Sudden Severe Lameness & Swollen Hock

[Darcie29]

Is there a reason why you are giving this particular diet?
I agree with the others that she is not getting a healthy balance. Mixing it up like this will just lend to them picking out the bits they like and either wasting a lot by billing the rest out or leaving the less popular stuff so that eventually they have nothing left and have to eat that, creating a situation where they have a fluctuation in nutritional intake over the course of several day/weeks.
Chickens will almost always eat scratch over their layer ration..... just like children (and some adults.... myself included) will usually eat sweets given the opportunity rather than a healthier option. The higher carbohydrate content in the scratch and grains, combined with limited exercise of being penned or incapacitated like this hen is, can cause them to become obese. I have processed layers that were fed too much scratch and the quantity of yellow fatty deposits around their organs as well as a thick abdominal layer was pretty shocking and a real eye opener for me.

You would be much better off giving them ad lib layer/grower or flock raiser feed, a small amount of scratch as a treat every now and then scattered on the ground so that they have to work for it (it's not called scratch for nothing) and the oyster shell in a separate container for them to access as and when they need it.

Diet and lack of exercise can have an effect on a birds body, just like it does ours and I too would be concerned about gout. What breed is she and what does she weigh?

You might consider giving her regular soaks in a warm Epsom salt bath if she is not too uncomfortable with the idea. It may benefit the other foot with the injury too. A chicken sling might be helpful to take some weight off her legs for some of the time.
Does the swollen hock articulate in the usual manner if you manipulate it.... Does it look like it is causing pain or just weak? Can you take some footage of her walking and upload it to You Tube or the like and post a link, so that we have a better idea of what you are seeing?

I can get some video tomorrow and upload it. She is losing condition (losing weight) which is why I am giving scratch in her regular feed and crushed grains, I want readily available and easy to digest fats so she can put weight on. She rarely eats the crushed grains and sticks to the scratch and layer ration. I will put her oyster shells in a separate container but up until now she didn't want to move much and I wanted to give her everything she needed in one spot.
As for the leg it SEEMS to articulate fine, and it seems like it is painful for her to bear weight on it. Since I applied the leg bandage she has been moving around more, and I even found her perched on the top of her fence (only maybe 2ft. high), so she seems more active now. Her cage is a decent size so she has lots of room for exercise.
Her problem isn't dietary or exercise based as this problem occurred when she was in the regular coop with the same diet and exercise as the other chickens, and the other ones are all doing excellent.
I can upload xrays and video tomorrow

 

[Darcie29]

The antibiotic you are giving may not be appropriate for the infection she has. Unfortunately a single antibiotic does not necessarily target a causative organism---we hope for the best when we give one but it could be off-target and actually allow an infection to get worse and perhaps spread to other areas.
Not saying this is the case with your little lady but it could be possible.
Also, have to agree that the feed you are giving your girls may not be the most balanced. I know you mean well by taking nutrition into your own hands but poor nutrition can lead to so many imbalances that it's hard to know where to start when looking for a cause of an illness.
Commercial feed has been developed with proper nutrition in mind and provides everything the birds need, especially the layer formulation for laying birds. Yes, we toss them treats occasionally because it's fun and they love it but they don't need it. Scratch, mealworms, etc, are basically party food and unnecessary but, given the choice, they will overindulge and be the worse for it.
Wishing your girl a speedy recovery!

She does not have an infection, it was a sudden, acute lameness presenting with swelling but no heat or fever, and has been persistent over the course of a month. An infection would have undoubtedly killed her by now, or at least caused a decrease in appetite. The antibiotics she was on was for her injured toe on her opposite foot, which healed beautifully with the prescribed antibiotics.
Also, as I have said before, she IS getting commercial layer ration, which she eats as the majority of her diet. The scratch is to keep fat and weight on her, and her body condition, or "weight", is decreasing despite her good appetite. I am not "taking it into my own hands", I am giving her a commercial ration which is a well rounded diet and supplying her with high fat feeds to keep weight on her. This lameness problem occurred when she was still in her regular coop getting her regular feed that all of the other chickens get, and they are all doing beautifully, so as much as I appreciate the input of her feed not being appropriate, I know this isn't the source of the problem.

