Rooster limping

[gfrandsen]

I joined this site less than 1 minute ago because I need someone' advice. My one year old rooster began to limp ever so slightly 10 days ago. The next day he was limping more so I caught him and checked the foot, let and thigh for injury. There was nothing. His foot showed no sign of scaling, redness, was not warmer than the healthy foot, and there were not bumps or hard lumps. It looks just like the foot he uses. Each day the limp became worse until after 4 or 5 days, he was no longer using the foot. It is drawn up under him. He doesn't try to walk on it, or on the elbow of the leg. I put him in a large dog kennel with shavings and now he lies in the corner. He gets up and eats a lot of food each day, drinks plenty of water, and will stand on the one leg, but he doesn't use the other. I took him to a vet ($75) and she found nothing no broken bones no fever, etc. What could be the problem? It's now been about 10 days since I first noticed the limp. The vet bill, combined with a $5000 MRI, spinal tap and other tests at a neurologist in Seattle this week has me feeling kinda blue.

 

[gfrandsen]

I forgot to say that the $5000 neurologist bill was for my old dog.

 

[chfite]

My inclination would be to allow him to rest for a few days. Then see if he gets back on that leg.

Chris

 

[gfrandsen]

Thank you Chris. The rooster is not any better. I've tried vitamins, and I see no improvement. He will come out of his cage (where I have him isolated from the flock) and hop around a little and peck at grass and bugs, but he still isn't using his foot/leg. It hangs down and slightly back. The thing that baffles me is that he seems healthy, no fever, no injuries, no unusual bumps or scales on his feet or legs, no redness, and the leg doesn't seem sore if I touch or even squeeze it slightly. Any ideas? It's now been 12 or 14 days from when I first noticed a limp.