List of various types of leg problems in chickens, prevention, symptoms, and treatments for most common leg problems such as, slipped achilles tendon, scaly leg mites, splayed legs, injuries, hobbling baby chicks, fixing a broken leg and ways to prevent leg problems. If your chicken is having problems with their legs you need to check this out.
Photo credit: Lady Frizzle. Chicken Heaven On Earth.
How to tell what is wrong with your chickens legs:
There are several different things that could be wrong if your chicken is having leg problems. Leg problems can be caused by injury, vitamin deficiencies, or illness. If your chicken has something wrong with it's leg or legs, these helpful tips may help you to help your chicken recover from many common leg problems. You should visually inspect every one of your birds daily and watch for the following signs of leg problems.
Signs of Leg Problems in Chickens are:
Limping
Walking crooked
Lumps
Sores
Splayed legs
Raised scales-Usually a sign of scaly leg mites.
Can't walk
Paralyzed legs
Lameness
Rickets
Listlessness
Pale comb and/or wattles
Preventing Leg Problems and Foot Disorders in Chickens:
Proper nutrition can prevent most leg disorders in poultry and other fowl with the exception of genetic defects. It is essential that the adult poultry breeding stock is fed a well balanced diet. Baby chicks developing inside the egg depend on the nutrients placed in the egg by the hen. If the adult breeders are being fed a diet that is lacking the right kind and amount of vitamins and minerals the unborn baby chicks will not develop correctly. An improper diet can cause leg problem and foot problems. Feeding young chickens grains and corn with their feed is not advisable as it often leads to vitamin and mineral deficiencies which cause lameness. The birds will eat the grains and corn and leave the feed which has all the vitamins and nutrients in it. An occasional treat is fine. Many people use grains and corn to make their feed stretch farther, doing this can cause leg, foot problems and other health problems later on because the bird's nutritional needs are not being met.
Causes of Leg Problems in Chickens:
Nutritional and Vitamin Deficiencies
Many leg problems in chickens are caused from nutritional vitamin deficiencies, such as rickets which can cause legs to be paralyzed are caused by Vitamin D3 deficiencies. Vitamin D3 deficiency also causes soft bones and lameness in baby chicks.
Riboflavin deficiency-Cause curly-toe paralysis, straddle legs, and chicks sitting on their hocks.
Holding eggs in storage to long before incubating them
Low humidity during hatching
Low humidity while hatching eggs inside the incubator can cause leg problems and other health issues in baby chicks.. See How to Hatch Chicken Eggs in an Incubator
Holding eggs too long before hatching
When preparing to hatch eggs you must store the eggs prior to placing them in the incubator. For best hatching results they should be stored 3-7 days but can be stored up to 10 days. Eggs held longer than 10 days should be culled as hatching these eggs can increase the number of crippled and weak chicks.
Wet litter
Wet litter or bedding can cause many fungal and bacterial illnesses that can cause leg problems and even respiratory problems when infection sets in. Wet litter causes blisters, swollen hocks and bumble foot. When birds walk on damp litter a lot they can develop cracks in tender foot pads which makes them prone to bacterial and fungal foot problems. Bumblefoot has a scab on the pad of the foot which when removed has a pussy core which can cause swelling and cause the bird to go lame if left untreated. Birds raised on gravel, concrete floors, hard packed ground, or mowed areas with hard weed stubble, also tend to get bumble foot. Wet litter can also make chickens very sick with Coccidiosis
Improper equipment and mesh floors can cause leg and foot injuries
Roosting bars that are too high or do not give the birds room to rest comfortably during sleep are a common cause of foot and leg problems. Chickens can easily injure themselves from jumping off roosts higher than 12 inches. Make ladders so your chickens can reach the roost and get down without jumping off. Many chickens are injured and some die from falling off of roosts after they fall asleep. Make sure your roosting bars are wide enough that your bird does not have to hang on with their feet to stay on the roost. Be sure that the mesh wire floors are small enough that the birds feet or hocks do not get stuck in the wire.
