Possible Early Bumblefoot?

[hellotrixie]

Hi chicken people!

My almost 1 year old Golden Comet Debbie has some scabs on her feet, and I am wondering if they are early bumblefoot? Also would like to hear any suggestions on how to improve on my current treatment, although I am not ready to proceed to surgery yet.

Symptoms
She has 2 scabs each on both feet, although one foot is worse than the other. I noticed these over the weekend while doing some basic health checks on all 4 of my hens. Currently there are no signs of limping or lameness. There is little to no redness/swelling/heat at this point. She is eating/drinking/laying/behaving normally and seems healthy. Here's a pic (sorry it is a little blurry, Debbie didn't want to cooperate with my photo shoot.

Treatment So Far
Since discovering these, I have been soaking her feet in a warm Epsom salt bath for 10 min each day, scrubbing before and after with a soft toothbrush. I then apply an antibacterial/antifungal/moisturing spray I had on hand for my dogs (I did check with the vet that this is ok for chickens). It contains 2% Chlorhexidine gluconate/2% Miconazole, plus lavender and lemongrass oil. I realize that bumblefoot is not fungal, but my vet said it would be ok to use this mostly for the antibacterial and skin-soothing properties. After the spray drys, I generously apply my homemade all-purpose salve, which is made with Chamomile-infused Coconut oil, Calendula-infused olive oil, Yellow beeswax, and Lavendar, Cedarwood, Tea tree, and Geranium essential oils. I have not been bandaging her feet.

The scabs already look smaller/softer/less noticeable today than yesterday. I have ordered Tricide-Neo for use as a foot soak and it should be here in a few days. I've read all the posts about surgery for bumblefoot, but I really don't want to start cutting on her yet, since she is showing no signs of lameness and I'm not sure the feet are infected.

Background
My girls live in a large coop/run and free range in our fenced backyard for 4 or more hours per day. I am an organic gardener and do not spray and pesticides/herbicides on the property. I have deep shavings > 4 in. in the coop and smooth routed edge perches. We use droppings boards, so the shavings stay pretty clean. I scoop out any stray droppings and add Sweet PDZ at least weekly. The run is a blend of sand/topsoil/pine bark fines/leaf mulch which I add to regularly. There's no foul smell out there, but it does smell a bit like chicken.

They eat Reedy Form Farm Certified Organic 17% Soy Free Layer feed (locally produced/sourced), and a few dried soldier worms here and there as a treat, plus whatever bugs/greens they find in the yard. They have multiple water sources that are changed daily.

TLDR;
My hen has foot scabs that could be early bumblefoot. No swelling or limping yet. Eating/drinking/free ranging/laying normally. Currently treating with epsom salt soaks and topicals. I think my coop/run and feed/water setup is pretty good. Opinions/advice solicited.

Thanks so much in advance!!!

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

Yes, that is bumble foot, in most cases it must be cut out of the foot. You are doing a good job! You can try and get some chicken boots, and that will help, when they need to be kept out if the dirt..Welcome to byc!! Glad you could join the Flock! Let me know if you need anything!

 

[pennyJo1960]

order some punches from Amazon so your able to remove them
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071J1BVPK/?tag=backy-20

 

[hellotrixie]

Follow up for anyone who might happen on this thread doing research.

A couple of days after posting this thread, the mildest of the scabs (2 on the left foot) fell off while scrubbing. There was new/pink skin underneath that looked uninfected. I then pulled off the worst scab in the center of her right foot and some pus came out with gentle squeezing. I did not find or feel a "kernel" as is often mentioned with bumblefoot. However she was left with a pretty nasty hole in her foot so I packed it with polysporin and applied a bandage of gauze and vet wrap.

I changed the bandage daily for 4 days, soaking the foot in epsom salt and repacking with polysporin each time. No limping or off behavior during this period, and I gave her Nutridrench daily. We then had a really rainy spell, and since a new (not black) scab had formed, I stopped bandaging because I couldn't keep it dry.

Over the last couple of weeks, her foot has continued to heal nicely. The scab that formed after draining is flaking off bit by bit, with new healthy skin beneath. There is no sign of redness/swelling/infection, but I try to spray her daily with the antibacterial/antifungal/moisturing spray mentioned in the original post.

I think I caught this early and was able to get it under control with soaking and conservative treatment. Since she never limped or had swelling/tenderness/redness, I never felt the need to do surgery on her foot. I did purchase Tricide-Neo but never used it.

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

Yay!