- Feb 21, 2014
- 99
- 4
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I have a chicken just shy of 2 months old that is obviously injured, but I can't figure out exactly where or how or if there is anything I can do to help her heal. She and 2 others are indoors, each for a different reasons that is keeping them from the rest of the flock but none are ill. Last Monday or Tuesday she decided to practice flying, I think she landed wrong or hit something since when I got to her she was shaking badly. I put her back in the brooder where she just plopped down in a corner. When I went back to check on her a little while later she couldn't stand straight or even really walk. One leg barely seemed to hold her weight, but she was quiet and seemed determined to remain as active as she was before even if it meant badly limping and shaking at any movement. I also pulled her out and checked her legs for any swelling or sign of injury or pain, there was nothing except not the shaking and not being able to stand/walk properly. Then I closed her into a corner of the brooder so keep her from being bugged and limit her movement.
She was going crazy being confined, half of the time that I looked in on her she was stumbling around trying to find a way out. She still chats with the others and eats and drinks like normal. Yesterday I pulled her out for a check. She is shaking just as much, and her limp/wobble is both better and worse. She can occasionally stand half way up and not really shake, but when she tries walking she is either constantly falling to one side (and stumbling to keep upright) or falling on her face. She is getting around though and still insists on being in a place to see everything that goes on (even on top of the brooder, she gets up there somehow and even if it is only about 16", its a few inches above her head).
When I had her out, I checked her and still no sign of injury or pain. She has full range of motion in all joints, nothing seemed loose, stiff or grating, or painful enough for any indication from her, and she gripped with both feet. If I held her feet in place and supported either her abdomen or lower legs (held them at their normal angle) she could stand without shaking and immediately started preening herself. I also noticed that without the support her entire body tilts to the side (rotates on a axis from head to tail straight through the torso) so she ends up with one leg almost under her belly (resulting in the stumbling to the side). The only times I've seen that she isn't shaking is either when I was holding her legs and giving her support or when she is laying with her belly flat on the ground and her wings relaxed (she still tries flying so I don't think anything is wrong with the wings since she gets airborne).
Should I continue keeping her confined or should I let her move about the brooder? Is there anything I should be doing that I haven't? Would it be worth it to see about building a sling for her or would it not do much good in this case? Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. I want to get her better and back on her feet (and steady) as soon as I can. I just don't want to overlook something obvious or find that I'm doing something wrong and making it worse.
She was going crazy being confined, half of the time that I looked in on her she was stumbling around trying to find a way out. She still chats with the others and eats and drinks like normal. Yesterday I pulled her out for a check. She is shaking just as much, and her limp/wobble is both better and worse. She can occasionally stand half way up and not really shake, but when she tries walking she is either constantly falling to one side (and stumbling to keep upright) or falling on her face. She is getting around though and still insists on being in a place to see everything that goes on (even on top of the brooder, she gets up there somehow and even if it is only about 16", its a few inches above her head).
When I had her out, I checked her and still no sign of injury or pain. She has full range of motion in all joints, nothing seemed loose, stiff or grating, or painful enough for any indication from her, and she gripped with both feet. If I held her feet in place and supported either her abdomen or lower legs (held them at their normal angle) she could stand without shaking and immediately started preening herself. I also noticed that without the support her entire body tilts to the side (rotates on a axis from head to tail straight through the torso) so she ends up with one leg almost under her belly (resulting in the stumbling to the side). The only times I've seen that she isn't shaking is either when I was holding her legs and giving her support or when she is laying with her belly flat on the ground and her wings relaxed (she still tries flying so I don't think anything is wrong with the wings since she gets airborne).
Should I continue keeping her confined or should I let her move about the brooder? Is there anything I should be doing that I haven't? Would it be worth it to see about building a sling for her or would it not do much good in this case? Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. I want to get her better and back on her feet (and steady) as soon as I can. I just don't want to overlook something obvious or find that I'm doing something wrong and making it worse.
