swollen & hard foot pad

[elmwood]

Hi,

Me again, One of our Pekins has a slight limp. Having checked her over, her right foot pad is very hard and treble the size of her left foot pad. If I press it (not too hard) she doesn't seem to flinch, but then again would a chicken? She does however curl her toes up, presumably so I won't touch it. There is no obvious puncture wound, or splinters or anything suspicious. Her feet look fairly clean, maybe her nails could do with a trim despite being free range. Any ideas please.?

If you feel photos would help I would be happy to do that..... Done a search but can't really find anything about swollen feet.

Sharron

 

[elmwood]

Hi,

Have done a little more research and it could be Bumblefoot?. Had another look at her, and it does feel hot to the touch. Have given her feet a soak in warm water and antiseptic which she loved. Then applied sudocrem, only antiseptic cream to hand. Have removed the perches, as the other broody girls are lying in the nest box. So we'll see whats what in the morning.

Again, any advice welcome, thnaks Sharron

 

[Davidd]

Hi, yes, it will be bumble foot- very hard to treat sucessfully- it is normally caused by the staphylococcus bacteria- you will need antibiotics- normally Terramycin is good- but angemycin, Tylan and others are used depending on the strain of bacteria- you need a broad spectrum oxytetracycline antiboitic
regards, David

 

[elmwood]

Thanks David,

Sounds like we need to be taking her to a vet.......thankyou for your prompt advice. Will the rain and soggy grounds last week have contributed to this. Plus she was the hen who came to us with Scaly feet, which I am constantly on top of......

Pics attached for reference etc.....(blurred as batts were running out).
Sharron

 

[Davidd]

Hi, looks like it could be- at least in the early stages- which is good for treatment- it normally occurs with a tiny scratch or cut to the foot- the bacteria enter and you dont see the result for a little while- some people say it is caused by jumping from perches but i have never known it to happen like that. I have a gander with it at the moment and it's proving very hard to shift it can cause breathing problems once the bacteria gets a good hold. If it's no better in a few days i would talk to your vet- it might just have been a knock and heal on it's own in a few days- see how it goes- if it doesn't get better or gets worse call the vet.
regards, David

 

[elmwood]

Thanks David,

Funny but she has only just started perching as the others usually hog the perches and she is happy to sleep in the nest box?

If you can't get your gander cleared up then it must be persistant!

I'll monitor the situation, and update the thread. Thanks again........

 

[ncotb]

Good on you, pics look like it is in early stages so you have a good chance of treating it successfully ABs from vet though you may well need more than one course of treatment & when course is finished give your chook some vitamins for a few days. Hope all goes well for you!!

 

[elmwood]

Hi all,

We are awaiting a call from our poultry lady, who is in contact with an experienced vet who treats her flock of 400+ for advice re the antibiotics. If we havn't heard anything by end of the day I will take THREE girlies to the local vet, having rung them to confirm they can treat poultry. Yes it would appear 3 of them have a foot issue! Scabs or lesions and swellings. I cant tell you how neglectful I feel.

I noticed these scabs a while ago, as I regularly examine them for scaly leg etc, and I honestly thought it was callouses on their feet from doing so much walking around the garden.

Having bathed their feet to soften the scabs, I was able to pick off Mollies, which left new skin underneath. But I think the other foot looks a little suspicious i.e. there is some pus/infection there.
None of them have swelling or hardness or heat in their foot, like Nutmegs. But again, I think Maybe Tillies (the d'uccle) could be a little swollen.

So should I take all three to the vet, and are these scabs the start of bumblefoot. I have read and researched so much today my head is in a tizz.


All the girls feet are now clean and covered in Germoline until we get them to the vets and on antibiotics.

Clearer photos below

 

[Davidd]

Hi, the vet will probably give you antibiotics to put in the water- so, if they all live together they will all have the AB's- I have to inject my goose everyday for 7 days- with steroids and antibiotics- not an easy task as he is about 34lbs :shock:
They look like old scabs so, if the foot isn't swollen and hot then i guess they are not infected.
good luck and keep us informed.
regards, David

 

[elmwood]

Hi,

Have now got the antibiotics in a spray form- Terramycin, as you correctly advised David.

Also my poultry lady, Susie Page of Pages Poultry, who is invaluable, organised it all for us, and along with the vet has advised that we keep the girls in on dry ground, spray their feet every 2-3 days, and see how it all goes. I havn't got to dress them with vet wrap either, leave their feet uncovered.

Will update the thread, and many thanks for all the support and advice. Have learnt so much today, and since I joined this forum.......way back in Feb.

Thanks NCTOB- I have added ACV to their water, and poultry spice to their pellets. They have just had a week of vitamins, but will add some more to their water in a weeks or so.

Sharron & the girls

 

[ncotb]

Glad you got sorted! Hope their feet recover quickly.

