My 9 week old cuckoo maran pullet got her foot stuck in a thin nylon rope that was hanging a toy in their brooder and ended up hanging upside down from her foot. My husband found her and said she was hanging there, looking dead. When he went to get her down, she was very much not dead. The rope (about 2-3 mm thick) was very tight around 2 toes (cutting off circulation or very nearly) and around her ankle not nearly as tight (not cutting off circulation). He set her down and she wouldn't walk, just scoot around on the floor. He brought her in to me, you could still see where the rope had been around her toes. Her toes and legs were both equally cold, but not ice cubes. After about an hour, the indents were gone and some bruising had started. I couldn't find anything that felt obviously broken or dislocated. Both feet and legs warmed up, with the good leg being warmer.
We're not sure how long she was like that, it was definitely less than 8 hours because everybody was fine when we put them to bed. When I gave her water she wasn't crazy thirsty or hungry, but would eat and drink.
We put her in a spare rabbit cage with food water and lots of litter and padding and had to be gone overnight last night.
Today, it's evident that she's been eating, drinking and she had a very small amount of poo. She will stand up on one leg to hop and turn around. She will brace a little bit with the bad leg, but won't put real weight on it. I pulled her out and had a good look at her legs again. There still doesn't appear to be any breaks or dislocations. The bruises are a little darker and there are two small abraisions on one of her toes near the bruising. There is a very small amount of swelling in the toes but not much. There are no spots that are warmer than any other, and both feet are now about the same temperature. I can move her leg for her and she doesn't put up a fight or make any noise to say she's in pain. The bad leg does seem to be stiffer than the other when I move it. When I sit her down on the carpet she's standing better than she does in the box, but she still doesn't put a lot of weight on the bad leg. Also when I had her on the carpet she let go of the biggest chicken poo I think I've ever seen.
So my questions are this:
Should I give her asprin or antibiotics or anything of the medicinal nature?
Should I make her a sling of some form to keep her up or wait a couple days and see?
Do chickens need to stand up to poop?
Should I splint it somehow?
I think I'm going to go get a small peice of remnant carpet or something similar for the bottom of her cage tomorrow when the stores are open.
Culling isn't an immediate solution. I don't want her to be in pain, but I also don't mind if she's a bit gimpy if she seems like a happy chicken. That said, if she can't get around and isn't comfortable, I don't want her to suffer. So far she's my only lap chicken, so I am very attached.
Thanks for your help!
We're not sure how long she was like that, it was definitely less than 8 hours because everybody was fine when we put them to bed. When I gave her water she wasn't crazy thirsty or hungry, but would eat and drink.
We put her in a spare rabbit cage with food water and lots of litter and padding and had to be gone overnight last night.
Today, it's evident that she's been eating, drinking and she had a very small amount of poo. She will stand up on one leg to hop and turn around. She will brace a little bit with the bad leg, but won't put real weight on it. I pulled her out and had a good look at her legs again. There still doesn't appear to be any breaks or dislocations. The bruises are a little darker and there are two small abraisions on one of her toes near the bruising. There is a very small amount of swelling in the toes but not much. There are no spots that are warmer than any other, and both feet are now about the same temperature. I can move her leg for her and she doesn't put up a fight or make any noise to say she's in pain. The bad leg does seem to be stiffer than the other when I move it. When I sit her down on the carpet she's standing better than she does in the box, but she still doesn't put a lot of weight on the bad leg. Also when I had her on the carpet she let go of the biggest chicken poo I think I've ever seen.
So my questions are this:
Should I give her asprin or antibiotics or anything of the medicinal nature?
Should I make her a sling of some form to keep her up or wait a couple days and see?
Do chickens need to stand up to poop?
Should I splint it somehow?
I think I'm going to go get a small peice of remnant carpet or something similar for the bottom of her cage tomorrow when the stores are open.
Culling isn't an immediate solution. I don't want her to be in pain, but I also don't mind if she's a bit gimpy if she seems like a happy chicken. That said, if she can't get around and isn't comfortable, I don't want her to suffer. So far she's my only lap chicken, so I am very attached.
Thanks for your help!
