Bumblefoot all over feet?

[barkingdoginn]

A few weeks ago I noticed my roosters toes (one toe per foot) looked a bit swollen and he had scabs all over on the bottom which looked like bumblefoot. So I brought him in and gave Epson salt soak but after soaking the scabs looked like they were just on the very surface of the skin / nothing underneath so thought it was possible frost bite scabs instead.

His swollen toes never went back to normal and this weekend I checked again and the scabs really looked and felt like bumble foot. I brought him in and did Epson soak again and after checked his feet it looks like all the scab areas I thought were frostbite scabs now look and feel very bumblefoot-y. These scabs are all over the bottom of both feet.
Does that look like bumblefoot? Any treatment suggestions? I did salt soak and polysporin and wrapped the toes with the largest scabs.

 

[Lillith37]

Maybe bumblefoot but maybe also gout? What do you feed them? Does anyone else in your flock have issues on their feet?

@Eggcessive

 

[Chickenmother26]

Hey! That definitely looks like bumblefoot to me. Our chickens had that a couple months back and this is what we did: To treat it you need to remove the scabs to flush the cavity. Do an epsom salt soak first to soften them, then using clean tweezers remove it and flush inside with vetericyn & a wound spray (I used well & good wound spray from petco). The scabs may bleed when removed, but know you are helping your boy. Then, wrap with neosporin (with no pain relief). I used a sterile pad, then gauze, and some tape to secure it. You gotta wrap around the toes and up the ankle a bit for it to stay. In the beginning, we changed the bandages every day. Once it started to get better, we changed them every 3 ish days (whenever they fell off or looked too dirty) Best of luck

 

[barkingdoginn]

Maybe bumblefoot but maybe also gout? What do you feed them? Does anyone else in your flock have issues on their feet?

@Eggcessive

We had another rooster who passed away from a bunch of puzzling symptoms who also had two spots on his feet. In that case we soaked and then removed the hard brown and yellow tissue.

They eat layer feed (sorry I’m not sure if that’s enough details) and they get fruit and veggie scraps, free range of grass and plants in the growing season. None of the hens had any of these scabs.

 

[barkingdoginn]

Hey! That definitely looks like bumblefoot to me. Our chickens had that a couple months back and this is what we did: To treat it you need to remove the scabs to flush the cavity. Do an epsom salt soak first to soften them, then using clean tweezers remove it and flush inside with vetericyn & a wound spray (I used well & good wound spray from petco). The scabs may bleed when removed, but know you are helping your boy. Then, wrap with neosporin (with no pain relief). I used a sterile pad, then gauze, and some tape to secure it. You gotta wrap around the toes and up the ankle a bit for it to stay. In the beginning, we changed the bandages every day. Once it started to get better, we changed them every 3 ish days (whenever they fell off or looked too dirty) Best of luck

We did end up doing that on the largest of the scabs and there was a pretty thick layer of hard brown and yellow tissue so I figure this is bumblefoot but I am not sure - is it possible for so many spots on his foot to have that infection!? Or bumblefoot plus something else

 

[Chickenmother26]

We did end up doing that on the largest of the scabs and there was a pretty thick layer of hard brown and yellow tissue so I figure this is bumblefoot but I am not sure - is it possible for so many spots on his foot to have that infection!? Or bumblefoot plus something else

Yes it is possible to have many spots of bumble foot. What kind of bedding do you use? Is it sharp at all? Ours got it from some hemp bedding that had more spiky sticks than usual. We’ve double checked since then to make sure it’s soft and they’ve haven’t gotten it again. But ours had multiple spots per foot too

 

[Lillith37]

We had another rooster who passed away from a bunch of puzzling symptoms who also had two spots on his feet. In that case we soaked and then removed the hard brown and yellow tissue.

They eat layer feed (sorry I’m not sure if that’s enough details) and they get fruit and veggie scraps, free range of grass and plants in the growing season. None of the hens had any of these scabs.

