Amputated Toe!

[shaninsky]

One of my turkeys got into the horse pen and is missing a toe to about the first knuckle. I think one of the horses must have stepped on her. Not sure what to do. It has stopped bleeding but I think if I bandage it, she or the others will pull it off. Anyone else have this happen. If she shows signs of infection, I'll have to call the vet.

 

[dheltzel]

We had a turkey hen that lost an entire leg last spring. She lost a lot of blood but survives to this day and hops around pretty good. We caught her and trimmed the wound, than spread antibiotic ointment on it quite liberally, wrapped some gauze, then "vet wrap", then duct tape. All that is still on her leg, we decided any stress of catching her to clean and rebandage would offset any benefits.

For a toe, maybe nothing is needed. You could clean and bandage the stump, but you should keep the dressing pretty thin to prevent problems walking.

 

[shaninsky]

Thanks for the reassurance. I'll watch her closely for infection. Wish I could give her something for pain - poor gal.

 

[dheltzel]

Don't assume she feels pain in her feet like we do. It's more likely it just feels weird to her, like a numbed up mouth for us. The reason I say that is that I've seen pics of birds who suffered extensive burns on their feet from very hot or cold surfaces. We would hop off that surface, but I think birds have very few nerves in their feet.

My turkey hen seemed to be in shock that she could not put weight on both feet, and she did look sad, if you know what I mean, but we decided not to "put her out of her misery". Some people might disagree with that decision, but I feel like she's not suffering, as least beyond the first few days. She was broody when it happened and after about 2 days, she was back in her nest trying to hatch eggs again. I hope to give her some fertile turkey eggs when she goes broody next year. She might not be able to hatch and raise them successfully, but I want her to have the opportunity to try.

 

[Book Em Danno25]

that sounds painful!!! poor thing.

 

[shaninsky]

My hen with the missing toe seems to be recovering well. These turkeys are so trusting; they don't think anything will hurt them and I'm sure the horse didn't mean to step on her.