My Speckeled Lady has a bad foot

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Hi I am new to poultry keeper and keeping hens..just three months. I live in somerset England and have seven hens..One of them a Speckeled lady has a bad foot..She has a very small black scab, but between her toes on this foot she has two swellings the size of a five pence. I thought she may have Bumblefoot.. I would like to try and treat her myself if possible, but can not find where i can buy iodine solution or antibiotics, have tried my local Country wide store. Can anyone give me any advice..Thank You
 
Hi, welcome to the forum!!!!!!!!! :D :-)99 :-)99 :-)99 :-)99
Bumblefoot results from injury or abrasion to the lower surface of the foot, which allows for the intro-
duction of staphylococcus bacteria. Lesions can occur on toes, hocks and the pads of the feet. Bumble-
foot is a chronic disease that if left untreated can result in a 50 percent mortality rate.


Staphylococcus bacteria are present wherever there are chickens. Infection occurs when a rough perch,
splinter, wire floor, or a heavy bird’s jump from a perch more than 18 inches off the floor causes a small
break in the skin, allowing bacteria to enter. Improper litter management can also cause skin irritation
and skin breaks that allow staph bacteria into the wound.


If Bumblefoot is detected while the lesion is soft and pliable, chances for successful treatment are higher
than if treatment is delayed until the lesion becomes rock hard. Early Bumblefoot infections can be suc-
cessfully treated with antibiotics, separating the affected bird from the flock and providing deep bedding
to limit stress on the sore foot.


Administer the antibiotic according to label directions for the specified number of days. Staph bacteria
can be transmitted to humans, so if you treat the bird, make sure to protect yourself by wearing gloves
when handling the bird or the lesion. Wash hands, clothes and equipment after handling affected birds.
Draining the lesion promotes healing. Soak the foot in warm water and Epsom salts. When the scab has
softened, remove it to expose the pus-filled cavity. Flush the cavity with hydrogen peroxide to clean out
the pus and debris. Pack the cavity with antibiotic ointment, and then wrap the foot to keep the cavity
clean.


Keep the treated bird separate from the rest of the flock on deep bedding, flush the cavity and re-wrap
the foot at least every other day until completely healed. Pus and debris from the abscess are contagious
to humans and other animals, so gather all contaminated materials for proper disposal by incineration or
deep burial.

To prevent Bumblefoot, keep perches less than 18 inches off the floor. Repeated jumping from high
perches by heavy birds can cause irritation and damage to the bottom of the foot and lead to Bumblefoot.
Practice proper litter management; keep bedding clean, dry and deep in the coop to limit irritation to the
foot. Check roosts, floors and other surfaces for rough and sharp edges. Puncture wounds and scrapes
can become infected with staph bacteria and lead to abscesses.
Click to expand...
 
thank you for your quick reply, the pad of the birds foot has a black spot which is v v small, the rest of the pad is soft...I dont have a vet who knows anything about poultry close to where i live. I did take one of my other hens to my local vet two weeks ago as she was egg bound. the vet did not know what to do, but reading forums i asked her for Zolcal D which she gave me, and charged me £40 for it and the consultation. She has not looked at a bird with Bumblefoot before, so said she wouldnt know if it had it. but said she would look at the bird and perscribe antibiotics if she felt it needed, the charge would be around £50 including the antibiotics.
 
Change your vet!!!! Ours is £20 for the consultation and £8 for the Baytril. Most we've paid is £47 for a very sick cockerel who had allsorts of treatment. Is the foot actually swollen badly -firm under pressure? Could be a sprain which will be a bit red and the tiny black spot is not part of the problem. How high are your perches and how soft is the floor and bedding?
When our birds have an abscess there is a 5mm diameter scab on the base of the pad which is firmly swollen and they limp in extreme cases. We open the scab, drain it and pack the hole with teatree cream. Rarely do they need a second treatment and have never needed antibiotics. We have another two with swelling between the toes, but that is a sprain which comes and goes and they walk normally most of the time.
 
Thank you for your quick reply, I have found a vet who has hens!! She took Queenie in this morning, lanced the wound, cleaned out the foot, bandaged it, gave her Baytril, and gave me antibiotics to give her, the total cost was £45 which I was happy to pay to a vet who knew what they were doing!! She is now back in with the rest of the hens pecking around...
 
Great to hear you've found a vet who can sort Queenie.

We had an ex-batt with terrible bumblefoot/foot infections. Our local vet's advice was to have her put to sleep (in his opinion the cost of treating her far outweighed anything we could make from her eggs or carcass :shock: ) & it wasn't til I insisted she was a pet & it was treatable that he prescribed antibiotics. He wouldn't lance it, but I found advice on-line about what to do.

Wash the affected foot in warm water with a little hibiscrub/antibacterial soap. This will soften the scab/callous & enable you to either loosen or remove it. Gently squeeze out any pus/gunk, give it another wash. Make a paste of sugar & iodine, place a blob onto a small gauze pad & place directly over the area where the scab was/is. Bandage around the foot & leg to hold the pad & paste in place & add a layer of duct tape over the top if it's wet/muddy to keep everything dry & clean. Repeat daily until healing is underway, then repeat every few days til the bumblefoot has cleared. If you are going to treat bumblefoot yourself you'll need to wear gloves - it's caused by a staph infection, so can be spread to you if you have any cuts/grazes/whatever on your hands.

Sugar will help draw out any remaining pus/infection & the iodine will kill any nasties. It is a faff, but it does work. The hen mentioned above had permanent problems with her feet (scarring due to the battery cage & the neglect she suffered when the novelty of hen keeping wore off for her original rehomer left her unable to perch) & would get the odd episode of bumblefoot. Daily checks meant that we could catch it before it got too bad, so we didn't need to resort to antibiotics & the sugar-iodine paste was all that was needed.

Iodine can be hard to get hold of - we got ours from someone who specialised in keeping reptiles.
 
Thanks for your reply, Queenie is doing well really, have had to put her in a large dog crate with another hen during the day if its wet, as the dressing must stay dry to avoid further infection. She used to be really easy to pick up, but as i have to pick her up to give medication twice a day, and wrap her in a towel to gently open her beak she is less friendly!! will try the internet for iodine so i have some in...
 
Hi, have you by any chance asked the very nice helpful vet? We got ours from a vet, it's called betadine but is the same as iodine. Otherwise maybe Boots or anywhere that has a good medical/first aid section. Hope you find some it is very handy to have for all your animals :-)
 
Got mine from our local chemist, only a small bottle, but can get larger quantity at feedstore.
 
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