Bumblefoot? Dermatitis? Caked dirt?

[Amphitecna]

I am sorry to.post yet another foot issue thread. I recently got two new pullets from a local breeder. The ladies were *filthy*. It's mud season and the breeder has them all inside very large barns, apparently with roosters. I have them a bath last week and noticed the younger pullet (crested.cream legbar, not laying yet) had *very* dirty feet. The caked on dirt did not come off, and she was stressed. Since she walks and runs fine, no limping I figured I'd wait to see if it came off on its own. I got pix today because it hasn't changed, and when I gently tried to detatch it, the "dirt" seemed attached. Both feet are like this.

What do you all think- caked on dirt or visit to vet?

Tia for sharing your wisdom.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would say that is foot pad dermatitis from being in muddy poopy conditions at their last home. I would make sure they are kept on dry bedding or sand, and once daily I would soak the feet in warm Epsom salts. A foot dressing with some antibiotic ointment or a Betadine and Sugar paste called sugardine may help speed healing. I would consider using a silicone shoe to pad the footpads. Eventually the skin should heal. @coach723 has some good posts about foot care.

 

[coach723]

It may be a combination of mud balls and bumblefoot underneath. At least in the first picture it appears that there may be something going on under all that gunk, or could just be more mud pocket. It may be a combination of dirt ball and scab. I would do as @Eggcessive suggests and really work on soaking and removing as much of that as you can, so you can really see what's going on with the feet underneath that. Mud balls can be hard as concrete, usually a combination of dirt, moisture and droppings, and the makeup of the particular soil can contribute. They can start in crevices in the skin and build up and get larger over time. Sometimes they build up around toes and can restrict circulation. It may take several times of soaking and removing small bits in order to get it all off, being as careful as you can to not damage the tissue underneath. Once it's cleaned up, then it can be determined if further treatment is needed.
I've attached a few pictures of other mud balls or mud pockets on birds feet for examples. The last one is of the first one after one of them has been cleaned out.

 

[Amphitecna]

Thanks guys. Given the state of the birds when I got them, I'm leaning towards combo mud/filth and potentially something underneath. I am in France, so don't have access to antibiotic ointment, sadly (requires a perscription over here) and I'll have to look up the sugardine and see if there's a local equivalent. Do you think honey would work? Under a dressing, of course.

At what point would you call the vet? I am lucky enough to have one locally who does chickens. But getting an appointment has been challenging in the past.

 

[coach723]

Sugardine is very simple and inexpensive. It's just a mixture of plain white sugar and betadine. That is usually not a prescription item, but I've no idea about in France. There is a video here on sugardine, see post #8 here, video is at the bottom:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/bumblefoot-not-healing.1443809/
For softening up, in addition to soaking you can apply petroleum jelly and wrap overnight. Anything that can soak in and keep it moist to help soften it up. Once you can can see the foot underneath, then it can be determined if you will even need to do anything else.

 

[Amphitecna]

UPDATE: I did manage to get a vet appointment, and took her in, fully expecting to be scolded for wasting his time with filthy feet. Nope. Its a raging case of Bumblefoot. Poor thing, she isn't even in lay yet, so the conditions she was in must be shocking. He praised what I'd been doing- epsom baths, vaseline and bandages, so I pass that back to you, since it was y'alls suggestions. Thank you.

She's now on an amox regime for 2 weeks until we see the vet again. We're hoping to avoid surgery. Cross your fingers for her please!!!!

 

[Eggcessive]

Betadine is the same as povidone iodine, which surely is available in France. Mixed in a jar with sugar to make a paste is very good to keep on the feet with gauze pad and a dressing. That along with your amoxicillin may help a lot. Glad that you could see a vet. By the way, footpad dermatitis is the same as bumble foot. Let us know how the chick gets along with pictures.

 

[Amphitecna]

I will post pics. I'd like to document this anyway. I did not know that dermatitis and bumblefoot were the same thing. Learn something new every day. She's doing ok, but for the moment there isn't much change- vet said it would take the two weeks. She's out and about though, and seems to be living her best chicken life, so fingers crossed.