Bruised toe - reality check.

[smudge]

One of my 4 year old Buff Orpington hens has what appears to be a bruised toe. I noticed her limping yesterday, and some slight swelling, no broken skin, obvious deformity, or bumblefoot scab.

I'm terrible at pictures - the swelling/color didn't show up when I try, but the color of the middle toe looks a lot like the greenish in this thread https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/bruised-chicken-foot.1096023/#post-16845926

In addition to swelling, it feels warm to touch.

She will walk on it, but is preferring to nest on the floor. I've moved her out of the coop to my mudroom to isolate her. I brought her best friend along to keep each other company. She also is a bit subdued/less talkative, and her comb color is paler than usual - usually it's bright red.

I set up a corner with shavings and hay, and she seemed happy to nest there before church. The water and food are within beaks reach. She did seem to immediately appreciate the water there. However, she has decided to abandon the bedding and nest directly on the concrete floor. (I could put her in the rabbit hutch, off the floor, in the mudroom, but last time I tried, she jumped out.)

Should I trust that she knows what she's doing? Concrete seems a bit cold and hard to me, is she just trying to cool her toe?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

She's probably hot in your house. Sounds like a potential sprain. I would put her back out in the coop and than keep an eye on her. As long as no one is bothering her she is much better out there.

 

[smudge]

Well, no one is hot in my house! My kid keeps turning the thermostat below 55. (Shivering help you lose weight, she thinks, LOL. Then she lies on top of the only heating grate in the house.)

The porch is unheated, on a slab. I'm only leaving her there with her best friend during the day to make sure that she has unimpeded access to food and water. Those 2 usually ae separate from the rest of the flock during the day. I leave the door open a couple of hours before dusk and she's been going back to the coop in the evening on her own.