The case of the crippled chicken...

[demmers24]

Hey everyone,

I'm brand spankin' new here and new to chickens as well. I got my few chickens a few months ago from a friend and have already had plenty of problems. My latest issue though is with a bird I call "Curly Toes". She is a Silver Sebright Bantam and has had "curled" crippled toes from hatching (I got to see the newly hatched chicks a few days old and she had been stationary for a while so my friend was worried about her then, but no one realized she had any actual issue) but she seemed to come out of it and has never really had much of an issue, you wouldn't even know she had bad feet unless you looked at them closely. Once I got the chickens I noticed her toes and that she seemed to get along fine other than the fact that she was always sort of the last bird to do things, (ex. when the others went into the coop she was always last) but she was able to keep up nonetheless.

Fast forward to a couple days ago when I found her lying on her back on the ground after the other birds had gone into the coop for the night, I picked her up and set her on her feet then realized she is having a horrible time walking. It almost seems as if her crippled feet can no longer hold her weight properly.

I'm just not sure what to do...I brought her inside in my "segregation" container overnight and watched to see if it seemed to be an injury but it just doesn't seem like its going to get better. Thoughts?

(I've attached photo, if you look closely at her feet you can see the "curled" toes. She isn't even able to stand the way she is in the photo at this point.)

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi @demmers24 Welcome To BYC

Are the toes on both feet curled. I see the one foot, but the other is hidden a bit.
The older a chick becomes, the harder it will be to try to correct the feet. You may not be able to fix them at all, but you can try splinting them.

Curled toes can be due to genetics, vitamin deficiency and incubation/hatching difficulties.
You can provide her with Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) to see if there is any improvement. Crush a human B-Complex vitamin (no iron) and add it to her feed daily. Taping/splinting the feet may also help. Her nails are long, so you may want to give them a trim while your at it.

The falling over backward and not being able to walk is concerning, so she may have more going on than just a foot problem. Sometimes genetic/development and neurological disorders are seen once they become a little older. Diseases like Marek's can also cause some of these symptoms as well.

Do the best you can to keep her hydrated and see the she eats her chick starter.
Keep us posted.

 

[demmers24]

Thanks Wyorp!

I will try out your suggestions, hopefully I'll see some improvement. and her other toes are also a bit turned in but not quite like the one visible in the photo.

 

[JeanR]

So sorry about the feet. They could have been straightened at hatch, just a few days old, with taping them correctly. Just takes a few days to a week, and they are forever just fine. Now, keep her toe nails as short as you can, doubt if any supports will correct them after the bone hardens--just a few days to a week old. Have pictures, but will have to locate them....

 

[Chris2015]

Hey everyone,

I'm brand spankin' new here and new to chickens as well. I got my few chickens a few months ago from a friend and have already had plenty of problems. My latest issue though is with a bird I call "Curly Toes". She is a Silver Sebright Bantam and has had "curled" crippled toes from hatching (I got to see the newly hatched chicks a few days old and she had been stationary for a while so my friend was worried about her then, but no one realized she had any actual issue) but she seemed to come out of it and has never really had much of an issue, you wouldn't even know she had bad feet unless you looked at them closely. Once I got the chickens I noticed her toes and that she seemed to get along fine other than the fact that she was always sort of the last bird to do things, (ex. when the others went into the coop she was always last) but she was able to keep up nonetheless.

Fast forward to a couple days ago when I found her lying on her back on the ground after the other birds had gone into the coop for the night, I picked her up and set her on her feet then realized she is having a horrible time walking. It almost seems as if her crippled feet can no longer hold her weight properly.

I'm just not sure what to do...I brought her inside in my "segregation" container overnight and watched to see if it seemed to be an injury but it just doesn't seem like its going to get better. Thoughts?

(I've attached photo, if you look closely at her feet you can see the "curled" toes. She isn't even able to stand the way she is in the photo at this point.)

 

[Chris2015]

It's heart breaking- we had a Rock who somehow had a mangled leg- she couldn't walk well and we quickly learned that the other chickens don't like "different " or " handicap" - so we took poor Gimpy- terrible name I know and put her in her own pen, complete with nesting box, roof, water hanging and food in a triangle steel(?) box raised up so she could eat it- we also put some paving slabs so she could lean her left wing on them, as she used her wing as a crutch- if it wasn't so sad and tragic it would have been remarkable to see how she adapted! She was about 2 feet away from the run, so she was able to see and "talk" to the other girls, and she was quite content- she got held a LOT, was the first to get treats( grapes- they LOVE grapes!!!) and her coop was spared during hurricane Matthew- the trees literally landed on either side of her own!!!!!!!! She lived about 4years like that, and then she slowly stopped eating and drinking and then she died broke my heart and my husbands as well- cause Gimpy had become his baby..... so that's my piece on a chicken that is so very different from her sisters

 

[demmers24]

It's heart breaking- we had a Rock who somehow had a mangled leg- she couldn't walk well and we quickly learned that the other chickens don't like "different " or " handicap" - so we took poor Gimpy- terrible name I know and put her in her own pen, complete with nesting box, roof, water hanging and food in a triangle steel(?) box raised up so she could eat it- we also put some paving slabs so she could lean her left wing on them, as she used her wing as a crutch- if it wasn't so sad and tragic it would have been remarkable to see how she adapted! She was about 2 feet away from the run, so she was able to see and "talk" to the other girls, and she was quite content- she got held a LOT, was the first to get treats( grapes- they LOVE grapes!!!) and her coop was spared during hurricane Matthew- the trees literally landed on either side of her own!!!!!!!! She lived about 4years like that, and then she slowly stopped eating and drinking and then she died broke my heart and my husbands as well- cause Gimpy had become his baby..... so that's my piece on a chicken that is so very different from her sisters

Well I'm glad to hear that she's got a chance! I have been concerned about her getting bullied although I've yet to see it, but if it does happen I may do the same with her own little chicken apartment in the big coop/run. I just can't stand to see them suffer and hope she can live a good life, she has a lot of fight in her! Thanks!

 

[demmers24]

So sorry about the feet. They could have been straightened at hatch, just a few days old, with taping them correctly. Just takes a few days to a week, and they are forever just fine. Now, keep her toe nails as short as you can, doubt if any supports will correct them after the bone hardens--just a few days to a week old. Have pictures, but will have to locate them....

That's unfortunate to hear, guess there wasn't much I could have done since I didn't have her until about 8 weeks of age.