Bumblefoot Question (Photos)

[AzDuck]

Hi Everyone!
I’m a little confused with bumblefoot. Do all cuts on ducks feet turn to bumblefoot, or can they sometimes heal on their own? I have 5 ducks and I noticed one had a slight limp today. I looked at her foot and noticed what I think is the beginning of bumblefoot (she is duck “A” Farrah). I then decided to look at everyone’s feet. These are the photos with a letter and their name for each duck. Which should I be concerned about? And how do I even go about starting to treat it since there isn’t a scab yet? Thank you guys

-They are in soft grass/diet most of the time, but their run has some smooth river rock. They do climb on big tree roots and over wooden beams sometimes which is where they may have gotten cuts/splinters.

 

[Fuchsia]

Maybe Dr. @Isaac 0 Can help you.
I can’t sorry
The first picture does look like bumble foot to me but like I said I don’t know.

 

[AzDuck]

Maybe Dr. @Isaac 0 Can help you.
I can’t sorry

@Isaac 0 is probably so sick of me! He has been a saint though, and has helped me with so much. Being a first time duck owner is scary
If I haven’t thanked you enough, @Isaac 0 , THANK YOU!!

 

[Fuchsia]

Being a first time duck owner is scary

I know what you are talking about I am new to duck also

 

[AzDuck]

I know what you are talking about I am new to duck also

They are so worth it, and they are my absolute babies! Even so, I’ve been very discouraged any time things go wrong because I've tried so hard to cover all the bases
Good luck to you! They really are the sweetest little animals

 

[Fuchsia]

They are so worth it, and they are my absolute babies! Even so, I’ve been very discouraged any time things go wrong because I've tried so hard to cover all the bases
Good luck to you! They really are the sweetest little animals

Good luck to you also!

 

[KaleIAm]

In my experience removing the river rocks and changing the inside substrate to straw or hay (vet said sand was ok too, but I was worried they would eat it and get impacted) was enough to prevent bumbles from forming. We had recurring bumbles and since making the changes to the environment haven't had any for years.

To treat the feet I took my duck to the vet and followed their instructions. They had me wash the feet twice daily with broad spectrum antibacterial soap, called chlorhexidine I believe. It was hard to do it without getting soap on the feathers, so I cut a small hole in a plastic sack like a surgical drape. I laid my duck on her back in my lap and put her foot and leg through the hole. I tilted her so soapy water wouldn't run up her leg into her feathers. Then I washed her foot really well and rinsed it several times. Then I patted it dry and used silver sulfadiazine cream. Then I put her in duck boots overnight in her coop to keep the medication on. During the day I let her run around barefooted. Twice they had her on antibiotics, everytime they had her on a pain reliever/anti inflammatory. They never did the surgery to dig out the plug thing.

She healed up everytime, but it did return within a couple months until I made the environmental changes. It's been over 3 years bumble free now. I know other people use other substrates with no issues, but my duck can't seem to.

 

[AzDuck]

In my experience removing the river rocks and changing the inside substrate to straw or hay (vet said sand was ok too, but I was worried they would eat it and get impacted) was enough to prevent bumbles from forming. We had recurring bumbles and since making the changes to the environment haven't had any for years.

To treat the feet I took my duck to the vet and followed their instructions. They had me wash the feet twice daily with broad spectrum antibacterial soap, called chlorhexidine I believe. It was hard to do it without getting soap on the feathers, so I cut a small hole in a plastic sack like a surgical drape. I laid my duck on her back in my lap and put her foot and leg through the hole. I tilted her so soapy water wouldn't run up her leg into her feathers. Then I washed her foot really well and rinsed it several times. Then I patted it dry and used silver sulfadiazine cream. Then I put her in duck boots overnight in her coop to keep the medication on. During the day I let her run around barefooted. Twice they had her on antibiotics, everytime they had her on a pain reliever/anti inflammatory. They never did the surgery to dig out the plug thing.

She healed up everytime, but it did return within a couple months until I made the environmental changes. It's been over 3 years bumble free now. I know other people use other substrates with no issues, but my duck can't seem to.

Thank you! Do you know why they said no river rock? Its the only thing we have found to keep the mud/poop to a minimum (since we just rinse them off daily and drain all the “gunk”)

 

[KaleIAm]

Thank you! Do you know why they said no river rock? Its the only thing we have found to keep the mud/poop to a minimum (since we just rinse them off daily and drain all the “gunk”)

I know... It was really nice to have the rocks. We had this fabulous drainage system with pea gravel and river rock. It was so clean!!

They just said it was too hard for their feet to stand on. That wild ducks don't spend nearly the same time on their feet, and when they do they are on grass or dirt. I was sure it wasn't going to solve the issue, but I figured since I was spending thousands of dollars at the vet I should do what they told me.

Do you use wood chips in their coop?

 

[AzDuck]

I know... It was really nice to have the rocks. We had this fabulous drainage system with pea gravel and river rock. It was so clean!!

They just said it was too hard for their feet to stand on. That wild ducks don't spend nearly the same time on their feet, and when they do they are on grass or dirt. I was sure it wasn't going to solve the issue, but I figured since I was spending thousands of dollars at the vet I should do what they told me.

Do you use wood chips in their coop?

Dang! Thank you for that. I will take them out tomorrow when I’m off work. And inside their coop it is partially just a rubber stall mat (where their water is—for easy cleaning), and then the other half is a mix of pine pellets (that turn to saw dust when wet) and chopped straw.