Need Advice On Amputation ASAP - Rooster Has Frostbitten Leg - UPDATE: Leg Has Been Amputated Succes

[casportpony]

Here is that thread:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/806882/peachick-foot-problem-help

-Kathy

 

[GravelBeak]

Thanks for the info Kathy. Would it be better to cut it off at the joint, or below the joint? I would think that cutting it off AT the joint would be harder, seeing as there is more to cut through, and I may not be able to do it in one swift action, and I want to make it as quick as possible. However, cutting THROUGH the bone below the joint doesn't sound good either.

From the other threads on the topic I've seen on this forum, people have been able to do it relatively easily, with not a lot of pain to the chicken. If that wasn't the case, no way I would consider doing it myself.

What I'm considering doing, is getting a very sharp knife, then heating it up on the stove burner to cauterize the wound, and cutting through the leg with that. I'll use some kind of tourniquet above the site I'm cutting, to numb the leg and stop bleeding. I'll use a blood-stop powder on the wound immediately after cutting, then put some antibiotic cream on it. I'll bandage it, but probably leave the wound open, as it's often better to give big wounds some air, so infection isn't trapped inside. Does this sound like a good plan? Anything to add or change?

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Believe me, it's NOT something that I want to do, ever, but it has to be done to save his life. Given the choice, I think most people would choose to go through some pain and live, rather than to die, and at least I can try to give him a chance, rather than just killing him.

 

[casportpony]

To each their own I suppose. I wouldn't put an animal of mine through the pain, a wing isn't walked on. I know someone who lost just a fingertip, and the bone end was excruciatingly painful if bumped for months after the accident. He elected to have surgery to take it off at the joint to stop the pain.  Glad to know you have had success with amputation though.

 

[luvmigrls]

If you are going thrugh with it. I know you need to be carefull with blood stop powders. My vet told me not to use it anywhere that the animal could ingest it.

 

[ten chicks]

A knife is not sharp enough to cut through bone. This appears to be a adult rooster as opposed to a chick,with a chick the bones are still relatively soft,easier to cut through bone/tissue. I would suggest a vet,there are too many things that could go wrong.

If i were ever going to attempt this,i would tie off just before the cut and use a sterilized axe,you have to be fast and quick. Then put this bird on antibiotics,watch the cut for infection and blood loss.

 

[jenifry]

Anyone who has butchered a chicken should be able to sever a joint. Other than skin, there is not much but a couple of ligaments to cut. That being said, I doubt that an adult chicken will regenerate enough skin to cover a leg joint. The complications from doing something like this at home are incredibly numerous. Any amputation you do would require covering the exposed bone, or the chicken would suffer from nerve pain for the rest of it's days. I can see no way to do it without causing extreme pain to the animal. You would need to split the leg skin, do the amputation, cover the exposed stump and suture the skin, all while not causing an infection that would ultimately kill the bird anyway. All while NOT anesthetized. In my opinion, very cruel. Think about cutting off one of your feet- not going to the doctor- just letting someone split the skin, hack through your ankle and sew it all up when they are done. After doing this, the chicken would have weeks of pain while healing, if it doesn't die from some sort of complication. I can't see the benefit to the chicken. If you are unwilling or unable to take it to the vet, and don't have the tools and medical knowledge to do it correctly, in my opinion it would be more humane to end the animal's life.

 

[lalaland]

If you haven't done it yet, try pm'ing Aoxa - she had a hen lose a foot last year to frostbite, and she did not have to amputate.
best of luck to you and your rooster.

 

[LPETREE]

FIND SOMEONE WITH A BANDER FOR goats or such its a thing that places a band on testicles...use a band and place just above the dead area ..this will stop blood flow ..leave for a week and then cut off with garden shears..now sure how he will do with out foot ????this way he wont get blood posioning if it get infected as will stop blood flow ..if it dosent work then he needs to be put down..if you cant find bander used a good thick rubber band and make sure its as tight as you can get it.i milked cows and we banded tails as to keep the mess out of milking getting hit by a tail full is no fun and they never made a fuss ...please dont repley saying this is cruel o.k its used all over the world.people band goats calves sheep or you will have a ton of males .

 

[GravelBeak]

Thanks for all the input everyone. Just trying to gather as much info as possible, and mentally prepare myself.

I know that it would be better to bring him to a vet, but there is only one vet around here who will even look at chickens, and they hardly do that, and I don't want to spend a fortune if it is possible to do this in a way that isn't horribly cruel. From what I've read, it is more than possible, but certainly not an easy thing to do, at least not emotionally.

Right now, I'm thinking it may be better to cut under the joint, and peel the skin back a bit, so that I can put it back over the bone, so it's not bare. This is how it's done with humans from what I've seen.

FIND SOMEONE WITH A BANDER FOR goats or such its a thing that places a band on testicles...use a band and place just above the dead area ..this will stop blood flow ..leave for a week and then cut off with garden shears.

Thank you so much for reminding me! I actually have a bander that I've only used once to castrate a couple goats (it hardly bothered them at all - MUCH less cruel than using a 'crusher'), but that would work great to stop the bloodflow and numb the limb. I don't know about leaving it to rot though...I'd rather cut it off so that the wound can be covered.

The biggest things I'm worried about is causing too much pain, which hopefully won't be a huge problem if I can numb the limb. The other thing is not having a sharp enough implement to cut through the bone. I hate the idea of using a saw - I want to be able to cut through it as quickly and cleanly as possible (sorry, this is pretty graphic!

).

If you haven't done it yet, try pm'ing Aoxa - she had a hen lose a foot last year to frostbite, and she did not have to amputate.
best of luck to you and your rooster.

How could she not have amputated? Did the leg fall off on its own? I suppose that's something that may happen if I just leave it, but then again, he could very well die from infection.

 

[ten chicks]

Have any blisters formed on leg,if so leave leg as the skin/blisters will split open revealing new skin. If he has suffered 3rd degree frostbite(muscles/tendons/bone and blood vessels have frozen)the limb should fall off. I would suggest you wait and see which way the limb is going,will either show signs of healing or start to fall off(no blood flow,limb is dead).

If the limb is dead,there will be no feeling in his leg,meaning he cannot feel anything.