 

[chickens really]

Fatty liver syndrome ?

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry if we are all a bit opinionated here on BYC, but we are just trying to make suggestions to help, and don't mean to be picking on you. We don't mean to be bossy or offend. Everyone has their way of doing chickens care.

You might have good luck helping her put on some weight with giving a little chopped egg, canned tuna, or liver daily, in addition to her feed. Many chickens will eat some wet feed mixed with a lot of water in a small bowl. Separating her in a dog crate just for meals might help her get her goodies by herself.

Since you did X-rays, you probably know what you are doing with antibiotics for possible wound care. I hope your hen gets better soon.

 

[casportpony]

so we started her on antibiotics.

Welcome to BYC! What antibiotics did you give? Is the swelling soft enough that you could aspirate some fluid?

 

[Darcie29]

Sorry if we are all a bit opinionated here on BYC, but we are just trying to make suggestions to help, and don't mean to be picking on you. We don't mean to be bossy or offend. Everyone has their way of doing chickens care.

You might have good luck helping her put on some weight with giving a little chopped egg, canned tuna, or liver daily, in addition to her feed. Many chickens will eat some wet feed mixed with a lot of water in a small bowl. Separating her in a dog crate just for meals might help her get her goodies by herself.

Since you did X-rays, you probably know what you are doing with antibiotics for possible wound care. I hope your hen gets better soon.

Thank you so much, I really appreciate the advice with the egg and tuna!

 

[Darcie29]

Welcome to BYC! What antibiotics did you give? Is the swelling soft enough that you could aspirate some fluid?

She was on tetracycline. And it is somewhat squishy, I can try to aspirate some fluid and see the color and consistency

 

[casportpony]

She was on tetracycline. And it is somewhat squishy, I can try to aspirate some fluid and see the color and consistency

Merry Christmas!

Okay, so you made a comment about it not being an infection because antibiotics didn't help, but an antibiotic like tetracycline is very unlikely to help with joint and/or tendon sheath infections. For that, I think you would want to try something more powerful, like Baytril, or maybe Clavamox or Augmentin. If you can aspirate it and post a picture of it that would be helpful.

 

[Darcie29]

Merry Christmas!

Okay, so you made a comment about it not being an infection because antibiotics didn't help, but an antibiotic like tetracycline is very unlikely to help with joint and/or tendon sheath infections. For that, I think you would want to try something more powerful, like Baytril, or maybe Clavamox or Augmentin. If you can aspirate it and post a picture of it that would be helpful.

I'm aware that tetracycline wouldn't help a joint or joint sheath infection. However in my precious replies I stated that the swelling and lameness in her hocks started suddenly and she didn't have a fever. Also that this has been ongoing for weeks and there was no initial trauma to that leg at all that would have allowed a joint infection to occur, swelling hasn't spread, and an infection in the joint would have killed her by now or at the very least caused a lack of appetite or depression.
I'm a registered vet tech so I am aware of antibiotic classification and that you need different medication for different infections, but I'm also aware that if something most likely isn't an infection it isn't helpful to treat it with a stronger antibiotic.

 

[casportpony]

I'm aware that tetracycline wouldn't help a joint or joint sheath infection. However in my precious replies I stated that the swelling and lameness in her hocks started suddenly and she didn't have a fever.

Is there any heat in the joints? And is it in both hocks, or just one? FWIW, birds with joint infections don't necessarily get "fevers", so the fact she doesn't have a fever is irrelevant.

swelling hasn't spread, and an infection in the joint would have killed her by now or at the very least caused a lack of appetite or depression.

A joint infection will not always cause lack of appetite, nor will it always kill a bird.

Does it look like this? And would you care to guess what this was?