Turkey Poult with Tendon issues..... Farewell Pokey :(

[lockedhearts]

I had 3 Turkeys hatch last week. Poor Pokey has had issues, I finally figured out his tendon on one leg goes to the outside, causing the whole leg to stick straight out behind him. He hobbles around the brooder is eating, drinking and all. First I tried taping the legs together like for splay, that was before I figured out the issue. Last night I cut a bandaid in half and stuck it to the outside of the leg at his "knee" and pulled the tendon into position then kind of wrapped the bandaid around, this helped but not much.
I am thinking I need to get the tendon in place, hold it there and splint or cast.
He is also getting Vitamins/electrolytes in his water and is on Turkey Starter.
I don't have any pics at the moment, when the tendon is in place he has pretty good grip with his foot.
Any ideas, suggestions?

UPDATE: Last night and this morning Poor Pokey seemed to be giving up the fight, I held him awhile and he just laid there. So this morning I decided I needed to cull, it was not easy, I became attached to him and he was very sweet.

RIP-Pokey 10-18 to 10-24

 

[peeboo]

I can't be much help in this situation but i can give ya a bump

 

[BeardedChick]

Use a q-tip or popcicle stick cut for a splint?

 

[walkswithdog]

Bandaid to get it in place and a few careful layers of vetwrap for a splint, is all I can think of.

I'd be afraid of anything really tough causing a skin sore. And vet wrap is easy to re-apply if it gets soiled. Beyond that a stitch or two at a vet's is about the only thing I can think of.

Sports tape is tougher than bandaid if you wanted something that would stick on longer and stay in place despite getting damp or soiled.

Luck with him.

 

[hatchaholic]

We got a turkey like that from Ideal. The bigger she got, the worse the problem became. It started out that her leg turned a little to the side, and progressively got worse until it turned almost all the way backwards. The bigger she got, the worse the problem became. We finally had to put her out of her misery.

I truly hope you have better luck than we did. It was a sad thing to watch.

 

[lockedhearts]

Quote:
I have an ample supply of vet wrap at home and we sell it here at the store. I think if I can get Pokey up and walking around it may help the issue.
Unfortunately I am already too attached to the little guy, and it is a boy, that makes it worse cause the others I think are girls.

 

[sandspoultry]

You aren't going to like this answer but, cull is what you need to do. sorry

Steve in NC

 

[lockedhearts]

Quote:
Is there no hope whatsoever? I really hate to cull him, he is hobbling around, eating and drinking.
Can you give me possible cause to this? I have never had this issue with chicks and these were my first Turkeys. I am wondering if I need to do something different in the future?

 

[sandspoultry]

With a slip tendon you have to catch it and hobble it right away. You can try to work with it but I think the chances are slim. As it gains weight it will have more trouble.

Have you hard them on a smooth surface or did it hatch like that?

Steve in NC

 

[lockedhearts]

I use the shelf liner stuff in my hatcher and papertowels for a couple days in my brooder. I know it wasn;t totally like that when it hatched, but shortly thereafter. I did do the (splay) hobble at first and it seemed better for a day, but was not totally better.
Do you think if I re-hobble for a couple days it might help? He is certainly fighting to live and I would like to give him a chance.