My Hen is Limping and Rarely Moves… I’m Worried About Her

[Prince and Pavo]

One of my (favorite) hens recently started limping one morning, and I’m not sure why. I think it was Saturday morning that it started and she wouldn’t even come out of the coop on her own to eat. She puts little to no weight on the hurt foot/leg and walks around as little as possible, which sometimes (or often times) costs her a meal. I have inspected her foot and shank—nothing abnormal and no sign of an injury or wound. I’ve tried to feel her thighs, but with the feathers covering all the skin from view, it’s very hard to tell if something is wrong. My best guess is that she tried to fly down from the roost in the morning, but, being a slightly heavier bird, she landed too hard and hurt her leg somehow. She’s shown no improvement over the last few days, so I’m worried that it will be permanent if I don’t do anything. Is there anything I can do? I really want to help her and I hate to see her hurt, so I would really appreciate any advice on how I can fix this. TIA!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I think it was Saturday morning that it started and she wouldn’t even come out of the coop on her own to eat. She puts little to no weight on the hurt foot/leg and walks around as little as possible, which sometimes (or often times) costs her a meal.

How old is she?
Does she lay eggs? When was the last one?

Photos of her and her poop?

If she's unable to get out the coop to food/water, then cage her with her own food/water so she doesn't miss a meal. If she's not eating/drinking then she'll just get weaker.

Look her over for lice/mites and make sure her crop is emptying. Limping can be from so many things, so see if she improves with getting some TLC and being able to get to food/water.

 

[Prince and Pavo]

Thank you for your reply!

She is about 2-1/2 years old. I do not know when she last laid an egg, however I saw her come out of the nest box on Sunday, I think. I assumed that she was laying an egg, because she put all the effort into getting into the nesting box, when normally she would just be inactive.

Unfortunately I do not have pictures, and I am currently unable to get any. I will try to later though.

I try to feed her by herself and even pick her up and bring her to the food, but she still refuses to eat. I’m not sure why… occasionally she will peck at it a little bit but not much.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

That doesn't sound very good.

I would leave her near food/water and see is she will eat on her own. You can check her crop before she goes to sleep and should be able to tell if she's had anything to eat.
Do check her crop again in the morning to see if it's emptied.

If she's not laying eggs, then she may benefit from extra Calcium for a few days as well.

 

[Prince and Pavo]

She does move around a little bit, but her inactivity may also be due to the hot temperatures where I am… today the high is 108 degrees, but later this week it’s supposed to be 118! She does, however, fly up to the roost at night, but tries to put her weight on one leg and uses her wing to balance.