The diet may not be doing the rooster any favours. Consider changing to an all flock pellet or grower pellet and provide flaked oyster shells for the hens to get their calcium. Cut the treats for the time being because it all detracts from the nutrition in their complete feed. Then limit treats to roughly 10% of their diet. Keep the rooster’s feet clean and you can treat as you would for bumblefoot but I don’t recommend cutting into the wounds to the point where it bleeds. Bleeding indicates healthy tissue and you risk introducing further infection.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

A few weeks ago I noticed my roosters toes (one toe per foot) looked a bit swollen and he had scabs all over on the bottom which looked like bumblefoot. So I brought him in and gave Epson salt soak but after soaking the scabs looked like they were just on the very surface of the skin / nothing underneath so thought it was possible frost bite scabs instead.

His swollen toes never went back to normal and this weekend I checked again and the scabs really looked and felt like bumble foot. I brought him in and did Epson soak again and after checked his feet it looks like all the scab areas I thought were frostbite scabs now look and feel very bumblefoot-y. These scabs are all over the bottom of both feet.
Does that look like bumblefoot? Any treatment suggestions? I did salt soak and polysporin and wrapped the toes with the largest scabs.View attachment 3774923

How is he kept, what type of surface is he on?

Does he roost a lot?

Photo of the whole bird would be good too

I would not cut into the foot very much, especially on the toes.

It does look like Bumblefoot, but also Footpad/Contact Dermatitis. Wet conditions, roosting a lot, being on wire flooring, ammonia burns, etc.

I'd try daily soaks in Tricide Neo to see if that helps. Keep him on dry clean bedding.

 

[barkingdoginn]

The diet may not be doing the rooster any favours. Consider changing to an all flock pellet or grower pellet and provide flaked oyster shells for the hens to get their calcium. Cut the treats for the time being because it all detracts from the nutrition in their complete feed. Then limit treats to roughly 10% of their diet. Keep the rooster’s feet clean and you can treat as you would for bumblefoot but I don’t recommend cutting into the wounds to the point where it bleeds. Bleeding indicates healthy tissue and you risk introducing further infection.

The diet may not be doing the rooster any favours. Consider changing to an all flock pellet or grower pellet and provide flaked oyster shells for the hens to get their calcium. Cut the treats for the time being because it all detracts from the nutrition in their complete feed. Then limit treats to roughly 10% of their diet. Keep the rooster’s feet clean and you can treat as you would for bumblefoot but I don’t recommend cutting into the wounds to the point where it bleeds. Bleeding indicates healthy tissue and you risk introducing further infection.

Thanks I will look into those food options! Is the all flock / grower pellet fine for the hens as well? We have oyster shells / crushed egg shells available for the hens and with treats it’s maybe only 2 times a week.

 

[barkingdoginn]

How is he kept, what type of surface is he on?

Does he roost a lot?

Photo of the whole bird would be good too

I would not cut into the foot very much, especially on the toes.

It does look like Bumblefoot, but also Footpad/Contact Dermatitis. Wet conditions, roosting a lot, being on wire flooring, ammonia burns, etc.

I'd try daily soaks in Tricide Neo to see if that helps. Keep him on dry clean bedding.

At night they have wide (4”) wooden planks for roosting. The bedding in the coop is a mix of hay straw and pine shavings, everything in their run is wood and the ground is just regular hard dirt / grass. In the coop I have a dropping board underneath the roosts with pine shavings so it keeps the coop floor a little less filthy. In the day he usually hangs out on the ground in the run, doesn’t seem to go up on a roost unless there’s something to scream at.
It was a very weird winter here too with a lot of cooling and then warming instead of the usual very cold so a lot more wet ground than normal. I try to add a bunch of hay to the ground in their run when it gets mucky in the spring time. So possibly his feet were wetter than normal. I’ll grab a photo of him later today!