Bramble foot or not bramble foot?

[theoldchick]

Often overweight chickens (and those who really use those feet for foraging) develop 'corns' on their feet that many people confuse for bumble foot. At first a corn starts out as a callus and eventually develops to a hard scab. Like you noticed there is no pus or odor. I like the soaking method for all types of foot problems. However, if I do have to cut because of a foreign body, the bird is removed from the flock and placed in a clean environment such as a carrier or a hospital cage. Healing can take some time, and if your chicken is indeed on the heavy side I would use a flat roost for her to perch on. A 2 x 4 works well. As an added relief for her wrap one part of the roost with vet-wrap to allow her a softer place to rest. If you do use vet-wrap (or any covering) you will have to change it every few days to keep it clean.

I hope this helps.

 

[larcie]

Thanks all.
I've been soaking the feet daily,removing the scabs every other day and applying antiseptic cream and powder at least one (mostly twice) a day with fresh dressing.
There's no puss, cheesy substance, smell, heat or red colouring to the areas. The hens aren't overweight or heavy for their breed.
The run dose have a pebbled area which I've now covered with a thick layer of straw to protect the girls feet.

 

[ozarkoldenglish]

Good deal, the straw will probably help. A lot of times when birds come off the roost they simply hop off on to the ground and not break their fall by flying down so they hit a little harder which can cause the foot problem.