Warts on comb - What is it?

[Papaye]

Hello!

One of my chickens - a young white legbar - has had white, yellowish, warts on her comb for a few months (since last spring at least)...

...Her name is Lila.

Actually, she has no worrying symptoms : she is energetic, is laying fine blue eggs, and has never been sick since I have had her...
But she has these weird warts on her comb - and ONLY on her comb... and I am not sure what they are, but since she has had more and more these last months, and really just in case it was some kind of fungus... I first decided to apply an antifungal cream on her comb... with NO success...

Of course, being afraid she would finally have so much warts on her comb her face would be next... I naturally worried about her eyes...!

So, DECEMBER 13, I tried a new method to treat her...

Here are pictures from DECEMBER 13 - just before the first treatment :

Sorry : quality is really bad...
(Hen is dirty because she was coming from her sand bath - not because hygiene is bad...!!)

...We can clearly see there is no favus, right...?

Actually looks like fowlpox (I think), but... I have no sick birds, and no other chickens have had warts on their comb or elsewhere on their body...

The warts are solid and hard to the touch, and thanksfully don't seem to be contagious...
But they are ugly, and my hen can't look healthy with these on her head; and I don't even know if they could expand on her face... so I obviously decided I had to find a way to remove them from her comb, and fast...

I actually had several ideas... all of them, of course coming from me, being 100% NATURAL...

...At first, I was thinking to use Cade Oil (the one made specifically for chickens) from La Distillerie des Cévennes : https://www.distilleriedescevennes....es/products/soin-naturel-huile-de-cade-poules
I am pretty sure this amazing product would "heal" Lila's comb in one - maybe two - go, but... I was not sure it was such a good idea to use it so near the eyes : Cade Oil is thick, so I was afraid Lila would put some in her eyes by scratching herself if ever the oil did not have the time to dry by then...

So, I just chose my other "bright" idea : the longest one, but also one I was pretty sure would work.
Indeed, I chose to use not Cade Oil, but a serum from - again - La Distillerie des Cévennes : https://www.distilleriedescevennes....ariant=41057647886383#shopify-product-reviews
This is a (Fine) Cade Oil Serum recommended for eczema, psoriasis, or insect bites - and advised for humans -; but... I was confident it would cure Lila's comb, and give her a new, healthy skin thanks to that...!

Thus, I started Lila's treatment on DECEMBER 13.

First, on this day, I cleaned her comb with Apple Cider Vinegar : since vinegar is renowed to be effective against warts if applied locally and regurlaly, I just decided using ACV would NOT be too much to "destroy" the warts...

Second, I wiped her comb with warm water : in order to avoid burning my hen's skin, I - of course - would quickly remove all traces of vinegar from her skin!

Third, I put a few drops of (Fine) Cade Oil Serum on her comb, being careful to apply on all the warts, but also to avoid the eyes and the nostrils...

Fourth... I just let my hen go free for the rest of the day...!

And for the next days, I took care to keep putting a few drops of (Fine) Cade Oil Serum of Lila's comb... ONCE A DAY!
There would be no need to use vinegar everyday - or any day, to be honest -, since the serum alone can probably do the job perfectly... so, I have actually just used Apple Cider Vinegar to clean her comb, what... four or five times since December 13...?

...Today - DECEMBER 28 -, I was able to remove more than half of the warts on Lila's comb by rubbing a paper covered in Apple Cider Vinegar on it...
MORE than HALF, huh...!!
I was actually surprised that would work so well and so fast; but I am not complaining...

...I still wonder what these warts are. Fowlpox... not fowlpox...?
I am not particularly worried for now : Lila will clearly have no more of these weird things on her comb within the next few days; and... she is not sick, and my other chickens are not sick... and no other bird has warts on them...!

But what if I am being stupid, and I should, in fact, be worried?
...Could the warts come again? Would my hen's eyes be at risk...?

 

[azygous]

The obvious answer is fowl pox. But it's spread by mosquitoes. It's hard to picture mosquitos at this time of year, but if you do have some, that would bolster the diagnosis.

 

[Papaye]

Hi.

Thank you for your answer!!

I actually noticed these weird warts on Lila's comb in spring, but since then, she has had more and more on her skin... until December 13, when I started to treat her locally with Apple Cider Vinegar and (Fine) Cade Oil Serum...!
That's why I am not so sure that would be fowlpox; but... what do I know?
...Could fowlpox keep getting worse on the skin, with time? I have learned it would the opposite, and that the warts would quickly disappear...
(And could fowlpox contaminate only ONE chicken from all a flock, in spite of the fact this chicken is not separated from the others?)

I am also a bit skeptical about mosquitoes, because a cell tower was recently installed close to my home... and since its activation last spring, there are so much less insects and various animals in my area...!
I personally did not see any mosquito since then. Not the big ones, nor the tiny ones...

...Thank you again for your answer!!

 

[azygous]

Fowl pox is spread by mosquitoes. If there are no mosquitoes, it's far less likely to be fowl pox. However, if it is fowl pox, it can be aggravated by bacterial infection in the lesions. It usually clears up on its own after two or three weeks, though.

Canker is another affliction that results in such lesions. It's appears more commonly around the beak and face, though. It's spread by pigeons. If you have pigeons hanging around pooping everywhere, it lends more weight to this diagnosis. It's treated with an anti-parasitic drug.

You can also try gentian violet on the lesions. I find it to be a good solution for most comb lesions that are of an unknown origin.

 

[Papaye]

Hi.

I'm confused... is canker not only affecting the mouth in chickens...?

...I don't have pigeons in my area : too much birds of prey for them, I think...
I have only seen one some months ago, and it was a homing pigeon - seemed to be lost (pigeon racing), the poor bird... But he did NOT drink from the waterers, nor did he eat from the feeders! So he could not have contaminated my hen, right?

(...But close to pigeons : I have turtle doves half a year...
Could turtle doves, like pigeons, spread the parasites responsible of canker?)

Also : for several months now, my chickens have had unlimited access to food mixed with food grade Diatomaceous Earth.
Thus, I am really not worried about parasites anymore : after all, in my experiences, DE works magic...!

For now, Lila's comb is healing : the serum is amazingly efficient!
So, she won't need Gentian Violet... thanksfully, because I don't have any for now, and I am not even sure I could find some near me...

(But if I had not had this serum in my possession, I would have tried to remove the warts by mixing Olive Oil and honey in warm water, then rubbing it on her comb - twice a day at least.
And in the same time : I would, of course, have cleaned her comb with Apple Cider Vinegar at least once a week...!)

Thank you for taking the time to answer to me!!