[FiB]

HI all - have searched here and elsewhere and found about hobbling - thought these pics were very helpful so thought Id post... http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/02/spraddle-leg-in-baby-chicks-what-is-it.html
 
...so have done it this morning with elastoplast - but then having sen dizzycows hobbling with wool (??) think that looks a lot neater.  I know I have to monitor closely today (hence the revival of 'egg head poo bum's' quarentine box (see pic) - and chaneg daily (?) .... questions are - what is best material to replace with (standing fine with elastoplast, just seems a little too stiff)? and how long to leave on for?  Cheers. Fi
 
 

[mojocafa]

Ahhhh bless, well done you! Hope it works

[Anke]

We have always just used elasto-plast, and it comes off by itself a few days later, by then the chick/gosling is usually racing round the box.
 
What an undignified pose for that chick though...

[Marches Farmer]

We use the fine, self-adhesive1/4" wide white tape that comes on a roll.  Tape the legs so they're no further than the width of the body (including down) apart and remove after two days if slightly splayed or three if worse.  Is it all the chicks or one particular breed?  We had a beautiful Dorking cockerel that produced too many chicks with splayed legs so we switched to our much more ordinary reserve cockerel and the problem disappeared.

[FiB]

thanks - no it was just one chick and it was the classic  'long time hatching (2 days) and was helped out of egg' last one in the incubator!!!  I think I may have gone a bit wide so will change tonight and see how it goes over the next couple of days (thats good that its sorted pretty quickly).  Thanks again, Fi

[HesterF]

Ah, I wonder if that's what one of mine has. He was the last out and had to be helped and I thought just exhausted (certainly couldn't keep up with the others to get back under broody) so I've got him inside by himself under a brooder. He seems much perkier but can't stand/walk very well. I thought it might be a hip problem but this sounds about right. What do I look for exactly?

H

[HesterF]

BTW, he's definitely not doing the splits - even I could spot that He just seems to hobble or limp a bit although he manages to get around somehow.

H

[Beewyched]

I've know turkey breeders to use the small, round elasticated hair bands - fitting them in a "figure of 8" like hobbles - apparently it works really well.

[FiB]

Hester - have a look at the link in my first post - mine looked like that only with one leg sticking out.  It was getting around OK, but falling over a lot.  It is now upright all the time yeay!  I'm sensing that there are all gradations of this so maybe yours is a mild one - I wonder if it is the chciken equivelant of a displaced hip in babies - my son who also was 'helped out' (c section!!!) had to wear a splint for first 6 weeks!  Bit like this!  If the legs look too far apart Id give this a go for a day - It wasnt as hard as I thought and the chick seems to get on with it after a few hours.

[HesterF]

Thanks! Sadly my cat proof barricade was not successful and I was greeted by headless chick and smug cat this morning. Nature has decided......but another layer of barricade will be added to the dog cage and MDF inner boards before next week to make sure nature does not decide the cat has to hook out all the ducklings too.

H

[FiB]

Oh Nooooooooo.  SO sorry to hear. Bloody cats!  Ours is pretty much banned from the house during 'chick-ing' - but she does sneak in regularly and looks interestedly at the cardboard box.  If only you could train them to ONLY catch mice rats and moles!   

[Clarebelle]

oh dear! We put our quail outside in their eglu with run last week and lost two birds to the cat! They were sleeping against the wire of the run, all the cat had to do was hook a paw in! We have now covered the run with fine mesh.

Our brooder is a large hamster cage with is enclosed in plastic rather than wire apart from the top and the wire is too close for the cat 

[goosepimple]

I liked the chick with the sandle on in the post,    very neat job

[TheCaptain]

seconded on the old figure of eight small hair band! I find the purple' variety work particularly well!

[FiB]

seconded on the old figure of eight small hair band! I find the purple' variety work particularly well!

daft question alert - how does it stay on?  is it a fugure of eight with multiple twists to take up slack?  I have changed to micropore tape for hobble bit (GOD knows how I am going to get teh elastoplast cuffs of - they seem to have set!) and will try taking off today - tookk his 'sick bay' out last night and he seems to have held his own in the pack overnight, yeay.