Doorways should be large enough for the birds to move through easily. The path where birds walk should be cleaned regularly. Note: You can sprinkle Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth in front of doorways to aid in the prevention of scaley leg mites and to keep chickens feet dry as they will walk thru it when entering or leaving the hen house.
Make sure ramps have good traction. Note: If the ramps do not have them already, you can attach small boards or branches every 3 to 4 inches so that birds do not slip or fall while going up and down them. Ramps should be used anywhere that the birds have to jump more than 24" off the ground to get down from, perches, shelves, even trees if you have chickens that like to get into the trees like I do.
Perches should be placed no more than 24" off the ground, if you place perches higher than that you will need to provide a ramp for the birds to get down without just jumping off. Jumping off at heights higher than two feet can cause foot and leg injuries. Perches are not needed for heavy meat birds but other breeds such as game fowl need perches and can injure themselves jumping up trying to perch where there isn't one or jumping down from perches which are too high off the ground.
Children and other pets stepping on, mishandling, or scaring chickens
Always supervise your chickens when children or other pets are around. Especially around young birds who tend to get scared or run right under peoples feet. It is not uncommon for baby chicks and young birds to get accidently stepped on. Sudden scares, forced exercise, and running in fright can result in pulled muscles, slipped joints, and lameness. It is best to keep children and other pets out of the coop and run where young chicks and pullets are kept for the safety of the birds and to reduce the chances of young children (5 and under are at higher risk) from contracting salmonella. Never, ever throw a chicken. Not all chickens can fly and even one's that can may not take flight if you throw them. Throwing a chicken can cause them to land on their breast bone, breaking it will cause death or severe injury.
Falling Out Of Your Arms
Anybody can drop a frightened chicken that is trying to get away from them very easily. A fall from any distance for a baby chick could be fatal and could cause severe injuries to young birds as well as, adult birds, especially heavier birds and chickens that cannot fly or are taken by surprise and didn't have a chance to.
Not holding your chicken properly can cause leg and other injuries
Holding your bird improperly an cause your bird to fall out of your arms. Make sure your chickens body and feet are supported with your hand, that you have a firm but not tight hold around their body with your arm, and that the crop is not pushed in. Never hold your hen before she lays her egg, pressure from holding can cause the egg inside of her to get damaged.
Slippery brooder surfaces
Slippery brooder surfaces one of the fastest ways a baby chick can get injured legs. Slippery brooding surfaces can cause spraddle legs in baby chicks. Newspaper, wood, plastic, and other slippery surfaces where baby chicks walk can cause excessive leg problems. You should provide a soft absorbent litter and a surface where the birds can get a good footing and traction. Textured paper towels, old cloth towels or burlap work well for the first few weeks. After 2 weeks of age you should use a 3 inch base of pine shavings, chopped straw or peanut hulls. Do not use corn cobs, sawdust or any material which can become packed down as it will get moldy if it gets wet.
Slipped Achilles Tendon
A slipped achilles tendon will cause the back of hock to look flat and bird cannot straighten the leg out by itself and can cause swelling at the joint. One leg may rotate to the side or twist underneath or to the outside. Bird walks or stands as if it is hunched down or squatting on it's hocks and may use wings for balance. Bird peeps a lot or cries out in pain first few days of injury.
Overcrowding chickens
Overcrowding chickens can cause them to become stressed, irritable, cause fighting among them, can interfere with them getting the right amount of food and water, and can cause smaller and weaker birds to get trampled on. When there are too many birds in a confined area many of the birds cannot even find the feed and water. Crowding at feed and waterers causes undue stress on the bird's legs which can result in hock disorders.
