Fledgling with Curled Feet

[Nerien]

Hopper is still with us, scooting around on his chest.
Made some boiled egg, blended it smooth (no shell at this point), mixed it with a little watery pellet mix to thin it. Feed him off a flat toothpick, he licks it off, I can see his little tongue going, and the food goes in, not all over the place. Occasionally he opens wider, or grabs the whole toothpick, so I put the food on his tongue when he does, and he works it down. Can also hold the little food dish (bottlecap) up to his beak, and he will lap some up.

Have no idea how much to feed him.He's fluffy enough I can't see how much has gone in. Any idea what kind of amount?--in drops-worth, or fractions of a fraction-teaspoon (the smallest I have is a 1/8 tsp, so half of that, a quarter of it...?) or in mL's? At four weeks old, do I let him eat until he stops or not? How often? The bottlecap of egg mush is in there, next to a bottle cap of water, so he can eat it if he scoots over there.

Parents do feed him, tho I don't think enough, since they only seem to hear him when Eaglet, who is much louder, is right nearby. How often do parents feed new fledglings anyway?

Tried taping his feet last night. Could not get it. He moves too much.

It is possible to straighten out his feet, maybe not fully, but he didn't seem to object. Every time I tried to get a roll of tp under his toes then put tape across, he'd move them and get curled up again. Finally decided I was probably stressing him too much, so gave up. Had been periodically feeding him during these attempts, and gave him a gentle spongebath first since he's scooting through the mess on the cage floor, followed by a towel snuggle while feeding to make sure he was warm and fully dry. When I put him back in, Dad came over and fed him immediately.

The finger skateboard is too wide.

Will have to rethink my taping approach to see what I can do. He pushes himself around with his legs, feet curled up tight, so there is movement and some strength in there somewhere. Gotta figure out how to help it develop in proper form.

[finchmix22]

You may need to hold him in your palm with your index and middle finger around his neck, to secure him. Obviously, don't hold too tight at the neck. The, use your other three fingers of the same hand to hold his feet at the long, leg part. Then, with your other hand, take a previously prepared splint, that is slightly wider than his leg and have the tape already on one side of the splint, so you can just wrap it around the leg. I would not go over the knuckle, just the leg, to give it strength. You could do a similar action with a rolled up pieces of paper towel to uncurl the feet, but you may need a cut piece of a toothpick to give it support. I hope you can set his legs so they can get stronger and not permanently stay that way.

[debbie276]

Sounds to me like you've got a good idea what needs to be done, just have to figure out how to get there. I know hes in good hands.
Best of luck

[cindy]

this explains a little how to do this

http://www.ehow.com/how_5683551_raise-b ... blems.html

Also if you google "how to fix chicks curled toes" and go to images it shows you pictures...the sooner you do this the better.
http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/BRKR ... hicks.html

http://www.thepamperedpulletsfarm.com/Curled_Toes.html

http://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+f ... 80&bih=675

[Nerien]

Thank you for this. I was watching him and studying his feet, and had come up with the conclusion that he needs cardboard shoes like one of these chicks is shown with. I think the problem is not so much his toes as his ankles, or whatever you call that part on a bird.

Made him a sling over a cup today, with papertowel bumpers to keep him from tipping over, so his legs were hanging down each side and could relax. Fed him some while he was there, washed his little face, let him just hang out a while. Then I looked back in (put the whole rig in the cage, and he was somehow pushing himself forward and about to tip out, so back to the floor he went. Put him back in his cup while cleaning the cage bottom, so in and out he will go to let his legs relax sometimes. Feed him while he's there. Have seen Dad feed him also, but still not sure he's getting enough, and figure the supplementing can't hurt. He's quickly learning to slurp up mushy slushy egg & pellet mix from the little cap.

After dinner will try to make shoes for him. Hopefully someone can help me tonight and it will work.

[Nerien]

Success! Got shoes on him tonight. He is standing tall. Except when he tips over.

Right foot is not as flat as it should be, but maybe tomorrow it will be easier to get it the rest of the way. If not, it's close to all right, and if this works, probably won't be an issue.

Here he is, Little Hopper Two Shoes:







Oops!




Doesn't he just look so proud of himself? He's never stood tall before.

Anyone know how long he needs to wear his shoes? He's not a day old chicken, he's four weeks old, so I don't think the one-day recommendation on the links from Cindy are right. It was so hard getting those on him, I do not want to have to do it again unnecessarily.

[cindy]

I would change them out if they get dirty...if the adhesive is on his skin I would keep careful watch on them. Did you spread his toes a little?

Not sure of the time span since he is a bit older, I would say you would need to monitor it some as the week(s) pass.

[tinysparrow]

oh my goodness! he is so cute i hope that his little feet will straighten out soon!

[Nerien]

Toes are probably spread, it was such a battle getting the shoes on, Hopper is NOT a passive bird. Will do my best to check tomorrow, figuring on, hopefully, not changing them more than every second day, at the most. Tape is indeed on his feet directly, on top, the only way to keep his toes out straight. The chicken sites said tape directly to the feet, they even said you could use scotch tape, but the first aid tape we got is softer, and it's the ultra-sensitive type.

He even started preening himself now that he can stand. Plus, wrestling with your human so she cannot tape shoes to your feet really messes with your feathers.

I have stood him back up about a hundred times so far. He will NOT stay put. Covered the cage, letting them settle, then I am going to check on him, as he seems to get rolled over up against and under things. If he is not just sitting there with Eaglet like I left him, I swear I am going to tape his feet to the floor for the night!

[Sally]

Little Hopper Two Shoes is looking good! I certainly admire all the effort you have put into trying to correct his feet/toes, that takes determination. Let's hope this does the trick, and he will soon be getting around without his shoes.

[Nerien]

Thanks!

Non-bird people would think I'm nuts to spend so much time on one little chick, but as you can see, he's a perfectly good bird who just happens to have a foot problem. He's much more active and determined than his 'normal' sibling Eaglet. So here's hoping this works, and he gets enough ability to live the active life he's determined to.

[finchmix22]

You've done a great job! He is sooo cute! I pray his feet will heal and correct themselves. I would not change the tape until they get dirty or are not supportive, to reduce stress on him and you.

[nelloyello11]

Wow great job! He does look very proud with his new shoes!!

[debbie276]

Great job you've done with him. Hoping it doesn't take long for his feet to correct themselves.

[lovemyfinch]

You did a great job
And yes, he does look very proud to be standing tall