Bumblefoot-need reassurance that I did it right!

[Aequacheek]

I'm a new chicken owner and only had my girls since last may, but they have been active and heathy so far, until this morning when I discovered what Bumblefoot was -_- Sadly I didn't catch it in time and it was very swollen (see pic)

I've researched the surgery way on bumblefoot and being a nurse I felt that I could do it, but while I removed the scab and a solid mass of puss the size of a small pea, the rest of the area still feels hard, although nothing more would come out when squeezed/prodded. Is it just inflammation? In the videos I watched there seemed to be a very noticeable diminution on the size of the mass after removal of the puss, but it doesn't seem to be the case with her foot.

Also it bled way more than I thought it would (probably because of all the prodding x_x). I put a compressive dressing on the foot and set her down in a cage with food and water. She's eating now and I plan to keep her overnight at least but how do I proceed after that? I don't know if I did everything right! HALP!

 

[Epiphany]

Hey there!
First, I'm so sorry that you and your gal are going through this! Looks painful for both of you.
The lancing and disinfecting are great steps to take for bumblefoot, and it's great that you got on it soon enough (looks like it'll heal). Since her foot has already been pretty bothered, it may be swollen simply from the stress of pain and infection. I would let it sit overnight and check to see if it's improved by morning... if it's looking better, that's great! If it still seems irritated or has worsened, it can't hurt to try lancing the remaining abscess in a slightly different spot or to soak the foot for a long time before attempting to drain it further. If you do manage to work anything else out, just give it a good clean with disinfectant and then vaseline it.
Good luck! I hope this helps a bit.
Epiphany

 

[rosemarythyme]

Sounds like you handled it fine. I don't usually notice an immediate decline in swelling. I would recommend soaking it daily with epsom salts for at least a few more days and then reassessing. With more stubborn cases you may have to remove a scab again after several days or even weeks, though what you'd want to see is a smaller scab with less swelling.

 

[Aequacheek]

Thank you so much guys. She's still hobbling this morning but seem better. How long should I dress the wound? I haven't removed the original one yet, but I guess it'll get dirty real quick as they free-range in my yard

 

[coach723]

I usually change the dressing daily, check the foot and reapply whatever ointment you are using, daily until I'm seeing it healing well. Then you can do less frequently, every other or every third day as needed. Dirty and damp conditions will mean more frequent changes. I keep it wrapped until it's pretty healed up, so that it doesn't get reinjured before it has a chance to heal up completely.

 

[Aequacheek]

Thank you so much again. I just redid her bandage and the swelling is a little less than yesterday, but I did a bigger hole than I thought I would do so I'll keep it wrapped for a few days for sure. Phew! First time for everything! I must say it was quite the bonding experience because she's my most scaredy chicken and she was so calm, even stayed on my lap after and got her out of the towel.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I soak and wrap daily until the hole scabs over well enough that I don't worry about dirt getting in there. Obviously that varies by severity of the wound - for small scabs it might only be 2 or 3 days, bigger ones I'd go for at least a week and then reassess. I even plan around the weather - I treat when it's going to be fairly dry so that the vet wrap will stay dry and so the bird can go right back out with the others.

 

[Aequacheek]

The wound looked good yesterday but she managed to get her dressing dirty and it kind of reopened this morning- poor thing. I checked inside again but nothing would come out. I double-bandaged it and now she's mad at me and walking funny XD