please help :(

[jilliianboyd]

I have a 2 day old slikie chick that is not walking right ....I kind of looks like his legs are to far apart ....I don't think he is injured ...his leg feels just like his other leg he just can't get it under him or hold weight on it ...is this common ? Will it fix its self ? Is there anything I can do to help ? Here is a pic....but you can't really tell ??

 

[ten chicks]

I have a 2 day old slikie chick that is not walking right ....I kind of looks like his legs are to far apart ....I don't think he is injured ...his leg feels just like his other leg he just can't get it under him or hold weight on it ...is this common ? Will it fix its self ? Is there anything I can do to help ? Here is a pic....but you can't really tell ??

Could be spraddle leg,easy to correct if caught right away. Here is a link to explain it. www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/02/spraddle-leg-in-baby-chicks-what-is-it.html.

 

[jilliianboyd]

Thanks ....I think that's what it is ...we made a bandaid splint ...I just hope its not to late ....I was thinking he was just tired ...so he has been hobbling around for a couple of days thanks again

 

[PoultryPedia]

There is a lot of info on treating Spraddle Leg on the Poultry Podiatry page on the site linked in my sig, too.
I'm glad you spotted it while your chick is still very young.
Best wishes!

 

[jilliianboyd]

Thanks .... we did the bandaid splint. ..and we removed him from the other chicks because they kept pecking him he seemed to be doing better thanks

 

[chooks4life]

Hey, if possible and if it's not any inconvenience, could you possibly post a sharp photo of his legs front-on? Like from facing him? I'm trying to show someone what defective genes that cause some types of spraddling look like. They show in the leg scales and I think it's possible yours may have this. There's different types of spraddling aused by different things, and while they usually manage to walk at a later date than usual, the genetic malformation type will breed more spraddlers.

If it's inconvenient, thanks anyway, all the best.

 

[jilliianboyd]

These are the best pictures I could get ...you can see a little tape where I had it braced ....I feel bad for him I had to separate him from the others because the peck him it just breaks my heart

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[chooks4life]

Thanks very much Jilliian. That's a beautiful bird you got there. I hope it makes it. To me, that actually looks like a broken leg now. You did mention before it was one leg he couldn't put weight on. But then you said he's hobbling around now. Is he hobbling on his knees or his feet? The left leg in the picture, (which is actually his right) looks broken to me. That's quite a far turn from the normal range of movement. If it is in fact broken the spraddling fix would not help, he would need a splint.

I can't tell if it's genetic from the photo because he/she has fluff covering the front of the shin, but one type of genetically caused spraddling does go inwards like that; if it's not limping on any leg in particular, and if it manages a somewhat normal body posture as it tries to walk, then I would think that is caused by the deformity in question; however it's pretty severe and such a posture can also be caused by a hip or pelvic injury to bone or tendon or muscle, in which case there should be a noticeable inequality between the legs and probably an abnormal stance such as being overly upright. I'm leaning towards thinking that's actually an injury to the leg bone or pelvic area which can also result in both legs being equally lamed or abnormally postured. I've seen something very similar in an adult that was injured once.

If this was genetic, the chick would have been like this from the start. They get stronger in those cases, though the longer they walk the more their spraddling becomes apparent. Normal spraddling can cause that from the start too but generally the feet don't turn inwards and move forwards so much. Spraddling can be caused by a lack of correct minerals and vitamins in balance in the mothers as well as by slipping in brooders. Congenital spraddling is caused by misaligned structures and they walk with legs spreading further and further apart, or in the opposite direction, getting closer and closer together. Also when a chick is unable to use one leg and is overcompensating, the over compensation will ruin the good leg.

Hope you can make sense of my mess of different ideas and experiences there; basically long story short, I think you need to ascertain whether or not it is actual spraddling or a break or other injury; a good clue will lie in your answer to this question: does he walk on his 'knees' or does he get up on both feet? If only one, that's most likely an injury rather than outright spraddling. It's not symmetrical so I don't think it's genetic spraddling. Possibly not even normal spraddling. But hopefully your answer will enlighten the situation. All the best wishes for you and yours.

 

[jilliianboyd]

Thanks so much yes the more I look at it I think it is a injury too it seems just a little swollen ....I don't understand how it happened I think he came out of the egg injured ....is that possible ? I have splinted it and he doesn't act like it bothers him ...so I guess we will see what happens ...thanks for the information

 

[chooks4life]

You're welcome, I hope it helps. He or she's a keen little bird to hang in there; that's good. If it doesn't look like it's going to fix after a week or so with the splint there are other options, like vet care (which financially isn't an option for many) or amputation. There are some on legged chooks out there who do well. Hope the splint works though. Best wishes.