What could be wrong, leg/hip injury

[2BD4C10C]

I have a 5 week old Dixie Rainbow chick with something wrong with her leg.She was fine and growing normally up till today but now her knee is dropped down and the leg sticks out to the side. She can and does walk on it.

What could it be and what could it possibly mean for her long term survival? She is the smallest in size and weight of all the DR chicks.

 

[Eggcessive]

It looks as though she has a slipped tendon or another leg bone deformity common in chickens and other poultry. There are many articles to read about those if you Google "slipped tendon in chicks," or do a search at the top of this page. The problem happens, and you may be able to place the tendon back in the right spot, and splint the leg with vet wrap. Many times the tendon pops back out. These leg problems most times cannot be fixed the older the chick is, and there is a tendency for the hock tendon to rupture. I will try to post some articles in a bit.

 

[2BD4C10C]

I was unable to fix the tendon. The joint is horrible swollen.

 

[Eggcessive]

I feel so bad for you, but this is a very common problem. Here are some links to read that may be helpful, including a now grown chicken who had this problem from birth:
http://chickenheavenonearth.weebly....u-can-do-to-help-chicken-heaven-on-earth.html
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/881786/cleopatra-my-easter-egger-who-walks-like-an-egyptian
https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/poultry-podiatry