Broken leg??

Well the other day I went into the coop to find one of my young EE hiding in the corner. I went over to pick her up and she tried to run but couldn't she was flapping her wings and hobbling around. When I finally picked her up I seen her leg just hung down. I put her in a seperate place for two days with food and water so she wasn't getting stepped on. I went in today to check on her and he leg just sticks out straight infront of her and she can't walk at all now. She still eats and drinks but I have no idea if it's broken or what it could be? She's a strong little bird with a strong will to live! Does anyone have any ideas?

Chickie89, google Mareks.  Lots of info here if you search too.

That's what Mareks disease looks like. I found one here the other day also, it went to feed the coyotes right away..

Thanks. So what do I do if it is? Are all my chickens going to die now?! I'm worried now. They are all fine and so was she. The night before she was fine and I went out the next morning and found her like this. She can still move her leg just can't support herself on it so it sticks out infront of her. Should I cull her and hope for the best with the others?

Do a bit of research for yourself as people have different opinions about this.
Like Piet, my choice is always to dispatch them as soon as they show signs. It is the best way to get rid of it from you flock in my opinion.

Survival of the fittest, you probably have pretty good resistance to mareks in your flock or you would have seen more right away. I loose maybe 5 per season and i raise a few hundred. You can vaccinate for it, but is a pain in the miauw since it needs to be done at day old and once you vaccinate they do not build resistance to it, so you will have to do it always. Don't worry about it too much, mareks is pretty much unavoidable and best of to build natural resistance to it in your flock and that happens automatically.

I lose maybe 1 per year from marek's. We did vaccinate one year and the number of marek's infections around here increased exponentially so I refuse to waste my time and energy with that anymore. I think the year I vaccinated I lost about 10 birds to it. This year I have lost one, adult bird, and none of my younger birds have been affected. I also raise a couple hundred a year here.

I've had a couple hatchery vaccinated chickens develop the disease.  It seems to affect a few that have a low immunity.

Did you feel the leg to see if it's broken??

Chickie, I recently had great success treating a bird like this using Grapefruit Seed Extract.  3 drops to a quart of water (turns the water yellow when you shake it).  Litterally over night improvement, she went back out in the coop yesterday.  I was -very- impressed.  Other treatments have been long and arduous, not entirely successful.  

Research shows Grapefruit Seed Extract has anti-viral properties, which is what Mareks is.

I have felt the leg and there doesn't seem to be an obvious break. But when I feel around her hi area she doesn't like it. I can bend the leg and it doesn't bother her but when I move it do the hip joint moves she pecks me? Thank you all for all your help! You have made me feel so much better about it!

Mareks inflicted birds tend to hold all their toes long and skinny, rather than spread out their toes like a normal foot.  I'm not sure if this is the same as a break.  Mareks looks very average in symptoms unless you end up with stargazers.  It can present itself as a bunch of other things, like broken legs, upper respiratory trouble, limp, sudden inability to stand, constant laying on one's side and listlessness, which all look like everything else.

broken, cant see it.

By broken I mean the picture is broken, not the leg.

I'm sorry. I can't figure out how to do it. I only have an iPhone and I don't know how to email people off her

You can pull the file off your iphone onto your pc using your USB connector. Don't ask me how, I no has Iphone, I just know you can.

possibly it's dislocated at the hip?
Just a thought

Thats a very good thought. I Talked to the vet and he doesn't think it's mareks because it's been 3 days and she's the only one with something wrong. None of the others show any symptoms at all. But ya never know right. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that she gets better and no one else gets sick!

Chickie89 wrote:Thats a very good thought. I Talked to the vet and he doesn't think it's mareks because it's been 3 days and she's the only one with something wrong. None of the others show any symptoms at all. But ya never know right. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that she gets better and no one else gets sick!

I rarely have more than one or two birds with symptoms at one time. In fact, I can't think of a time when I've had more than 2 with symptoms.

You are right, Sweetened.  And with Mareks it seems you have one, you put it down, then the next one is affected, so you leave it and it dies on its own, and in a couple of days, the next one....

I really question a lot of vets in Canada as far as poultry and rabbits go..

Piet wrote:I really question a lot of vets in Canada as far as poultry and rabbits go..

Piet, I don't think they get a lot of training for cheap animals, and face it, the majority of chickens and rabbits are worth very little.

Who will pay a vet their $40 walk in the door fee for an animal worth $20? When I was having problems with my first breed of rabbits I could find only one vet who was willing to treat them as a herd. The others wanted each rabbit in the clinic if there was to be a diagnosis and treatment.

As a result, they really don't know much about rabbits and chickens.