Chick with leg issues/is there a chance it can adapt?

[Nikkieschultz]

I've previously posted about a chick I brought home with leg issues. It turned out to be a slipped tendon and despite my best efforts it could not be corrected. However, she is now almost a year old and aside from her messed up leg she is overall a healthy and happy chicken. She lays eggs, roams the backyard, plays in the garden etc. Over the last year, I've kind of adopted several chickens with leg issues, all slipped tendons. I recently rescued another with what appread to be spayed/spraddle legs. It was moving around, eating and drinking, but i could tell it was struggling a little. I used a hobble as suggested online and it helped a little, but I think it was just caught a little too late by the time I got it. The chick is still growing, eating, drinking and moving around. However I worry about the possibility of its legs worsening as it continues to grow, and I wonder if it will be able to continue supporting its own body weight once fully grown. Again, it does walk, it just struggles a little bit and it's legs clearly bow. I guess I'm just wondering it there's a possibility this chick can live and adapt like the others have? All of these "disabled" chickens and chicks have their own personal coop separate from our main coop. So there is no issue or worry about fighting or other chickens attacking/trying to kill it. All of the chickens and chicks in our disabled coop get along.

 

[FluffAndFeather]

If your chicken grows up fine and the leg issue is solved I would assume that there won’t be heavy bullying. Chickens usually only bully if it’s the pecking order or if the chicken looks different

 

[Debbie292d]

I've previously posted about a chick I brought home with leg issues. It turned out to be a slipped tendon and despite my best efforts it could not be corrected. However, she is now almost a year old and aside from her messed up leg she is overall a healthy and happy chicken. She lays eggs, roams the backyard, plays in the garden etc. Over the last year, I've kind of adopted several chickens with leg issues, all slipped tendons. I recently rescued another with what appread to be spayed/spraddle legs. It was moving around, eating and drinking, but i could tell it was struggling a little. I used a hobble as suggested online and it helped a little, but I think it was just caught a little too late by the time I got it. The chick is still growing, eating, drinking and moving around. However I worry about the possibility of its legs worsening as it continues to grow, and I wonder if it will be able to continue supporting its own body weight once fully grown. Again, it does walk, it just struggles a little bit and it's legs clearly bow. I guess I'm just wondering it there's a possibility this chick can live and adapt like the others have? All of these "disabled" chickens and chicks have their own personal coop separate from our main coop. So there is no issue or worry about fighting or other chickens attacking/trying to kill it. All of the chickens and chicks in our disabled coop get along.

It appears to be splayed legs, but her feet also seem to be going outward as well.

You can try the splay leg fix which is binding the legs. We use a strip of vet wrap, wrap it around one leg, then the other so they are the distance apart they should be. Some use bandaids too. If you are continuing to rescue handicapped chicks, you really should get some Vet Wrap anyway! That's pretty cool you do that!

Here's someone showing how to do it with the bandaid.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/splay-leg-and-spraddle-leg-treatment.78240/

 

[Nikkieschultz]

It appears to be splayed legs, but her feet also seem to be going outward as well.

You can try the splay leg fix which is binding the legs. We use a strip of vet wrap, wrap it around one leg, then the other so they are the distance apart they should be. Some use bandaids too. If you are continuing to rescue handicapped chicks, you really should get some Vet Wrap anyway! That's pretty cool you do that!

Here's someone showing how to do it with the bandaid.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/splay-leg-and-spraddle-leg-treatment.78240/

I actually happen to have some vet wrap, I will definitely try this, thank you!