Catching birds by the legs
Catching a chicken by it's legs is the worst way to catch a chicken and should never be done if it can be avoided because your chicken can easily twist away while they are frightened and cause the leg to sprain or break. Chickens, ducks and other birds can be severely injured when people chase them and while catching them by their legs. Chasing birds and catching them by their legs (especially waterfowl who have especially tender legs and joints) can severely injure them and cause them to go lame very easily.
Scaly legs
Dry scaly legs are generally caused by scaly leg mites which will need to be treated right away or they will burrow in and cause infection, bacteria, and fungal growth as well as making your bird very sick. Scaly leg mites bore underneath the scales of the chickens legs and feet which causes the scales to enlarge, get rough, raise up and become infected.Scaly leg mites must be treated early or the bird may go lame. Soak the birds legs in oil or cream to suffocate the mites every 3 days for 2 weeks to get rid of them.
Lameness
"Treatment of Lame Birds If lameness occurs, remove the bird from the rest of the flock and raise in a small pen with easy access to fresh water and feed to limit the birds movement. Allow the lame birds to get rest for a week or so and most times they will recover.
Do not put back with the rest of the flock until the lame bird can move easily and freely.
If the bird has badly straddled legs..., you can tape the legs together with a harness so that the legs must stay in the normal position.
If the bird does not show improvement after a week, it will most likely be best to have the bird humanely killed so it does not suffer.
Remember, Any leg and foot disorders in young fowl may be genetic. This means if you save and breed from fowl with leg and foot disorders, your problems could continue to get worse over the years. So cull birds showing these disorders. By taking proper management precautions, you can prevent leg and foot disorders from ever occurring" (Clauer, 2009).
Leg problems in broilers and turkeys
Broiler hens and turkeys used in the meat production industry are fed custom feeds designed to make them gain weight faster than they would normally. Their bone structure cannot support the added weight and often the legs will buckle if they are not processed by 8 to 12 weeks of age.
See treatments and more below.
There are several different things that could be wrong if your chicken is having leg problems. Leg problems can be caused by injury, vitamin deficiencies, or illness. If your chicken has something wrong with it's leg or legs, these helpful tips may help you to help your chicken recover from many common leg problems. You should visually inspect every one of your birds daily and watch for the following signs of leg problems.
Signs of Leg Problems in Chickens are:
Limping
Walking crooked
Lumps
Sores
Splayed legs
Raised scales-Usually a sign of scaly leg mites.
Can't walk
Paralyzed legs
Lameness
Rickets
Listlessness
Pale comb and/or wattles
Preventing Leg Problems and Foot Disorders in Chickens:
Proper nutrition can prevent most leg disorders in poultry and other fowl with the exception of genetic defects. It is essential that the adult poultry breeding stock is fed a well balanced diet. Baby chicks developing inside the egg depend on the nutrients placed in the egg by the hen. If the adult breeders are being fed a diet that is lacking the right kind and amount of vitamins and minerals the unborn baby chicks will not develop correctly. An improper diet can cause leg problem and foot problems. Feeding young chickens grains and corn with their feed is not advisable as it often leads to vitamin and mineral deficiencies which cause lameness. The birds will eat the grains and corn and leave the feed which has all the vitamins and nutrients in it. An occasional treat is fine. Many people use grains and corn to make their feed stretch farther, doing this can cause leg, foot problems and other health problems later on because the bird's nutritional needs are not being met.
Causes of Leg Problems in Chickens:
Nutritional and Vitamin Deficiencies
Many leg problems in chickens are caused from nutritional vitamin deficiencies, such as rickets which can cause legs to be paralyzed are caused by Vitamin D3 deficiencies. Vitamin D3 deficiency also causes soft bones and lameness in baby chicks.
Riboflavin deficiency-Cause curly-toe paralysis, straddle legs, and chicks sitting on their hocks.
