chicken has swollen foot limping, lice or mites on her

[Harry Rooster]

Does anyone know if I can use "Frontline Plus for dogs or puppies 8 wks or older up to 22 lbs" it's what the label says. I've got it for my 1/2 Fhist/ 1/2 Jack Russel Terrier dogs, but I read someplace that you can use on chickens, but I don't know where to apply on chicken or if it would be too strong for her. She is a Dominecker hen full grown. I just recently got her and only noticed she had some kind of lice or mites or something on her when I got her up to soak her foot. I noticed white things stuck to her neck feathers, and as I was holding her soaking her, these crawley things got off on my clothes. I don't know what they are, worms maybe even. I don't know any treatment. As for her foot, she has been limping, steping on her toes on her swollen foot when she walks. She was not doing this that I noticed, in the first few days we got her. I thought she might have jumped down from perch wrong or something, then I noticed the swelling and redness. I checked up on bumblefoot and it does not have a hard spot or scab or blackness on it, or a place where it has been cut or anything that I can tell that is wrong with it to have caused it. I haven't soaked it again yet. Need to find out what these things are on her and get rid of them first, I don't want to catch them while holding her. They were kindof of white looking and not looking like a fat round creature, more long and kindof squirm crawling, but they came from the butt area somewhere because they were where she was sitting on my lap, instead of my arms where I was holding her. I don't know anything about this chicken, only that the previous owner didn't want them, the (2 Dominecker, 3 RIR, 1EasterEgg and a Harry looking Rooster with feathers down his legs and on feet, don't know what he is but he is big and black and really fluffy.) Please help, she is walking around some, making it to food and water, but I need to do something about her foot and these things!

 

[chickenladylaur]

The crawly things are absolutely lice. The hard white things you see are actually clusters of lice eggs cling to the feathers. Lice are the most common around the vent area, but are also in other places on the chickens body if the hen is really infested. The lice are simple to remove. All you have to do is go to your local tractor store and ask for poultry dust. It comes in a kind of tube. You should put some gloves on so as not to touch the dust directly, and then separate the chickens feathers and do a light dusting near the vent and the neck, and wherever else it needs. The lice should be gone in a day. After that, do it two weeks later because it will take that long for the eggs to hatch. After that, you shouldn't have much of a problem.

As far as the leg issue goes, I'm not sure. If it's not bumblefoot, it may be some sort of sprain? There is no open wound on the leg at all?

 

[Harry Rooster]

No, I don't see any wound at all, and it doesn't feel hard at all on the bottom of the foot, and now today I noticed her other foot is starting to get red also. I read something on one post about curing foot and leg problems with vitamin B and vitamin D, but I've read so many post and so much material I don't know if it applies to something like this. I've taken a lot of notes, but I over-read them and didn't see anything about that. Thanks for the tip about the lice treatment. I will get right on that, I just wonder if that has anything to do with her foot problems. At first I thought it might be scaley leg mites, but I didn't see anything on her legs and it was kindof different. That is soooo gross! lice make my head itch just thinking about them. Poor chicken, I can only imagine how she must be feeling. What about the chicken house? Will they just die out in there too as a result of my dusting her, and what about the other 5 chickens and 1 rooster in there with her? They were all together, and have always been together, but I haven't examined any of the other chickens cause they look like they are doing fine, and the rooster is big and mean, he wants to attack you when you go in. I have to take a rake in with me to feed them. I don't know what kind of rooster he is but he is black and has feathers all the way down his legs onto his feet. I've never had a chicken or rooster try to chase and attack me. I don't think I could dust him. What to do?

 

[chickenladylaur]

I'm sure all of them have some lice if one does. Your one with the leg problem might just might have more of them because she is the most stagnant out of everyone. It would be good to dust all of them. Sometimes I even put a light power in the nesting boxes as well. As far as the rooster goes, you might just have to ask a brave hen to help you. Usually when you don't act afraid of them they're not so bad....Also, if you're looking for supplements or anything like the for your chicken, you should see if a tractor supply is near you. Where are you located?

 

[Harry Rooster]

A ways out of the Selma, Alabama area. There is a Tractor Supply in Selma but I've never been there, if our Walmart is any example, it might be like someone else on here posted about theirs in Texas,"lame". I don't know, I can call them and ask for whatever. There are also 2 feed & seed stores a few miles from me also, that's where I got the Tetracycline and the Electrolytes. As for the scary rooster, Mama said the same thing about the geese chasing me, but even when I don't act afraid,... here they come! They pinch the crap out of you, if they catch you.

My little sick Bantam cockerel is so sweet, he loves for me to hold him. Such a difference, but I'm pretty sure these new chickens and mean rooster were not treated too well, cause they didn't want them.