Rooster was attacked, and is having trouble with one leg

[akwusmc]

One of our 5-month old roosters was attacked by some sort of critter (we weren't home and the neighbor brought him back to me). He appears not to have been cut or bitten, save for a few missing feathers on one wing; he's alert and in relatively good shape except his left foot wants to remain curled up.

The rooster can move around using the leg as a stump, even though he seems to be getting a bit more use out of his foot. I don't think he's got any broken bones, but not knowing if chickens have much of a pain response, the fact that he willingly accepts manipulation of his bones and joints doesn't really tell me anything.

Any help is appreciated!

Anthony

 

[CochinBrahmaLover]

X-ray seems the only way to tell for sure. However, look for this.

Is his leg bent odd? Does it make crunching or grinding (like 2 bones rubbing) when you move his foot? He could have got a sprain and it just hurts. Watch him for a while to see if it heals up, & even if he did break a bone if his leg/foot looks normal, it'll heal on its own, and if it heals wrong, the only thing that would be in jeporady is his ability to breed. Best of luck with your boy!

 

[jjthink]

I wish I could be on BYC more to see posts sooner and hopefully help.

It's possible your boy received wounds you can't see, e.g. puncture wounds, and if so, he may well need oral or injected antibiotics.

For his leg, try for now to have him avoid jumping up onto or down off of anything (when my roo BJ would have a sprain, I lifted him to his sleeping shelf at night and carried him down in the mornings before the time that he would normally jump, even though it was maybe only 2 feet off the floor of their coop).

He has pain. For at least a few days you can put aspirin in his water to help take the edge off so he doesn't totally lose his appetite and stop eating and drinking, thereby creating more problems. Five 325mg aspirins (no substitutes unless confirmed to be okay for chickens) crushed into one gallon of water changed twice daily if possible. Smaller batches may be more practical - that's about one baby aspirin (81mg) per cup of his drinking water.

Watch carefully to make sure he is eating and drinking okay.

If he gets any worse he really may need a vet and antibiotic.....
I hope he'll make a full recovery.
JJ