Holding eggs in storage to long before incubating them
Low humidity during hatching
Low humidity while hatching eggs inside the incubator can cause leg problems and other health issues in baby chicks.. See How to Hatch Chicken Eggs in an Incubator
Holding eggs too long before hatching
When preparing to hatch eggs you must store the eggs prior to placing them in the incubator. For best hatching results they should be stored 3-7 days but can be stored up to 10 days. Eggs held longer than 10 days should be culled as hatching these eggs can increase the number of crippled and weak chicks.
Wet litter
Wet litter or bedding can cause many fungal and bacterial illnesses that can cause leg problems and even respiratory problems when infection sets in. Wet litter causes blisters, swollen hocks and bumble foot. When birds walk on damp litter a lot they can develop cracks in tender foot pads which makes them prone to bacterial and fungal foot problems. Bumblefoot has a scab on the pad of the foot which when removed has a pussy core which can cause swelling and cause the bird to go lame if left untreated. Birds raised on gravel, concrete floors, hard packed ground, or mowed areas with hard weed stubble, also tend to get bumble foot. Wet litter can also make chickens very sick with Coccidiosis
Improper equipment and mesh floors can cause leg and foot injuries
Roosting bars that are too high or do not give the birds room to rest comfortably during sleep are a common cause of foot and leg problems. Chickens can easily injure themselves from jumping off roosts higher than 12 inches. Make ladders so your chickens can reach the roost and get down without jumping off. Many chickens are injured and some die from falling off of roosts after they fall asleep. Make sure your roosting bars are wide enough that your bird does not have to hang on with their feet to stay on the roost. Be sure that the mesh wire floors are small enough that the birds feet or hocks do not get stuck in the wire.
Doorways should be large enough for the birds to move through easily. The path where birds walk should be cleaned regularly. Note: You can sprinkle Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth in front of doorways to aid in the prevention of scaley leg mites and to keep chickens feet dry as they will walk thru it when entering or leaving the hen house.
Make sure ramps have good traction. Note: If the ramps do not have them already, you can attach small boards or branches every 3 to 4 inches so that birds do not slip or fall while going up and down them. Ramps should be used anywhere that the birds have to jump more than 24" off the ground to get down from, perches, shelves, even trees if you have chickens that like to get into the trees like I do.
Perches should be placed no more than 24" off the ground, if you place perches higher than that you will need to provide a ramp for the birds to get down without just jumping off. Jumping off at heights higher than two feet can cause foot and leg injuries. Perches are not needed for heavy meat birds but other breeds such as game fowl need perches and can injure themselves jumping up trying to perch where there isn't one or jumping down from perches which are too high off the ground.
Children and other pets stepping on, mishandling, or scaring chickens
Always supervise your chickens when children or other pets are around. Especially around young birds who tend to get scared or run right under peoples feet. It is not uncommon for baby chicks and young birds to get accidently stepped on. Sudden scares, forced exercise, and running in fright can result in pulled muscles, slipped joints, and lameness. It is best to keep children and other pets out of the coop and run where young chicks and pullets are kept for the safety of the birds and to reduce the chances of young children (5 and under are at higher risk) from contracting salmonella. Never, ever throw a chicken. Not all chickens can fly and even one's that can may not take flight if you throw them. Throwing a chicken can cause them to land on their breast bone, breaking it will cause death or severe injury.
Falling Out Of Your Arms
Anybody can drop a frightened chicken that is trying to get away from them very easily. A fall from any distance for a baby chick could be fatal and could cause severe injuries to young birds as well as, adult birds, especially heavier birds and chickens that cannot fly or are taken by surprise and didn't have a chance to.
Not holding your chicken properly can cause leg and other injuries
Holding your bird improperly an cause your bird to fall out of your arms. Make sure your chickens body and feet are supported with your hand, that you have a firm but not tight hold around their body with your arm, and that the crop is not pushed in. Never hold your hen before she lays her egg, pressure from holding can cause the egg inside of her to get damaged.
