-cornish-cross.html
 
She looks like a cornish cross as well, but I cannot be positive. Do you have any other breeds or different colors to compare their sizes? White rocks and white leghorns can be solid white, but the meat birds grow rapidly. Here are some pictures in this link of what they look like:
https://www.cacklehatchery.com/jumbo-cornish-cross.html

i think you are right. my one chicken that i asked about, isn’t able to walk now. one of her legs gave out. i have her separated from the rest. they knew she was weak and started sitting on top of her and plucking her feathers out. so you think she needs to be butchered?
 

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