Bumblefoot "surgery"- What now!

[Iowa Roo Mom]

Ok, so when y'all talk about bumblefoot surgery, do you mean actually "cutting" the foot?

Here is what happened...
I thought my roo had bumblefoot, so I heeded the advice I found and soaked it. I took some sharp tweezers and pulled the scab. It came off. No plug behind it. I proded around a bit inside the hole and got nothing. No blood, no pus, nothing. So now I am wondering- is there really anything in there, or is it just not coming out? Since then I have been wraping the foot with antibiotic ointment and vet wrap- to cover the small hole that I made.

So my question is... now what? Do I let it heal over and risk there being infection still in there? Do I get the tweezers out again?

Chickens are so frustrating sometimes....

 

[Iowa Roo Mom]

Anyone?

 

[dlhunicorn]

Since you found no abscess then packing the wound and letting it heal (taking care that no infection can now enter this open wound site > i.e. keep off ground and foot well protected from soil contaminants) is the way to go.

 

[threehorses]

In addition to what dlhunicorn has said, I'd also try to eliminate the cause of the bumblefoot. Sometimes rounded perches can cause pressure spots. Or bedding (make sure it's clean). Or high roosts. Sometimes conditions of the ground that can break the skin (rocks, thorns, etc) predispose a foot to bumblefoot (which is a staph infection, which is why you use neosporin and solutions of iodine with water to clean - because that's what treat staph).

So I'd take a good look around and see what could have caused it.

Congrats on what sounds like a successful cleaning of that foot! I bet that was quite a job!