Slippery brooder surfaces
Slippery brooder surfaces one of the fastest ways a baby chick can get injured legs. Slippery brooding surfaces can cause spraddle legs in baby chicks. Newspaper, wood, plastic, and other slippery surfaces where baby chicks walk can cause excessive leg problems. You should provide a soft absorbent litter and a surface where the birds can get a good footing and traction. Textured paper towels, old cloth towels or burlap work well for the first few weeks. After 2 weeks of age you should use a 3 inch base of pine shavings, chopped straw or peanut hulls. Do not use corn cobs, sawdust or any material which can become packed down as it will get moldy if it gets wet.
Slipped Achilles Tendon
A slipped achilles tendon will cause the back of hock to look flat and bird cannot straighten the leg out by itself and can cause swelling at the joint. One leg may rotate to the side or twist underneath or to the outside. Bird walks or stands as if it is hunched down or squatting on it's hocks and may use wings for balance. Bird peeps a lot or cries out in pain first few days of injury.
Overcrowding chickens
Overcrowding chickens can cause them to become stressed, irritable, cause fighting among them, can interfere with them getting the right amount of food and water, and can cause smaller and weaker birds to get trampled on. When there are too many birds in a confined area many of the birds cannot even find the feed and water. Crowding at feed and waterers causes undue stress on the bird's legs which can result in hock disorders.
Catching birds by the legs
Catching a chicken by it's legs is the worst way to catch a chicken and should never be done if it can be avoided because your chicken can easily twist away while they are frightened and cause the leg to sprain or break. Chickens, ducks and other birds can be severely injured when people chase them and while catching them by their legs. Chasing birds and catching them by their legs (especially waterfowl who have especially tender legs and joints) can severely injure them and cause them to go lame very easily.
Scaly legs
Dry scaly legs are generally caused by scaly leg mites which will need to be treated right away or they will burrow in and cause infection, bacteria, and fungal growth as well as making your bird very sick. Scaly leg mites bore underneath the scales of the chickens legs and feet which causes the scales to enlarge, get rough, raise up and become infected.Scaly leg mites must be treated early or the bird may go lame. Soak the birds legs in oil or cream to suffocate the mites every 3 days for 2 weeks to get rid of them.
Lameness
"Treatment of Lame Birds If lameness occurs, remove the bird from the rest of the flock and raise in a small pen with easy access to fresh water and feed to limit the birds movement. Allow the lame birds to get rest for a week or so and most times they will recover.
Do not put back with the rest of the flock until the lame bird can move easily and freely.
If the bird has badly straddled legs..., you can tape the legs together with a harness so that the legs must stay in the normal position.
If the bird does not show improvement after a week, it will most likely be best to have the bird humanely killed so it does not suffer.
Remember, Any leg and foot disorders in young fowl may be genetic. This means if you save and breed from fowl with leg and foot disorders, your problems could continue to get worse over the years. So cull birds showing these disorders. By taking proper management precautions, you can prevent leg and foot disorders from ever occurring" (Clauer, 2009).
Leg problems in broilers and turkeys
Broiler hens and turkeys used in the meat production industry are fed custom feeds designed to make them gain weight faster than they would normally. Their bone structure cannot support the added weight and often the legs will buckle if they are not processed by 8 to 12 weeks of age.
See treatments and more below.
Treatments for Leg Problems in Chickens |
References:
1. Phillip J. Clauer, Poultry Extension Specialist, Animal and Poultry Sciences.(2009).Virginia Cooperative Extension. Virginia State University. https://pubs.ext.vt.edu/content/dam/pubs_ext_vt_edu/2902/2902-1098/2902-1098_pdf.pdf
1. Phillip J. Clauer, Poultry Extension Specialist, Animal and Poultry Sciences.(2009).Virginia Cooperative Extension. Virginia State University. https://pubs.ext.vt.edu/content/dam/pubs_ext_vt_edu/2902/2902-1098/2902-1098_pdf.pdf
