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

[GravelBeak]

Well it's done. He appears to be okay, but I can't get a bandage to stay on... I'm not sure if we got it all cut off, but I've put him on neochlor so here's hoping

Wow, that's great...hope the best for him! Did his leg really not bleed that much?? That seems nuts considering how much Jonsi's leg was squirting out blood, but I'm so happy it worked out. What did you use to cut? Gosh, I'm so happy that I helped save not only my rooster's life, but potentially another...so glad I posted here.

The bandaging isn't too hard: just take a piece of gauze, and center a piece of tape on it, so that the edges of the tape go over the edges of the gauze (or use two pieces in a + shape, with the gauze in the center, if you want it to be even more secure), place the gauze on the stump, and secure the tape to his leg, so that it's pointing upwards. Then, take a longer piece of gauze and wrap it around the tape that you just secured to his leg, this time going around his leg instead of on either side of it. Basically, you want to have the gauze and the first bit of tape 'hanging' (but not actually hanging) like a basket from the stump, and then wrap tape around the 'handle' to hold it in place.

This is how I do it anyways, and I'll get some pictures when it's lighter out to better demonstrate. I change his bandage every day, and clean the stump with hydrogen peroxide before putting a fresh bandage on. It seems to be doing really well and looks and smells clean.

Wow, I'm so pleased your chicken is getting on well. I admire your perseverance with your chicken and helping him get better. Well done and all the best

Thank you!

It doesn't require a ton of perseverance...he's a relatively low-maintenance rooster, but I guess it did require the willingness to possibly cause him some pain, and do something rather horrible to save his life, which I'm afraid a lot of people don't want to do. It's one thing to have a living thing who is constantly in pain and put them down because of that, but if it's a matter of causing them some pain and then they get better, I think most humans would choose that over dieing, and I would think it's the same with a chicken. If they really don't want to live, they usually end up giving up anyways, but with Jonsi for one, he certainly has the will to live, and wasn't hardly even in pain in the first place. Not trying to sound self-righteous about what happened but...It's all a matter of perspective I guess.

 

[Six Chickies]

We tried cutting the tape in half and it worked. He is already using his wing as a sort of crutch and his appetite is back. Plan to change bandage 2 times a day. I am putting Polysporin Triple Antibiotic on the wound. Thank you GravelBeak, and sorry for hijacking your thread!

 

[GravelBeak]

We tried cutting the tape in half and it worked. He is already using his wing as a sort of crutch and his appetite is back. Plan to change bandage 2 times a day. I am putting Polysporin Triple Antibiotic on the wound. Thank you GravelBeak, and sorry for hijacking your thread!

Hijack away, this is fantastic! So happy to hear he's doing well, and feel free to keep everyone updated on his progress!

Oh, I get it - the tape was too wide. Glad you got it, but think I'll still take some pictures of the bandaging process, for future reference for anyone else that wants it.

 

[Six Chickies]

We had no real tourniquet so we used an elastic band. Left it on for about 2 minutes before cutting with strong garden pruners (boiled and sharpened) but we took it off too soon (only left it on about 45 secs) so it bled a small bit, but corn starch did the trick with some pressure. Well we'll just have to see how he is in the morning

 

[Six Chickies]

Good Idea. I'll take pics of how we bandaged it because he only has about 1/2" left before his knee, and his leg is so small the two birds might need different methods.

 

[GravelBeak]

Alright, here it is - my very image-heavy visual guide to how I bandage the stump. Hope it's helpful!


'Securing' the patient patient with a towel. This is only to keep him from getting back up, but he's super calm through the whole thing.


This is what the stump looks like so far. You can sorta see how the skin is starting to heal towards the center, as it should. That white stuff is the hydrogen peroxide bubbling (also a bit of cotton swab that needs to be cleaned off). First thing I always do is clean it off with water and/or hydrogen peroxide, and just check to make sure it's doing alright and doesn't have any weird smell.


I always put the antibiotic cream on the gauze first. It could also be put on dry, or with a bit of fresh aloe (with no additives of course - it's the best if you have actual aloe plants).


Centering the medical tape on the back of the gauze.


Then, I fold it onto the stump, with the tape on either side.


Taking a longer piece of tape, I secure it by wrapping it around the leg (not too tight!). I have to watch out for those feathers...they're easy to get stuck in the tape.


I put another piece of tape on after that just to secure it more, and that's it! Sometimes I put duct tape over if he's going outside. Right now he's only been out once but likes to sit out on the deck during the day and watch the other chickens from above like some kind of weird, one legged, beaked, feathery dinosaur god.


His other foot is actually peeling, put healing up well. Just putting some vitamin E on here. This is where aloe would probably be the most useful, as it's great for helping heal skin.




Jonsi has the somewhat unusual habit of always trying to make eye-contact with anyone who visits him.

 

[ten chicks]

He is a beauty,so glad you were able to save his life. He deserves the title "Feathery Dinosaur God" after what he has been through! He appears to be quite the character.

 

[birdgirl11]

I am so happy to have come across this thread and this amazing story, thank you for sharing and I hope he lives a long, prosperous and beautiful life!

 

[luvmigrls]

YEA! So glad you had a happy ending. Thanks for the pics.

 

[GravelBeak]

Thanks for checking out this thread everyone, and for the positive words! They are super appreciated.

Jonsi spent almost the entire day today outside (I have him back out sleeping with the other chickens in the greenhouse). He actually took a dustbath, and enjoyed himself greatly. Yes, he can do it with one foot.

Also, just thought I'd share a pic of his foot, since I think it looks kinda funny. The scabs and dead skin have mostly peeled off to reveal fresh skin and soft scales underneath, and I thought his foot looked like an insect that shed its exoskeleton. I should have taken a pic of it a couple days ago...it was pink as a newborn baby (well, a Caucasian baby I suppose XD). His middle toe is wrapped up because it was drying out and cracking and bleeding a bit. I put some fresh aloe on the toe, and on his stump today, along with a little antibiotic cream. I give him a clove of garlic to eat every couple days. His stump is healing up very nicely, and the scab over it is already starting to peel off, though it needs at least a few more days before it'll be done healing over. It seems to be somewhat tender, but must not bother him much, because he was actually leaning on it, and even using it to kick up dirt when he was bathing!