Advice for Bumblefoot Treatment

[The Chick Addict]

Hey Y'all! I know a lot about treating bumblefoot but I wanted some extra advice that I did not find. How should I sterilize the X-acto knife that I will be using to remove the scab and corn? And does it cause pain to the chicken? Thank you!

 

[Debbie292d]

Hey Y'all! I know a lot about treating bumblefoot but I wanted some extra advice that I did not find. How should I sterilize the X-acto knife that I will be using to remove the scab and corn? And does it cause pain to the chicken? Thank you!

You can put your tool in water with a little bleach in it, let it sit there for a minute, then air dry it.

We happen to have 99% Isopropyl Alcohol, but most don't. I've used that, but the bleach is just as good.

The scab and core is dead so that doesn't hurt the chicken.

Good luck!

 

[The Chick Addict]

You can put your tool in water with a little bleach in it, let it sit there for a minute, then air dry it.

We happen to have 99% Isopropyl Alcohol, but most don't. I've used that, but the bleach is just as good.

The scab and core is dead so that doesn't hurt the chicken.

Good luck!

Thank you so much! I just realized that my X-acto knife has rust so will tweezers work? Some bad news: I found that 6 other hens have Bumblefoot, one more advanced than the first chicken I found with bumblefoot. They do have high roosts, about 5 ft. 2 or 3 in. from the ground. Is that the reason for this bumble outbreak? How should I fix this? I can't lower the roosts and any staircases from the roosts would be caked in poop from the night. Thank you!

 

[Debbie292d]

Thank you so much! I just realized that my X-acto knife has rust so will tweezers work? Some bad news: I found that 6 other hens have Bumblefoot, one more advanced than the first chicken I found with bumblefoot. They do have high roosts, about 5 ft. 2 or 3 in. from the ground. Is that the reason for this bumble outbreak? How should I fix this? I can't lower the roosts and any staircases from the roosts would be caked in poop from the night. Thank you!

What do you use for bedding that they are landing on? Unless it's hard, like concrete, or has nails or sharp stones or something on it to cause injuries, I doubt the roost height makes too much difference. I've seen people have ladder roosts to the top of their barns. I'm just going off that since so many have it, it might be something causing their feet to get scratched or cut. We use horse pellets so that helps keep their feet cleaner as there isn't any poop they can walk in and it's dry as a bone.

As for will a tweezers work, it might help pull out the core, but don't you have to cut to get to the core first? Also, do you have PRID? It's a drawing salve. I've heard people try that first If the bumblefoot isn't too advanced. You could try soaking their feet in Epsom salt, then apply the PRID and wrap their feet with vet wrap, changing twice a day. If it's pretty bad though, you're going to have to do what you intended to do.

 

[The Chick Addict]

What do you use for bedding that they are landing on? Unless it's hard, like concrete, or has nails or sharp stones or something on it to cause injuries, I doubt the roost height makes too much difference. I've seen people have ladder roosts to the top of their barns. I'm just going off that since so many have it, it might be something causing their feet to get scratched or cut. We use horse pellets so that helps keep their feet cleaner as there isn't any poop they can walk in and it's dry as a bone.

As for will a tweezers work, it might help pull out the core, but don't you have to cut to get to the core first? Also, do you have PRID? It's a drawing salve. I've heard people try that first If the bumblefoot isn't too advanced. You could try soaking their feet in Epsom salt, then apply the PRID and wrap their feet with vet wrap, changing twice a day. If it's pretty bad though, you're going to have to do what you intended to do.

Thank you for your response! I used pine shavings for their bedding. There are sometimes pieces of wire around their free-ranging area but whenever I see them I throw them away. It is really hot here so I started putting a mister for them and the ground in their run does get pretty wet and grimy. I read that being in wet mud or dirt for a prolonged time is a cause for bumblefoot so could this be the case? Unfortunately I do not have any PRID and about 4 of the hens have very small scabs. I can't buy any right now, so should I do what I was going to do? Thanks!

 

[Debbie292d]

Thank you for your response! I used pine shavings for their bedding. There are sometimes pieces of wire around their free-ranging area but whenever I see them I throw them away. It is really hot here so I started putting a mister for them and the ground in their run does get pretty wet and grimy. I read that being in wet mud or dirt for a prolonged time is a cause for bumblefoot so could this be the case? Unfortunately I do not have any PRID and about 4 of the hens have very small scabs. I can't buy any right now, so should I do what I was going to do? Thanks!

Yeppers, it's either the grimy mud, or they've been finding those pieces of wire. I rented a metal detector a few years ago, and it was $6 for half a day. Otherwise, know anyone who would lend you a decent-sized magnet?

Yes, I would go ahead and treat the bumblefoot the way you know how to as letting it go can make it get way worse, go into their bones, and eventually can kill them.

 

[The Chick Addict]

@Debbie292d
@Eggcessive
@azygous

I need some help. I am treating one of my hens with bumblefoot right now. I just removed the black scab and inside, the wound is very shallow. It is a peachy/yellow color but there is no corn and there is a fleshy material that is bloody which I believe is her flesh. It was bleeding a little bit and I had to put pressure for it to stop bleeding. Does there have to be a corn for a successful treatment? I'm sure that if I go deeper, she will bleed a lot and there is only skin and flesh in the wound hole. I need this info asap. Thank you!

 

[The Chick Addict]

@NatJ

Also, for anybody who asks, I cannot get pictures at this moment!

 

[NatJ]

@NatJ

Also, for anybody who asks, I cannot get pictures at this moment!

Unfortunately, I do not know anything useful about bumblefoot treatment, so I can't give any helpful advice here.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I use the type of utility knife where the blades break off every 1/4" or so, so I can snap a piece off as I'm done each time. And old tweezers. I just use alcohol to sanitize.

Epsom salt soak, dig out the scab, tweeze out the core if there is one, then I use Neosporin w/o pain relief, pack it in, and bandage up. I use Vetricyn like a sterile rinse to clean around the area as I go. Repeat daily as needed.

If you can't find the core then don't dig around, it may surface later on (and you can remove it at that time) or there may not be a noticeable core at all. I think it's fairly rare for me to find cores at all, most of the cases of bumblefoot I treat are fairly minor and there's not a lot of swelling or any limping.

How deep is your bedding? If the bedding isn't very thick the birds could be having a hard landing when they come off the roosts.