 

[elmwood]

Hi,

Well its the 2nd day of antibiotics. What an absolute mess we are all in. The girls are covered in petrol blue Terramycin spray, (on their bellies, and feet), my hands are blue and even noticed some on the poot wings - she isn't being treated. Wore gloves to apply it this morning!

Anyway how on earth do you keep free range birds in their houses? Just got in and the two girls with feet probs are happily dust bathing-they have worn off the antibiotic from the pads of their feet, which are now muddy and no traces of blue.

Have tried putting a grill against the pop hole, but one was going beserk, and as she was sharing the house with two broodies they all became upset. The one with the biggest swelling stayed in this house with the broodies for a few hours this morning, but upon my return from town, my son had let her out.

The vet did say to keep them on dry ground, but its easier said than done- any ideas? The only time they go in their houses is to lay.They roam free from dawn until dusk.

Do you also think I should be applying the antibiotic spray before bedtime, when in their dry beds for the night? OR wrapping their feet in breathable vet wrap?

dilemmas......

 

[Davidd]

Hi Sharron, yes, it can be difficult with little coops. All of mine can be locked in at any time- i only use little cooops for broodies - all my hens are in most of the winter anyway-the polands dont get out in the rain -which means Sept- April :lol:
You can try putting it on at night or vet wrap- or bring them here- i haven't had rain for months- like a dust bowl!!
Has your coop not got windows/ventilation? so you can keep the pop hole closed and keep them in? They will get used it after a few days.Let us know how it's going- good luck,
regards, David

 

[Cheviot]

Hi,
We use the blue spray on the sheep's feet, our vet told us to spray once and let it dry completely and then to spray a second time and again let it dry completely. It might work, I know sheep don't scratch about like chickens but there were still visible signs of the spray on the feet a couple of days later.
Regards
Sue

 

[elmwood]

David don't tempt me!!! I would love nothing more than to pack them up and bring them to you, dust bowls and houses with windows- hmmm chicken hotel.

Just had a thought- you could offer us all hotel 'n' hospital and get paid :lol:

As for windows, well do coops have windows? Ours have ventilation holes, the size of say a ping pong ball, but can't say it lets much light in.

Anyway the temp "grill" which is hanging on hooks against the pop hole, which I might add is one of my oven shelves, has been rumbled. One clever girlie has worked out if she pushes hard enough against it from inside the coop, it lifts up and she is free.

Cheviot-thankyou, I will try the spray twice and make sure it is completely dry.

 

[dawn]

Hi Sharron, you and the girls do seem to be having problems. Apart from bringing them over here (I'm near David and like him have a dust bowl for a garden) the best I can suggest is getting a roll of chicken wire and making a temporary enclosure in a dry bit of garden, or do you have a shed they can go in. Hope they all get sorted, in the meantime look forward to the pictures of blue chickens.

 

[elmwood]

Hi Dawn,

Things have improved thankfully! Have sectioned off a little bit of the garden, and the rain has stopped this last few days. Our main girlie with the limp seems to be limping less. We wash her feet at night and spray it on, having wrapped her in a towel first, so that just her feet are sticking out and the towel gets the brunt of the colour. On the really wet days I padded her foot with some gauze and then applied vet wrap, which is a godsend- bless her, she happily trotted around the garden, with dry feet. Even caught her trying to perch!

The others have had several foot baths, and I think the excess blue has now come off, but our poor Tillie, who is basically white, might have lost the blue off her belly but her feet are still very blue.

The shed however is another matter- it has a pile of towels (for the chickens) with a hairdryer on top- Mike commented it looked like a bouffant parlour not a bike shed. At least they look clean, smell nice, and are beautifully soft just got gammy feet.......Oh and one positive to having two broodies is that their feet have healed a treat because they never move anywhere. (Think I might update with a few photos.)

Sharron x

 

[elmwood]

Hi,

Thought I'd give an update about our pekins feet. Hopefully from the pics you can see the swelling is greatly reduced. She has had the Terramycin sprayed on every other day for the two weeks, and this last week we have left her alone- all seems ok. She is no longer limping and seems her usual dizzy self.

Do you think the swelling will eventually go completely OR do we need to continue with the anti-biotics for longer?

Many thanks Sharron

 

[Davidd]

Hi, if it's healed completely and not hot to the touch then i would stop using the spray and see how it goes- the spray can only work if it can get into the foot . I need to ask my vet for some because my gander is better but one of his feet has the start of bumblefoot He's had 15 days of intramuscular injections so far :shock:
regards, David

 

[elmwood]

HI David,

Thanks- it isn't hot to the touch anymore. So i'll leave it be.

your poor gander seems to have suffered with his feet, if he is now developing bumblefoot what did he have in the first instance that warranted muscular injections?

Sharron