Am I Doing Everything I Can?

[cindyklr]

I tried to submit this yesterday, but it didn't go, so I'll try again.

I am new to the chicken thing, having inherited 12 laying hens when we recently bought an acreage. I have a sick Easter Egger who was being picked on and pecked raw in the flock, I suppose because she has vent gleet. She also has bumblefoot in both feet. I removed her from the flock to treat her, but cutting her feet - can't do it. Not knowing what else to do, I took her to my dog's vet yesterday. My vet treats other birds, but usually not chickens. But since other birds get bumblefoot, she said she would treat it. However, she said it was in early stages and she did a makeshift job of cushioning and wrapping the hen's feet. I am supposed to bring her back tomorrow to be properly wrapped. That's all. Shouldn't she at least be on antibiotics to get over the infection? Anyway, Layla the Hen was quite the celebrity in the animal clinic yesterday. Several vet techs had to come see the chicken with her feet wrapped, and the vet had to take a picture.

In the meantime, this is what I am doing: Epsom salts soaks, antifungal cream, ACV in water, plain yogurt in feed for vent gleet; antibiotic ointment on pecked area; and now, both feet are wrapped. I have Blu-Kote but haven't used it yet, and I have ordered a chicken saddle.

I am glad to have found this group. I have learned so much and it's great to have other chicken people to learn from and share with. You understand.

 

[familyfarm1]

Hello

and Welcome to BYC!

So sorry to hear about your hen.

I've personally never delt with bumble foot before, but here are some great articles on it:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/bumblefoot-in-your-flock
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/bumblefoot-information-prevention-transmission-cures

Hope she gets well soon!!

 

[Eggcessive]

Vent pecking is different than vent gleet. Pecking occurs due to overcrowding, too little protein in the diet, boredom, and too much aggression. It also is one of many causes of salpingitis, and later, egg yolk peritonitis. Here are some endless threads for searching bumblefoot and vent gleet:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/newsearch?search=vent+gleet
https://www.backyardchickens.com/newsearch?search=bumblefoot

 

[cindyklr]

Thanks. My hen's case is still in the minor stage, but I certainly don't want it to get worse and require core removal. Wouldn't one want to give antibiotics at this stage to prevent it from getting worse? Is there a good OTC antibiotic for this?

 

[hennible]

Hello. Welcome to BYC, you are doing well already in carrying for her.
Given the two issues she is having it may be counterproductive to give her antibiotics for her feet (oral ones) if the case is mild as it could add to the vent gleet by interfering further with her natural beneficial bacteria in her body... Just a thought...
Here's an article on vent gleet
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/vent-gleet-aka-nasty-chicken-butt
Best of luck see you out in the forum. one more thought is that maybe fermented feed could help, lots of info on here about that...

 

[cindyklr]

Eggcessive, the pecking is on her back, right in front of her tail feathers. I guess there could be vent pecking too, but she has the classic vent gleet symptoms.

 

[hennible]

Is it from pecking or from rooster spurs? because maybe she's a favourite hen or your ratio is off...

 

[cindyklr]

I don't have a rooster, so it's her sister hens that are picking on her. I also have caught her pecking herself since being isolated. Thanks for the advice.

 

[hennible]

Sorry you're dealing with so many troubles on one hen

 

[KayTee]

I agree with hennible, it would be counterproductive to give her oral antibiotics for the bumblefoot. Firstly, because it would probably just add to her other problems including the vent gleet, and secondly because oral antibiotics are delivered in the bloodstream, and birds' feet have a relatively limited blood supply compared to mammals, so not a lot of the actual antibiotic would reach the intended area.

When I had to deal with a long-running case of bumblefoot in one of my girls, I started by using an antibiotic cream (that the dermatologist had given me for when I had a wart removed by freezing) - putting a bit on the bottom of her foot each evening after a soak. When that ran out I ordered some Tricide Neo from the US. It's an antibiotic used for fish - you mix it with water and dip the fish in it. I used it as the footbath for my girl, and it worked pretty well. It was a bit fiddly, because it's very expensive, so I made up a small amount and re-used it for a week at a time. This meant that each time I had to warm up the mixture (put the bottle in a bowl of very hot water for 15 minutes before using it), rinse my girl's feet in plain water first to get rid of as much muck and dirt as possible, and after soaking her pour the mixture back into the bottle to re-use the next night. However, it was worth the effort - within a few weeks the black kernel had become much smaller, and eventually I managed to just pick it out and leave her a perfectly healthy foot. (I have to add a disclaimer here - Tricide Neo is only sold for use with fish, not with chickens, so it's a question of using it at your own risk, but I had read quite a lot about it online and it seemed worth giving it a go.)